6 Simple Steps to Sell Dealership Inventory Faster
Let’s be honest: aging dealership inventory is one of the biggest challenges for dealers. Every day it sits, it loses value, takes up a prime spot and ties up your capital. You know you need to move it through wholesale vehicle sales, but the thought of coordinating transport to a physical auction or dealing with complicated listings processes can feel like another chore.
The good news is that wholesale doesn’t have to be a drag. At OPENLANE, we’ve built a digital auto marketplace that puts the power back in your hands. Whether you’re looking for a 45-minute auction or a Simulcast sale, we’ve streamlined the vehicle selling process to be easier than you think.
Step 1: Create Your Listing and Capture Vehicle Details
45-minute auctions
Open the OPENLANE mobile app and hit the Create button. Enter the VIN, vehicle condition details and all necessary disclosures. Once you’re done, your listing moves to the Parked state, ready for its final review.
Simulcast
Click the dedicated Simulcast tab for a view of the sales schedule and runlists.
Pro Tip: High-quality photos and videos are the best way to increase buyer confidence and help your vehicle sell faster online. The more detail you provide, the higher your chances of a quick sale.
Step 2: Choose Your Selling Strategy
Once your inspection is complete, you have a few strategic options to sell dealership inventory fast:
45-minute auctions
There are two routes you can go for 45-minute auctions.
If you want to build some hype, move the vehicle to Upcoming. This gives buyers up to four days to preview the car, add it to their WatchList and place Proxy Bids.
In a hurry? Skip the line and launch it directly into an Active 45-minute auction. You’ll be able to watch the bids roll in in real-time while you get back to managing your dealership.
Simulcast
You can choose to sell your vehicle directly from your lot or transport it to a nearby Vehicle Logistics Center. List your vehicles 24 to 48 hours before a Simulcast sale begins to generate interest and give buyers a chance to preview your inventory. Market Guide 2.0 can help you evaluate your pricing and set a competitive floor price, which may improve your changes of selling.
Step 3: Manage Offers and Live Sales
To ensure you never miss a beat, set up your notifications in your settings, such as Vehicle in Closing, so you are always looped in on important marketplace activities and buyer messages. Providing clear and accurate disclosure helps foster buyer confidence and trust.
45-minute auctions
If your floor price is met during the auction, the vehicles move to Closing. This is the “overtime” period where the top two bidders can battle it out. Every late bid extends the clock, ensuring you get the true market value.
If you don’t hit the floor price, don’t sweat it. The vehicle moves to Pending:
- You have a 24-hour window to either negotiate with the top bidder; or
- Send it to Closing at the current high bid.
If you don’t make a move within 24 hours, the listing expires to Not Sold.
Simulcast
Manage your sales remotely. Log in up to an hour before the auction starts to review your runlist and ensure your vehicle condition reports are good to go. Once the sale goes live, you can monitor the bidding and manage your inventory completely online, keeping you in full control of your turf from anywhere.
Step 4: Complete the Sale
Once a buyer wins your 45-minute auction or Simulcast Sale, the vehicle status updates to Sold and you can view the purchasing dealer.
45-minute auctions
For trade-ins not yet on your lot, mark the vehicle as Landed once it arrives. To keep the vehicle selling process efficient, update this status within two business days of your original estimate.
Simulcast
If the sold vehicle is already in-stock on your dealership lot, it skips the sold state entirely and goes straight to Landed. This immediately notifies the buyer that the vehicle is ready to be paid for and picked up.
Step 5: Arrange Vehicle Pickup or Transport
When it’s time for the vehicle to leave your lot:
- If the buyer uses OPENLANE transport, the status updates automatically to Picked Up.
- If you’re handling your own transport, you’ll need to sign a Vehicle Release Form and manually update the status in the app.
This keeps your dealership inventory workflow accurate and up-to-date.
Step 6: Relist or Use Simulcast to Maximize Exposure
45-minute auctions
Not every car sells on the first try, and that’s okay. If your vehicle ends up in the Not Sold state, you can:
- Relist it quickly on the marketplace
- Pivot to Simulcast for expanded buyer reach
Simulcast
Through the connected marketplace, you can go from a 45-minute auction to a Simulcast sale in just a few clicks. Best of all, there are no extra sell fees; if a vehicle was initially listed on OPENLANE, we’ll match the original sell fee when moving it to Simulcast.
You can even use our Remote Repping tool to represent your vehicle digitally during the Simulcast sale. You’ll be able to chat with the auctioneer and answer buyer questions in real time, just like you were standing in the lanes, but without the travel time or the stale coffee.
Start Selling Faster with OPENLANE
By following these steps, you’re not just selling a car; you’re improving dealership inventory management, optimizing cash flow and selling vehicles faster online, making room for the inventory that actually belongs on your front line.