ADESA focuses on gathering data at it begins limited pilot on running cars through lanes

In an increasingly digital remarketing world, what effect does a vehicle passing through an auction lane actually have? ADESA is aiming to find out.

Auto Remarketing has confirmed that ADESA has begun conducting a small pilot return of running vehicles through auction lanes, largely to gauge the numbers-impact of running a car through a lane. In other words, gather the data to make decisions going forward.  

Automotive News was the first to report news of this pilot on Wednesday.

ADESA parent KAR Global said the pilot will be limited in scope. Chief executive officer Peter Kelly said in an interview with Auto Remarketing on Thursday that the vehicles running through the lane would be a “small fraction of our total vehicles sold.” Kelly estimated it would be roughly 5% of its volume.

It is being conducted at 11 ADESA auction sites (in the U.S. only) and for approximately 90 days.

The vehicles involved in the pilot would be lower-value vehicles, essentially repossessed vehicles and dealer cars.  ADESA, which has resumed in-lane bidding for months, will still offer the cars running through the lanes on Simulcast, as well, the company said.

Kelly said KAR is “not backing down” from its stance of being a digital marketing “supported by physical infrastructure.”

“It’s also evident that customers have adapted to that at different paces,” Kelly said.

Through this limited pilot, KAR is looking to gauge, through “apples-to-apples” data, what specific impact running a car through a lane makes.

The company is aiming to see what place in-lane sales should have on what it believes to be a digital future for the industry.

“And we think this (pilot) will give us a true apples-to-apples comparison within our network,” Kelly said, and give ADESA the necessary data to support such a comparison.

Kelly, who described himself as a “numbers person,” said the pilot can provide some clarity into the “true value” of running a vehicle through an auction.

While the sites are those with higher numbers of vehicles ADESA is testing in the pilot, there is a diversity in the mix of sites. The locations conducting the pilot — which Kelly said include mostly medium and smaller auctions, along with some larger ones — stretch from Portland, Ore., to Atlanta and from Minnesota to Texas.

The 11 auctions represent slightly less than 20% of ADESA’s U.S. locations, said Kelly, who said he believes “we’ve got a good representation” of auctions included in pilot.

The pilot will start at different times for different auctions, as some locations may be ready earlier than others, KAR said. And the 90-day period won’t end at the same time. The staggered times are largely due to labor ramp-ups, KAR said. The pilots did, however, begin this week, Kelly confirmed.