I went inside the giant used-car auction where dealers bet on America's next car

I attended the Manheim New Jersey used-car auction, where 4,500 vehicles are sold each week. The lot is a nimble indicator of the auto industry's health. Right now, hybrids are a trend, executives told me, and EV demand is correlated to gas prices. "Nine-and-three!Nine-nine!Nine-and-three!" an auctioneer at Manheim New Jersey chanted rapidly. "We have a four?" A split-second later: “Nine-and-four!” It sounded like gibberish to me. To dealers, it was a call to action. On Wednesday, I attended the massive used-car auction and heard a blur of dealer names, vehicle models, and bids rising in a flash. Around me, a mix of cars — from beat-up Honda Civics to freshly off-lease BMW X7s — moved through 17 in-person and seven online auction lanes. Each week, the roughly 350-acre lot, one of 80 Manheim auctions in the US, lists about 4,500 vehicles. Manheim is owned by Cox Automotive. Used-car auctions offer an early read of auto industry trends.

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