Douglas County government is going virtual to auction off seven old sheriff’s cruisers.

Through Wednesday, the county will offer the police-package sedans through eBay, the online auction site.

“This is definitely a different approach for us,” said Jackie Waggoner, the county’s purchasing agent. “I think there are several entities and other Kansas City entities waiting on the sidelines to see how we do. Everybody’s looking at it, but we’re all kind of tiptoeing into it.”

The idea is to pump more money into county coffers while disposing of old sheriff’s vehicles to make way for new ones. This year’s outgoing fleet features five 2001 Ford Crown Victorias, plus two 1997 models.

Normally the county sells its outdated vehicles and equipment at regional auctions, but a few months ago county officials decided to explore online auctions as a way to cut costs and boost potential sales by broadening the market.

County commissioners initially granted officials permission to sell vehicles at www.esurplusauction. com, a site dedicated to selling surplus government equipment. But Waggoner and other officials discovered that the site’s market was too small and its fees too high.

They soon turned to eBay, the world’s clear-cut leader in online auctions.

“Everybody knows eBay,” Waggoner said. “They have the market.”

The county will pay eBay about $80 in fees for each vehicle. All are being sold “as is,” and buyers will be responsible for picking up their purchases or arranging for their transportation.

The county’s “Buy It Now” asking prices for the vehicles on eBay range from $5,275 to $9,950, well above the trade-in values that range from $3,900 to $7,350, Waggoner said.

http://www.douglas-county.com/Admin_Services/auction.asp

County officials set a “reserve price” for each vehicle, allowing the county to keep a car if the highest bid wouldn’t pay off for the county. All those prices are above the trade-in values, Waggoner said, but won’t be disclosed.

The county doesn’t want to cut the potential for rising bids, which opened Wednesday.

“Now that we’re getting to watch it, it’s exciting. I look a couple times a day,” Waggoner said. “Right now it looks pretty good.”

And that’s not all. The county always is looking for ways to streamline its operations, squeezing savings and maximizing investments, Waggoner said.

The eBay foray could be the start of something big.

“We’ve got two dump trucks that will go to eBay if this is successful,” she said. “We’ll see.”