McLEAN, Va. (Aug. 5, 2005) - The American Truck Dealers (ATD), a division of the National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA), has endorsed the web based truck auctions of Auctio, LLC.

Approved by the NADA Board of Directors at the June 2005 meeting, Auctio is a live, national auction that allows dealers to offer surplus inventory to a broad audience of fellow dealers seeking all types of product. Sellers consign without transporting vehicles to a foreign site and back to their premises if the vehicles don't sell. Catalogs will show inventory available throughout the North American market and will include the results of the entire inventory.

The business model is unique because it's a wholesale environment intended for the exclusive use of registered and approved dealers and OEMs and their subsidiaries. The auctions are real-time and available to approved registrants anywhere they have high-speed Internet access. The convenience for buyers is that they will be able to purchase with confidence without leaving their office. “Comparing Auctio to other online truck auctions is like comparing a chess match to a hockey game,” said ATD Chairman Jerry Turnauer.

Demonstrations of Auctio were held at the 2004 and 2005 ATD conventions. Dealers such as Bill McKenna of McKenna Truck Center in Des Moines, IA, believed that on a national scale Auctio would give dealers an efficient marketplace.

"This is a great opportunity for truck dealers to utilize technology by either selling or purchasing trucks for very little transaction cost," said ATD Vice-Chairman George Grask. "This is another example of how their investment in ATD works for them."

Launch of the online program will occur sometime this fall.