MANHEIM Australia has announced that it will relocate to brand new facilities in Melbourne, Queensland and Sydney over the next 12 months.

Describing the move into “sophisticated and future-proof facilities” the company said that a “huge capital investment will modernise the company’s automotive, salvage and industrial auctioneering, rectification and secure storage capabilities”.

The latest major relocations come on the heels of recent site upgrades and moves for Perth and the north and south islands of New Zealand.

The company said in a statement that the changes reinforce Manheim’s commitment to excellence on both sides of the Tasman.

Cox Automotive Australia CEO Stephen Lester

The vehicle remarketing leader said that it is embarking on its broadest-ever series of site relocations and that this would drive its auctioneering, inspection, detailing, rectification and storage capabilities to new levels to serve its broad network of industry partners.

It said that the project was unprecedented in terms of both scope and investment.

It said that a series of site moves is already underway, starting in the company’s second-largest market of Brisbane, where the operations team is in the process of shifting from Manheim’s old Eagle Farm site to a nearby facility in the TradeCoast business precinct.

The new Brisbane passenger and commercial vehicle site will open in mid-2026, with 43,784m2 of operational space and room for 987 cars undercover, a further 371 cars outside, and room for four simultaneous auctions.

TradeCoast, Brisbane

This is to be augmented by separate 20,000m2 sites for Salvage and Industrial operations in Pinkenba, and another nearby facility for the Queensland Inspection Services unit.

Manheim just held its final in-person physical car auction at the long-serving Eagle Farm site last week and will be running all Brisbane auctions including Queensland Government (QFleet) events via online simulcast, until the TradeCoast facility is up and running in June.

This will be followed by a series of relocations involving the shift from Manheim’s Sydney site in Moorebank to a new mega auction facility in Kemps Creek, taking up 129,748m2 of space with room for 1296 cars under hail netting, 300 cars under cover, 2200 salvage units (including 1680 units in racking), and industrial equipment.

The company said the current timing for this facility’s opening for vehicle inspection, in-person auctioneering and storage is Q4 of 2026, “at which point it will revitalise Manheim’s operations in Australia’s largest vehicle market and enable the company to expand its footprint”.

Manheim’s Melbourne operations will move from its well-known Altona facility and business HQ in the western suburbs to a bespoke greenfields development in Truganina. This site is now in the process of being constructed ahead of an estimated Q2 of 2027 opening – at the latest.

Kemps Creek, Sydney

This mega-site will take up 254,987m2 of space with space for 3438 cars under salvage nets, 2611 damaged vehicles in the salvage section, an industrial equipment section, and “room again for four simultaneous in-lane physical auctions – which will continue, as ever, as a business unique selling point”.

At the same time, Manheim will relocate its corporate office and national headquarters to a new location closer to Melbourne, as soon as late 2026, in closer proximity to key corporate partners.

All three new sites are to be highly secure with palisade or electric fencing and extensive camera networks, and importantly will be future-proofed with EV charging, and more sophisticated vehicle imaging and scanning technologies with automation. This will be overseen by the Melbourne-based Manheim Centre of Excellence staff training facility.

The site relocations are the largest such project in the company’s history in Australia.

Further region-specific property investments from 2028 will be announced later.

Cox Automotive Australia CEO Stephen Lester said in a statement: “These significant and exciting capital investments demonstrate Manheim’s commitment to excellence for our thousands of buyer and seller partners across the automotive, salvage and industrial sectors, and will take our operational capabilities to new heights.

Truganina, Melbourne

“Modern, future-proof, newly built and with long-term leases, these facilities demonstrate our commitment to the Australian market as a leading asset auctioneer and will give our people an even better day-to-day working experience to boot.

“We are thrilled to be embarking on such a seismic shift, proud of the enormous amount of work that our team continues to put into this business makeover, and grateful for the support we receive from our global parent company headquartered in the United States,” Mr Lester said.

The company added that alongside the investments in site moves, it was investing in AI-enabled inspection tools that improve speed and accuracy. Manheim also continues to evolve its online auction and referral platforms as part of its customer-friendly commitment to an ‘omnichannel’ marketplace.

Footnote: Manheim Australia is part of Manheim, a global remarketing company based in the United States with 121 wholesale operating locations across several continents, 30,000 employees and $US46 billion in annual turnover. Its parent company, Cox Automotive, is the world’s largest vehicle services firm.