Auto Auction Services Corporation (AASC) has introduced a new industry standard for vehicle condition data reporting. This new standard will drive consistency across the entire automotive wholesale marketplace, according to the company.

Through an arrangement with the National Auto Auction Association (NAAA), AASC will distribute Manheim's AutoGrade service to all member auctions at no additional cost. ADESA, Bel Air Auto Auction, Greensboro Auto Auction and Tallahassee Auto Auction will be first to use the service once the integration project is complete.

"We are very pleased to share this new technology with the industry, which was developed through our partnership with Manheim," said Mike Broe, chief executive officer and president of AASC. "AutoGrade will help auctions and sellers in North America maintain a consistent vehicle grading system and allow buyers to see condition report consistency across all channels."

The AutoGrade service is becoming available at a time when wholesale volumes are increasing, buyers are embracing internet platforms, and sellers are asking for consistency and transparency in their vehicle valuation processes across all venues and geographies. Whether or not auctions have a scoring methodology of their own, they will now have the option to offer an AutoGrade on every vehicle in their inventory.

Positioning AASC as the distribution source for AutoGrade will allow all auctions to easily and confidentially adopt the AutoGrade methodology, ultimately improving condition report quality and consistency across the industry. An analysis of vehicle sales data shows that vehicles listed online with an AutoGrade score are three times more likely to sell than vehicles without.