To buy a salvage title? (Yay or nay?) - Fuel Economy, Hypermiling, EcoModding News and Forum

alohaspirit · 06-22-2009, 10:12 PM

Salvage Title, are you kidding me?
That cars been in an accident or a flood! Someones died in that!
Why would you buy that?

We all know the worse and have even seen the car commercials.

But...

What about the cars in minor fender benders or were stolen for a 20 hour joyride.

Insurance companies write them off as salvage to reduce their fees.

Yet they are perfectly driveable?

So, if its salvage, working great and a few Ks off the price, why not buy it?

Has anyone done it, and is there a difference in insurance cost?

TimJFowler · 06-22-2009, 11:42 PM

Only if you can verify exactly why the car has a salvage title. Don't take the seller's word for it, get confirmation from a uninterested, third party.

Yes, insurance will be lower as you can't have comprehensive and collision coverage (at least in my state) only liability/property/medical/uninsured motorist coverage.

FWIW,
Tim

rmay635703 · 06-23-2009, 12:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by alohaspirit

[I]
What about the cars in minor fender benders or were stolen for a 20 hour joyride.

Insurance companies write them off as salvage to reduce their fees.

Yet they are perfectly driveable?

So, if its salvage, working great and a few Ks off the price, why not buy it?

Has anyone done it, and is there a difference in insurance cost?

I would argue cut the price in half or less and it may be a deal, salvage title stays with the car forever bighting you in the arse.

And I would strongly 2nd TimJFowler a lot of research is need because all sorts of odd things happen when its salvage, sometimes including the original owner wanting the car back and trouble getting around the DMV.

Its always tough even with a so called carfax to know the real reason something ends up salvage and that risk deserves a very strong reduction in price for the hassles in buying, titling and obviously if you ever want to sell.

My father had a salvage vehicle years ago but he never planned on selling and it worked out OK till we junked it years later. It always did have some odd problems that were never worked out.

Good Luck

Christ · 06-23-2009, 12:49 AM

If the vehicle has a Salvage title, it doesn't need to be titled. It's already titled, it just has to be inspected and a reconstruction mark added to the title. If you buy a total loss from the insurance company, then you need to retitle it.

I drive a car w/ a reconstructed title on it, my wife's Grand Prix. The car literally had the rear bumper fall off. The insurance company totaled it, the guy bought it back, fixed the bumper, then re-titled it with a reconstructed brand in PA.

I bought the car for $400 and have been driving it ever since, and besides basic GM BS, it's been great.

rmay635703 · 06-23-2009, 01:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Christ

I bought the car for $400

And my point is made, if you plan on buying one, plan on keeping it indefinately and make sure its bloody cheap. Some are great some are OK and some suck depends on who you are buying from, I would avoid professionals selling salvage as they tend to rip you off and there usually isn't any recourse.

Christ · 06-23-2009, 01:10 AM

In PA, the lemon law still has provisions for salvage vehicles.

I helped a friend of mine make a deal on a reconstructed Eclipse, and we paid just about $7k for the car (lots of aftermarket stuff). The person we bought the car from guaranteed that it could be inspected as it sat, and after 3 inspection trips, the bill was over $10k for repairs (from shops and dealers) to make it street legal.

We took the kid to court, and ended up keeping the car, and he paid back the $7k penny for penny.

alohaspirit · 06-23-2009, 02:21 AM

is there a difference between salvage title and reconstructed?

or is it the same thing

Christ · 06-23-2009, 02:53 AM

When a car is totalled by an insurance company, the original certificate of title (issued by the state in which the vehicle is registered) is surrendered to the state.

If a person opts to buy that vehicle from the insurance company, which is often done for parts, the insurance company can issue (they're state bonded) a "certificate of salvage" for said vehicle. This is basically a note transferring ownership of an unfit vehicle.

This is necessary when a vehicle is bought for parts, since in most states, to use major components from another vehicle, you must add those component's serial numbers to your own title, by filing official paperwork with your local DMV.

The certificate of salvage, upon completion of a state inspection (not the one you pay for every year, this one's a little more in depth), will be exchanged for a new certificate of title in the state in which it was applied for. This new title will be branded with an "R" in the "special circumstances" section, which means that it's been "Officially reconstructed" and "passed state safety inspection".

alohaspirit · 06-23-2009, 02:57 AM

does that mean that a salvage cant legally be driven on the street?

and there will be difficulty getting a safety sticker?

Christ · 06-23-2009, 02:59 AM

You can't register a salvage certificate, you need to get a state safety inspection, and then there is paperwork that gets filed, then they send you a reconstructed title, at which point, you're legal (registration and insurance notwithstanding.)

In Hawaii, it might be something different, but that's how I've always known it.