What does "salvage title" mean to you?

[NMBurb02]

A vehicle gets a salvage title because the insurance company covering it decided that it was not worth fixing after an accident and cut the owner a check for the car's value (less the deductible) and the owner basically bought it back from the insurance company for its scrap value. If you buy a car with a salvage title, get comprehensive/collision insurance coverage on it or are not the at-fault party in an accident in which it gets totalled (again), you will get next to nothing for it from your or the other driver's insurance company, even if you paid $20,000 for it and it would cost you $20,000 to replace it. They (the insurance industry) is not too keen on paying full value on the same wrecked vehicle twice.

If you are buying a $2,000 beater, then no real issue, but if you are putting some good money into it, you are screwed if you get T-boned driving it off the lot.

 

[bvance554]

I wouldn't pay equal value for a vehicle with a salvage title versus one with a clean title. That being said, having a salvage title doesn't mean there is anything wrong with the vehicle. Minor damage can rack up the repair cost in modern vehicles and a fender bender can render it totaled/salvaged. My dad has been driving a Toyota Avalon with a salvage title that he repaired himself for 10+ years now with no issues.

 

[Pop_Rivit]

Originally Posted By: Shaman
Does a salvage title scare you, worry you, not bother you?


It doesn't bother me because I'd never purchase a vehicle with a salvage title.

 

[Jarlaxle]

Originally Posted By: cashmoney
Worst case of salvage title I heard of was some poor guy bought a "repaired and rebuilt" Lexus LS430 with salvage title that he later found out was actually two different cars (a front half and a separate rear half) that had been welded together to make a drivable car. Not a good deal even with a discount.


I saw a Mustang fixed that way...and had the guy who did it not told me, I would never have known! I'd buy that LS430... well if I had any interest in an LS 430.

 

[dishdude]

To me salvage titled vehicles have zero value. They are a huge risk, without the upside for a lot of reward.

Best case scenario you end up with a decent car you'll have trouble reselling.

Worst case (and a higher probability) you'll end up with a disaster of a vehicle that you can't resell.

IMO, you're better off buying a car with a clean title that you can easily resell or trade if it turns out to be a nightmare or if situations change and you require a different type of vehicle.

Of course there are a few exceptions, buying back your own vehicle that has minor damage, working with a reputable shop that specializes in rebuilding a particular model, or an older car that had minor damage and it didn't take a lot to total. These scenarios are pretty uncommon though and you really need to know what you're getting into.

 

[thr_wedge]

We had a salvage title. At first it seems like you get a good deal being a few 1000 less than non-salvage. No dealership will touch it for trade in, the title is branded, and a few years later when you want to sell it...depreciation plus salvage title...

Ended up selling it to family fully disclosed for 1/2 of going trade value. Lesson learned.

 

[yesthatsteve]

Originally Posted By: cashmoney
Worst case of salvage title I heard of was some poor guy bought a "repaired and rebuilt" Lexus LS430 with salvage title that he later found out was actually two different cars (a front half and a separate rear half) that had been welded together to make a drivable car. Not a good deal even with a discount.


This is the biggest risk with a salvage-titled vehicle, and it's a huge risk. A Franken-car is not in any way safe for you or your family.

 

[zzyzzx]

I would be OK with a salvage titled car if it were cheap enough. Emphasis on cheap.

 

[morepwr]

I would probably avoid a newer car with a salvage title. I have a 70 Cutlass that has a salvage title and I bought it from the insurance company and had to put a new front clip on it. It had absolutely no frame damage, just sheetmetal and I was the one repairing it. On an older project car, it wouldn't bother me.

 

[Jarlaxle]

Originally Posted By: yesthatsteve
Originally Posted By: cashmoney
Worst case of salvage title I heard of was some poor guy bought a "repaired and rebuilt" Lexus LS430 with salvage title that he later found out was actually two different cars (a front half and a separate rear half) that had been welded together to make a drivable car. Not a good deal even with a discount.


This is the biggest risk with a salvage-titled vehicle, and it's a huge risk. A Franken-car is not in any way safe for you or your family.


Done right, you could drive a clipped car and never know it! Been there, done that. My old boss had a salvage-title car: his Dodge Spirit R/T was T-boned by a GMC Top Kick oil truck. A local guy fixed it...he retired after 30 years as a Chrysler body shop worker. He got what was left of the Spirit, and a parts Acclaim with a bad motor.

The car is PERFECT. It is straighter now than it was when it was built. (Both fenders line up with no shims!) It aligns with no trouble, tracks straight.

Liz's Grand National has a salvage title. (It was a theft recovery.)

 

[Shaman]

Originally Posted By: skyactiv
The average Kentuckian cant afford a new vehicle like a Texan.
As such, the selection of used vehicles in Kentucky is smaller, thus more expensive. Salvage title vehicles are often fixed by shady body shops. A $2K vehicle is one thing. An $8K vehicle with a salvage title is dumb.


I've considered picking up something from Texas and driving it back at Christmas or having something shipped.

 

[mrsilv04]

I'd have to see good pictures taken before it was fixed.

*Then* I would decide...

 

[MetalSlug]

what it mean to me ? its mean " no buy "

 

[UNC164]

Originally Posted By: Jarlaxle
Originally Posted By: yesthatsteve
Originally Posted By: cashmoney
Worst case of salvage title I heard of was some poor guy bought a "repaired and rebuilt" Lexus LS430 with salvage title that he later found out was actually two different cars (a front half and a separate rear half) that had been welded together to make a drivable car. Not a good deal even with a discount.


This is the biggest risk with a salvage-titled vehicle, and it's a huge risk. A Franken-car is not in any way safe for you or your family.


Done right, you could drive a clipped car and never know it! Been there, done that. My old boss had a salvage-title car: his Dodge Spirit R/T was T-boned by a GMC Top Kick oil truck. A local guy fixed it...he retired after 30 years as a Chrysler body shop worker. He got what was left of the Spirit, and a parts Acclaim with a bad motor.

The car is PERFECT. It is straighter now than it was when it was built. (Both fenders line up with no shims!) It aligns with no trouble, tracks straight.

Liz's Grand National has a salvage title. (It was a theft recovery.)



To clarify my post - there is nothing wrong with buying a correctly repaired used car that has a salvage title as long as the buyer 110% understands exactly what they was done to the car that they are buying and that the purchase price is appropriate for a salvage title car.

For me personally there is no reasonable discount that would entice me to purchase a car that had been created by welding separate front and back halves together to make a "new" car. But like others have posted some salvage title repaired cars are much less dramatic repairs. I have heard of some poor guy that had a MB slk280 that had very minor accident requiring fender and front bumper replacement (no structure damage) but also all airbags went off. The repair bill for MB parts, sheet metal, paint and airbags was so expensive that car was "totalled" by insurance company even for a minor accident.

 

[wvrailroader]

In West Virginia, a totaled vehicle has a salvage title until it is repaired, then it gets a "reconstructed" title. I bought a 2009 Focus with a reconstructed title for $5000 less than blue book. I know the guy who rebuilt it and trust him fully. He has rebuilt quite a few salvage title Foci and someone would have to be a very good body man to tell any of them had ever been in an accident. I got to look at the car before it was fixed and truthfully, there really wasn't much damage to it. Looking at it now, it looks like a new vehicle. What totals many vehicles in WV is the fact that until a vehicle is over 4 years old, insurance companies are required to use OEM new parts. This adds up quickly, especially on cheaper cars like the Focus and causes many lightly damaged vehicles to be totaled. It all depends on how well you know the shop doing the work.

I love my Focus and the fact I got it cheap was that much better, since the wife needed a vehicle cheap on gas to go to school. Money is tight right now and I could afford to pay cash for this car. I don't want a monthly payment and frankly resale or trade in value means nothing to me, since I keep my vehicles till they are ready to be scrapped. I plan on buying my next work vehicle from the same place, reconstructed title and all lol.

 

[SS1970chrysler]

I have 2 R-titled cars. One is a theft-recovery that I drive to work daily and the other was acquired through a "mechanic's lien". It was brought in for mechanical work and the owner never showed up again, so vehicle was bought and titled to me for the balance owed. Great deal.