Lemons, Salvage or Water damaged car stories

[Luck_Club]

Share your stories about buying a blemished title car. I've bought 3 with success, and looking at buying a higher end car, but a bit nervous and looking for reassurance.

My first foray into the blemished title world is when we bought a 2012 lemon VW Touareg in early 2013. The car had about 13,000 miles and was in mint condition and nearly $30K below a brand new model. Best part is VW is now going to give me a few grand more than I paid for it as a part of the Diesel gate scandal.

My second blemished car was an 8 year old Volvo S60 with a salvage title for my daughter. At $5K, it had about 50K miles, had been rebuilt by a guy who has been doing salvage rebuilds for years, and was in better condition with more stuff then many others in that price point. Car had a few minor issues, but for a 17 year old it was a great car and loaded at the time. I've driven it on long trips because the miles are basically free. Runs nice and drives smoothly.

The 3rd from the same salvage guy was a 7 year old Infiniti SUV loaded, we brokered for the in laws from the same guy for $8900. After a few initial things were straightened out it has been really good.

So here in lies the dilemma with a big slug of cash coming back from the VW, a taste for Luxury cars, I'm now considering going into a much later model car like 2013 or newer with a blemished title. The stakes are higher, and I may want/need to sell before the 10 year point is reached. At the 10 year point no title is required in my state. So I'm a little concerned about moving into the $20-30K range with a salvage title.

Share your thoughts and experiences to help me decide if I stay in the blemished world, go certified used, or even new.

 

[rayinpenn]

Just curious - is there a special place to find these deals?

 

[euro]

Share your stories about buying a blemished title car. I've bought 3 with success, and looking at buying a higher end car, but a bit nervous and looking for reassurance.

My first foray into the blemished title world is when we bought a 2012 lemon VW Touareg in early 2013. The car had about 13,000 miles and was in mint condition and nearly $30K below a brand new model. Best part is VW is now going to give me a few grand more than I paid for it as a part of the Diesel gate scandal.

My second blemished car was an 8 year old Volvo S60 with a salvage title for my daughter. At $5K, it had about 50K miles, had been rebuilt by a guy who has been doing salvage rebuilds for years, and was in better condition with more stuff then many others in that price point. Car had a few minor issues, but for a 17 year old it was a great car and loaded at the time. I've driven it on long trips because the miles are basically free. Runs nice and drives smoothly.

The 3rd from the same salvage guy was a 7 year old Infiniti SUV loaded, we brokered for the in laws from the same guy for $8900. After a few initial things were straightened out it has been really good.

So here in lies the dilemma with a big slug of cash coming back from the VW, a taste for Luxury cars, I'm now considering going into a much later model car like 2013 or newer with a blemished title. The stakes are higher, and I may want/need to sell before the 10 year point is reached. At the 10 year point no title is required in my state. So I'm a little concerned about moving into the $20-30K range with a salvage title.

Share your thoughts and experiences to help me decide if I stay in the blemished world, go certified used, or even new.

With THIS kind of track record plus your internet handle, I'd say: go for it!

 

[applewoodsb]

Bought a 1977 Toyota Cilicia did not know it had a reconstructed title till we were doing paperwork. Did not have nerve to back out at last minute. Only real problem I remember is passengers feet would get cold in winter. I think there was broken glass in ductwork and would not let heated air in. Other than that was good car.

 

[CaliKid]

I worry about structural integrity or other safety deficiencies in salvaged cars. Plus, for me, I would want to look at how much they are really saving. It's like new-used cars in general. Sometimes a brand new car, which can be bought 10-20% below msrp, is not much more than a one or two year old used car.

 

[REWahoo]

So I'm a little concerned about moving into the $20-30K range with a salvage title.

With good reason. If you are going to spend that kind of money why not go with a certified used vehicle and avoid the risk? Life has far more to offer other than worrying about squeezing the last ounce of blood out of that turnip...

 

[Bruceski44]

Are any inspections required to rehabilitate the title of a salvaged vehicle? Specifically in CA if known. It will always be known as salvaged, correct? So resale value is low? And how do you find outabout the reason for the salvage to check on repairs? Did you have a pre-purchase inspection done by your shop?

 

[Music Lover]

I've never done it, although one of my friends owns a body shop and occasionally buys write offs to repair and sell. He has offered to find a car for me the next time I'm ready to buy.

 

[Sunset]

Dealers are being flooded with cars coming off lease now, so the market for a quality great condition leased car should be pretty sweet for buyers. That is what I'd do.

 

[W2R]

With good reason. If you are going to spend that kind of money why not go with a certified used vehicle and avoid the risk? Life has far more to offer other than worrying about squeezing the last ounce of blood out of that turnip...

+1
Exactly.

 

[Luck_Club]

I worry about structural integrity or other safety deficiencies in salvaged cars. Plus, for me, I would want to look at how much they are really saving. It's like new-used cars in general. Sometimes a brand new car, which can be bought 10-20% below msrp, is not much more than a one or two year old used car.

I agree an aggressive negotiation plus incentives on a new car can often times yield better results than a 1 or two year used car, when they both come from a dealer. However, 20% is often unheard of and 10% off $70K is still a $70K car, with tax and dealer BS. However a $70K 2-3 year old salvage might run me $20K all in.

He indicated he can buy at the some of the lease auctions and not just the wrecked auctions.

I got duped the first time when looking for the VW, not finding out it was a lemon until I had driven about 60 miles to view the car. The Volvo how I found my daughters car was on Craigslist. The guy just turned out to be a really nice and believe it or not honest guy, which is why I'm considering my 3rd car from him. He did repair work for us as well, and has been very reasonable on everything.

The family business of repairing salvage cars has been going for more than 40 years.

The title is marked salvage, but it has to go through a more thorough safety inspection compared to your normal safety inspection, so it is stamped safe by the GOVT.

I am expecting to save anywhere from 30%-50% from market on a similarly specified used car.

 

[Luck_Club]

Dealers are being flooded with cars coming off lease now, so the market for a quality great condition leased car should be pretty sweet for buyers. That is what I'd do.

I've been exploring the off lease cars, that carry the certified pre-owned title. The issue is they are running close to $40K not $20K for the cars I'm interested in purchasing.

 

[freedomatlast]

The biggest factor to consider in a late model, high end, branded title car (especially German) is the fact that the manufacturer's warranty will be voided.
I would be much less concerned about this with a Japanese car than a European name plate. I've had no problems with the one year old branded title Japanese Luxury car with only 3500 miles on the odometer. I was able to check the CoPart site and see the original pictures of the damage and then personally check the quality of the repair work performed before buying. I personally stay away from the flood cars and look at only those with previous body damage. Plan on keeping it for the long term since resale will be low.

 

[Aiming_4_55]

Are any inspections required to rehabilitate the title of a salvaged vehicle? Specifically in CA if known. It will always be known as salvaged, correct? So resale value is low? And how do you find outabout the reason for the salvage to check on repairs? Did you have a pre-purchase inspection done by your shop?

In CA, a few inspections are needed before a plate is issued. DMV checked mileage, dashboard/warning lights, headlights, tail lights, and turn signals. CHP checked VIN and noted any new parts with different VINs. The CHP appointment took almost a month to get in, but no fees. Bring all paperwork.

Resale will be lower and Salvage (or Rebuilt) is on the Title. I bought a 2015 Prius Plug-in in 2016 for $14k when clean title version was going for $21-22k (after all rebates applied, base price was $30k), the value is partially in the Green HOV sticker. The limit was reached and I wanted a HOV sticker for my daily commute.

In my case, I saw the car with damage (rear ended) before repair as my pre-purchase inspection and tested everything before final payment.

After 5 months, I had to jump the car once when I left the car sitting for almost 2 weeks. Not sure if my friend left something ajar or the key fob battery was weak (warning indicator on, $2 battery and 2 minutes to replace on my own).

It saves me about 45 minutes roundtrip per work day and double the gas mileage of my previous car that I retired. Total of 10 months and 8k miles as the daily commuter so far.

 

[Walt34]

I doubt that I'd buy a salvage titled car but if I was considering it I'd have a mechanic do a pre-purchase inspection. WV has an annual safety inspection but it is not nearly as thorough as MD's. In MD anything that can pass the state inspection is worth at least $2k regardless of the rest of the car's condition.

 

[xdafly]

Take a look at this article and consider the implications to "used car sales"

CarMax Fights Outside of It's Weight Class

 

[Souschef]

A collision damaged car is one thing, but I would NEVER buy a water damaged car. With all the electronics in the newer cars, I think it is a disaster waiting to happen.

 

[Bamaman]

I was once looking on EBay and AutoTraders.com for a certain model of sports/luxury car. I found a few that had very minimal damage--like a rear bumper cover--but had been issued salvage titles.

A bumper cover painted can be installed for a measly $1100, but you've still got the salvage title that destroys vehicle value.

My state requires a rebuilder's license to rebuild salvage titled vehicles. That means you've got to have a special business license, place of business and document with pictures the vehicle before and after. You've also got to have the state inspect the car and bills of sale of all new parts and used parts with serial number of vehicles the parts were originally on. Talking to local body shops, none have rebuilder's licenses and they avoid working on such vehicles.

The other state 15 miles from us will let an individual rebuild a vehicle with a salvage title, but again you've got to document before and after with pictures, and document where all the parts came from.

It's just too much of an hassle, and I would avoid buying any vehicle with a salvage title unless the history of the vehicle is completely documented.

 

[Koolau]

I trade cars so infrequently it would seem too big a chance of loss to go for a salvage. OP must trade fairly often. If 3 for 3 have been good, even if the next one is a lemon, maybe it's worth it. Just not something I would set out to do. If such an opportunity landed in my lap and I knew the folks involved, then maybe. YMMV

 

[Luck_Club]

Take a look at this article and consider the implications to "used car sales"

CarMax Fights Outside of It's Weight Class

This is intriguing. In my area I see a supply constraint pricing. Maybe increasing my search area will yield better results.

Maybe another reason to avoid new or certified (premium) used.

 

[REWahoo]

Maybe another reason to avoid new or certified (premium) used.

Rather that a reason to avoid, I see it as a lever to negotiate more favorable pricing.

 

[pb4uski]

This is intriguing. In my area I see a supply constraint pricing. Maybe increasing my search area will yield better results.

Maybe another reason to avoid new or certified (premium) used.

From the link:

What would you prefer to buy… a used 2016 Malibu with 24k miles for $19,599 or a new 2017 Malibu for $18,242?

While I can't recall seeing an upside down example like the above, I have seen that trend. For many years I bought ~2 year old vehicles with ~1 year left on the manufacturer's bumper-to-bumper warranty and was able to find pretty good deals compared to new. In the mid-2000s that went away... the discount for a slightly used car was much smaller than previously... small enough that the additional 2 years of bumper-to-bumper warranty coverage and the joy of having a new car made it worth buying new... and I have bought new ever since.

However, I recently helped DS find a 2016 Kia Forte with 5k miles that was attractively priced.

CPO did save me on one vehicle... the last used vehicle that I bought was an 18-month old 2005 Chevy Colorado with about 20k miles... it needed a new head gasket at about 37k miles.. just past the warranty so I expected abig repair bill... but the dealer informed me that the CPO warranty extended the bumper-to-bumper warranty to 39k miles so the repair was covered.

 

[brett]

Several years ago we were looking for a used car. We had a specific requirement. Full load w/leather, moon roof, 6 cyl, low mileage Accord, Acura, or Camry. Perhaps a Mazda 626. Accident free.

It took us about 3 months to find one. The fourth time was lucky. On each of the first three attempts we ran the car VINS through the autoclub program to check for previous claims. Each of the three supposed accident free cars came through with one or more claims. Two cars had been in serious F/E collisions.
Two of them were private, one was a dealer. All said no accidents. The two private were original owners.

It cost us $25 a throw to check the cars prior to closing but we considered this to be money very well spent. Ended up with a great low mileage Accord that we still own and expect to keep for a few more years.

I would advice anyone looking to do a minimum of two things. Check with Car Proof, and check for liens. If you are not sure, have it inspected by a dealer.