Kanes2413

iTrader: (9)

Just seeing what everyone thinks on this case 01 camaro ss with 11,000 miles sunset orange a4 t-tops loaded but it has a rebuilt title says it was from a fender bender and has police report to show it was a very little damage on fender etc. Think i should take a look and purchase even asking price is 11,500 what does everyone think?

JerseyLS1TA

iTrader: (2)

I wouldn't buy a car that has a rebuilt or salvage title, but thats just me.

evrae205

im always weary of cars with a rebuilt titles. my buddies 240 turned out fine. but ive seen some that still ahd bent frames or really shitty paint on the repaired sections, or tons of bondo ect. I'd have a reputable body shop take a REAL good look at it.
either way the price is quite high. I paid 9300 after title,tag and all taxes for my 99 TA with a clean title that had only been adult owned. had 83k miles on it.

pewter01z

iTrader: (44)

I agree with evrae205. If the car is fixed correctly there is nothing wrong with a rebuilt. If you don't know what to look for then take to a good body shop and even offer to pay them to check it out. Price does seem a little high though. You may have trouble reselling later because so many people are afraid of rebuilts.

Honestly a lot of cars are given salvage titles that don't deserve them. I have seen them with only minor sheetmetal damage have a salvage title b/c the ins. co totaled it out. I ahve also seen clean title cars that have been reduced to a pile of scrap in a wreck and if the person has no insurance then it never affects the title.......sometimes it will show up as a major accident on carfax but sometimes it doesn't.

Kanes2413

iTrader: (9)

what should i look for and should i try to price drop him he has the police report on the accident and it only has 11k miles i mean im sure hed go down a little but as for me if everything checks out body shop says ok im pretty sure im not going to find something clear title or whatever for nearly the price and miles

stangeater99

If a body shop tells you its ok and you have a mechanic check it out good and he agrees offer him 10k and go from there.

davered00ss

iTrader: (4)

It's a crap shoot. The pic's may be from another accident it was in. Hard to believe you got a rebuilt title for just a fender bender. Normally they are for totaled cars.

Louie83

iTrader: (3)

Is that car in Dayton, OH?

I just talked to a guy at a performance shop who was telling me about a car he was selling just like that.

luvmeZ28

iTrader: (3)

im usually weary about things like this, but only 11k miles and its SOM for that price. i would probably risk it.

Mike02Z

iTrader: (13)

Too High!!! I paid 7500 for my 02z back in Oct 03 with under 20k miles on it. Mine was a fresh water flood car. 2k for all new interior and so it was still only 9500.00.

Unless you really know what your looking for I advise against a salvaged or reconstructed title car. There are so many things that can go wrong. You also won't get **** at resale. I have a relative in the business of buying and restoring 4th gen f-body's so I felt pretty good about my car but I would never have done it on my own. Be really careful and have it checked out really well if you decide to go for it.

Oh and the insurance company does not pay off a car with a "little damage" the frame took a shot or they would just have paid to have the fenders and other stuff damaged replaced. If the car was issued a "salvage" title it was paid off and consdered unfit for the road. Again, if you have it checked out completely and just want a driver you might want to go for it but don't take the guy selling it at his word unless you know and trust him.

Tainted

iTrader: (9)

thats all my grandpa gets from the salvage sale. totaled cars with salvage titles. some folks are jsut **** about cars that have been wreckked, and sometimes for good reason. but elt me tell you, some cars they total are awesome pieces, theyve hand range rovers and **** that need a ehadlight and fender and they total it. insurance companies are dumbasses when it comes to totaling cars because they dont wanna pay uot to fix the car. now with that said, some cars could be squished flat as a pancake but heres my opinion....

DONT be afraid of them, just use caution. if it was properly fixed to factory specs then whats the big deal? it was fixed as it should have been and there aint a thing wrong with it! also for a car with a salvage title, kiss that lieing *** kbb good-bye and use the NADA book instead.

ScottF

My WS6 has a rebuilt title. I was very nervous about buying it. I had 2 differant mechanic's look at it plus a body shop. With the damage that was done to it I was really surprised it was a salvaged vehicle. I haven't had the car very long, but it seems to be fine. Everything works & it runs great, for now.

pewter01z

iTrader: (44)

Insurance companies DO total out cars with very little damage. I HAVE personally bought several of them BEFORE they were fixed. Maybe they do it different in PA but this does happen in other areas of the country.....Don't assume that the crooks that call themselves insurance adjusters do the right thing. They don't always just fix what needs to be done. Take it from someone who actually has experience dealing with more than one insurance car.

Tainted

iTrader: (9)

^^^ amen i thought i explained that in my reply I posted a few things up. they will total anything lemme tell ya. it can have 1 mile or 100,000,000 miles and both need jsut a fender, they would probably total the 1 mile car and fix the 100,000,000 mile car. theyre weirdo's lemme tell ya. and just for the record every wednesday we got to Adesa Impact which is the sale itself for those cars are at and i have a very good friend that is an insurance claims adjsuter. he even told me those folks are ****** idots and total whatever they can

Mike02Z

iTrader: (13)

Ok, I'll buy that. You guys seem to know more about insurance than I do but it also explains why we pay so damn much for car insurance.

I'm no expert in totaled vehicles either but I have seen many cars that my brother has bought that look like superficial damage and my brother will point out why they were considered totaled. I've never seen him buy a salvaged title car at auction that was just a simple fix. I'm sure it happens but it is not anything I have seen in my neck of the woods. He bought an 04 GTO the other day. Looked like it just needed a front bumper and fender to me but one wheel stuck out further than the other and after he pointed out all the hidden damage that is was obvious why the car was totaled.

And yes the right shop can make almost any salvaged car road worthy again but for the novice it's a risky proposition at best. Not all of us have a relative in the business of fixing up salvaged cars or a grandpop who owns a shop. I think we need to keep that in mind here guys.

rocketman442

iTrader: (8)

I bought mine totaled and fixed it myself with the help of a friend that is ASE certified body man. I wouldn't have been able to afford a very well maintained LS1 6 speed T/A without buying it wrecked and fixing it myself. I had 7k in mine with a WS6 hood, CAI and a cat back.

irbs

iTrader: (7)

My dad bought my brother a 2001 SS salvage title car and it was a good car. If you plan on keeping it along time its a good choice. But if you plan to sale it in a few years then dont.

hawaiiboysz

iTrader: (4)

**** I had a accident at 25-30 mph and the front tweaked a bit. Insurance totalled the car. They said if it was in the states it would have gotten repaired. But due to me being overseas they would not pay to get it fixed. I was pissed about that. Im getting it repaired in england since they are a little more high tech then Greece.

vipermike2002

iTrader: (3)

My dad has owned a bodyshop for almost 30 years. I work with him alot so I have learned some stuff about the repair biz along the way. Idk about in your state but in IL a car is given a salvage title when it is wrecked and the damages total I believe more than 1/3 of the value of the car. These "salvage" cars are then sold at auction by the insurance company. After that they could be bought by a junk yard, body shop etc. I belive legaly to buy a salvage car and repair it you have to get a rebuilder linsce. If the salvage car ever gets repaired it has to get inspected by the state to make sure its road worthy. Only then is a "rebuilt" title granted to the repaired salvage car.

My dad buys salvage cars every once and a while, repairs then to sell to drive. He bought this 02 Durango with 35K for $4999 at a place that sells salvage cars. It was in a roll over accident. He bought it with the intention to repair it, and use it to tow our snowmobiles. He is going to keep this truck for along time. The durango basicly needed a new roof, window, a few fenders, and a complete paint job as some of the panels had small damages. It wasnt wrecked that bad clearly repairable.




The repair process



After he was done with it he had to take it to get inspected by the state. It passed inspection and now has a rebuilt title.


Now look at this flawless durango. It looks flawless, runs flawless. But it still has that rebuilt title so it is worth ALOT less than a simular car with a clean title. You would never know this car was in a roll over unless you were a professional and knew what to look for.

My advice for you. If your not going to keep the car for along time stay away from it, you will have a very hard time selling a car with a rebuilt title. Try to find some pictures of the car before it got repaired to see how bad the damages were, and like other people said, take it to a bodyshow to have a pro check it out.