Salvage Jeep Note

[AndyG]

The reason this is not with the other thread is due to something that recently happened.

I was contacted by a member to advise on a purchase of a salvaged TJUR.

It had been wrecked years ago, had a good performance, tire wear and alignment history, and most importantly had pics of it when wrecked, and the type of lick did only cosmetic damage, and likely an A/C condenser.

That being said, I was extremely cautious and let them make the decision.

Why? Because they end up with the Jeep, not me.

I have started to buy and Revive, spruce up, or whatever you want to call it , salvage title Rubicons as a hobby. Do I think everyone should jump in a rebuilt wreck?

Absolutely not.


I have been around auto body nearly my entire life. My brother is a car fanatic. I was free help when I was a kid. We fixed cars that were junked, parked , forgotten, did our own paint jobs, you name it . I live within walking distance of 2 body shops now, guys I grew up with, one of them does my better work to this day, and another shop close by does my non critical work vehicle stuff.

If you want to know what to look for, and how to navigate that territory a little, we can continue this thread ...just post questions. But right out of the gate, telling someone to buy a rebuilt wreck is like telling someone who to marry...you don't know how it might turn out.

Am I a hypocrite ..saying it's ok for me and not for someone else? No.

It is just a really different deal, and if you don't know what you are looking for, or are a perfectionist, you will likely end up sick you did it.

On the other hand, it has some neat advantages, and can pay off. Particularly with Jeeps. Not all, but for the most part they are hard to damage, fix affordably, and resell easily.

They may be THE best vehicle to buy in that category. But don't let anyone tell you it's the same as a non wrecked one. That's a lie. You trade a lower price for some unknowns.

The key is not to get burned.

 

[Nightmare9]

Personally I would never consider a salvage title vehicle.
If you are going to buy a "stock" jeep and then drop $10-20k in aftermarket parts, why save a small amount on the Salvage title.
If you are going to fab/mod all sorts of weird stuff, then I guess I can see saving some money on the damaged vehicle.
But even something with just "cosmetic" (fenders, bumpers, etc) damage will absolutely KILL the resale value.

 

[hardtailpan]

There are different rules for different states as well. Some states let you "wash" the salvage title into a new clean title. I know the accident would show up on carfax, but would the fact that it had a salvage title and then a clean one? I don't know. In Mass, the salvage title follows the vehicle as long as its in the state

Sure these vehicles can be had cheaper. I wouldn't want to get involved with them in my state as the salvage title seriously lowers the resale value. The only way this would be interesting to me would be as a parts donor, but it sure would have to be cheap.

 

[Davidtj]

Like Andy G I have bought and repaired several salvage title vehicles a nice jk for my son and several work vans for me
In my case don’t care about resale on vans because just going to run a lot if miles and get rid of Never had any problem selling when done just have to price accordingly
I too have grown up working on cars mechanical and body work so when I look a a wreck I see the finished product but like Andy said it can work out for you but easy to get burned also every one I have taken on I always find something else not first seen when you get it torn down

 

[pagrey]

Is there any difference in the inspection you would perform on a salvaged Jeep versus a clean title? What items would you skip on a clean title?

 

[Davidtj]

There are plenty of “clean title “ cars out there that should have a salvage or rebuilt title so for me I give a skeptical eye to all of them

 

[pagrey]

I have a friend that bought a factory re-certified BMW from a BMW dealership in Los Angeles. Took the car a few months later to have the brakes done at his local dealership and they called to say they wouldn't work on it, cracks in the frame from a poor repair.

 

[hardtailpan]

Is there any difference in the inspection you would perform on a salvaged Jeep versus a clean title? What items would you skip on a clean title?

This is again a state specific requirement. In Mass, you need to take the vehicle to an inspection site (no, you can't drive it there) and they will look it over. You also have to provide receipts for parts and or work done. If the vehicle passes it will be allowed to be registered, but it will still have a salvage title.

 

[hardtailpan]

Like Andy G I have bought and repaired several salvage title vehicles a nice jk for my son and several work vans for me
In my case don’t care about resale on vans because just going to run a lot if miles and get rid of Never had any problem selling when done just have to price accordingly
I too have grown up working on cars mechanical and body work so when I look a a wreck I see the finished product but like Andy said it can work out for you but easy to get burned also every one I have taken on I always find something else not first seen when you get it torn down

Yeah, this I agree with. If I'm buying a vehicle to run into the ground for myself then I could care less if it's a salvage title because by the time I sell it, the re-sale value won't matter. Also, for some vehicles, usually newer ones, they can get a salvage title for relatively little damage. You really need to know what you're looking at and be prepared to fix a bunch of crap you didn't expect to. For the right people, there are deals to be had.

 

[pagrey]

This is again a state specific requirement.

I just mean what you would look at yourself to make sure the thing wasn't a turd.

 

[qslim]

I’ve bought several salvage titles vehicles over the years. I think the most important thing is understanding the context under which the title was branded. Sometimes the damage can be relatively benign yet still cost enough $$$ for an insurance company to total it, sometimes the frame gets broken in several places. If you can ascertain the reason as to why the title to the vehicle was rendered salvage you can make an educated offer. You also have to understand that a branded title pretty much takes the vehicle out of the standard book market, so the more info you can get on the damage the better.

 

[Got4wd]

I have a salvage car. Theft recovery. Great little commuter car. I would buy one again.

 

[N757KF]

Did anybody have problems getting insurance with salvage titles?
Thinking in terms of higher premiums to flat out refusal. Does it depend on insurance company?

 

[Davidtj]

I have not had any problems I think it depends on company. I also don’t call them and say guess what I got
Some won’t write full coverage liability only so kinda depends

 

[AndyG]

I’d look at the sa

Is there any difference in the inspection you would perform on a salvaged Jeep versus a clean title? What items would you skip on a clean title?

I look at the same things, but harder at the frame and body alignment on a wreck.

 

[AndyG]

Personally I would never consider a salvage title vehicle.
If you are going to buy a "stock" jeep and then drop $10-20k in aftermarket parts, why save a small amount on the Salvage title.
If you are going to fab/mod all sorts of weird stuff, then I guess I can see saving some money on the damaged vehicle.
But even something with just "cosmetic" (fenders, bumpers, etc) damage will absolutely KILL the resale value.

This is a good post. Look at this guys Avatar, his Lj looks phenomenal. A guy like this isn’t going to want a rebuild. I’m a split personality, I have a TJR I want to look like his avatar, at the same time I enjoy the projects as well. You can’t be looking for perfection.

 

[Hog]

I too have a hard time wanting to buy salvaged title vehicles... but with that being said, nowadays, that perfectly purchased vehicle you just bought off a used car lot or from someone personally could have been wrecked.. never reported... and repaired!!.. in their shade tree mechanics garage or something.. at least with a salvaged titled vehicle you kinda know what your getting cause most have pics of what happened or a description... I sold my wife’s Tahoe several years ago(after my 16 year old flipped it into a ditch).. was gunna fix it but they said frame was bent so I sold to a junk yard for 1500 bucks.. I went back a few years later , with my son, to look at it and it was gone!!.. I then realized that junk yard probably sold it to some “mechanically inclined” person with a clean title and put it back on the road...
Side note: I didn’t report it cause .. well obvious reasons!

 

[Mike_H]

I've been kicking this idea around a little. I'm pretty sure I could turn a tidy little profit if I could find good salvage vehicles from down south, repair them, then sell them, rust free, in my rustbucket climate. @AndyG I may reach out to see what a salvage should go for. I've tried to watch a couple salvage auction sites, but they generally don't list the selling price (or I haven't found it).

The pitfall I would run into is fixing EVERYTHING the way I fix MY jeep. I'd lose my ass. Way too much time invested.

 

[B00mb00m]

I bought my jeep from insurance auction because I knew I was going to build it and it saved me about enough $ to get the new Jk axles. Easily worth it for me. It was stock and wrecked and wrecked lightly. Now I've driven it for near three years. I would buy someone else's built salvage rig if they showed me the damage and it didn't seem to be a concern and if they had driven for a while to flesh out the bugs.

I would be very skeptical of someone flipping wrecked vehicles for profit. That work encourages cutting corners. So my first question would be did they build it for themself or for $.

 

[AndyG]

All good posts. Don’t let anybody tell you it’s a sure profit, or a lost cause -it’s neither. It’s a way to by a vehicle at a discounted price, but there are trade offs.

Don’t do it if you are completely guessing, worry incessantly or aren’t mechanically inclined.

Don’t do it if you don’t know what you are looking for.

Also, you want to be familiar with a TJ wrecked or not, because you have to deal with the vehicles inherent characteristics as well as what the accident did.

I don’t even know if I’d do it as my only way to own one, it’s just a way to play with some extra cash ...I’ve always liked to tinker on vehicles , and owning a TJ has brought the joy(most of the time ) of that back.