OP
Would you buy a salvage title TJ? Potential purchase
- Thread starter Kvarilek
- Start date
Xposure
TJ Enthusiast
I looked at a salvage title, if you plan on getting full coverage you can but what State Farm and most other ins companies that insure salvage titles do is hit you with 25-50% depreciation. So if you have a total loss claim....so you paid 9k and get full coverage, but your ins will take book value, reduce that 25-50%, subtract the deductable....and your lucky to get half of what you paid for it.
You have to make sure you're getting a good enough deal that it's insurable
You have to make sure you're getting a good enough deal that it's insurable
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Edward Turner
TJ Enthusiast
It’s a very rare sheared bolt that can't be removed and replaced if it didn’t just take that chunk of the block with it.
Xposure
TJ Enthusiast
If I was real real serious I'd take it to both a body shop and a mechanic and have it inspected. You may spend a couple hundred bucks at each just to hear 'it's good' or maybe to hear 'run'....BUT if you don't feel qualified to truly assess the vehicle the you need to have it inspected. It might seem like a waste of money but it might also save you from buying a mess.
Also for the mechanic take it to one that looks at a LOT of Jeeps and would notice something small that's not right....maybe Jeep dealership or a 4x4 shop
Also for the mechanic take it to one that looks at a LOT of Jeeps and would notice something small that's not right....maybe Jeep dealership or a 4x4 shop
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My opinion is, even if it checks out it is still a $7-$7500 vehicle max, with the salvage title. There a way too many out there to settle.
Yeah, there are wranglers for sale every day, with new ones hitting the market all the time. Why buy this one? It has issues. I can't get past the fact that they didn't get the motor mounts squared away. Replacing them isn't going to do you any good, if the holes don't line up anymore.
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Xposure
TJ Enthusiast
If the motor mount bolt really did sheer off he probably hasn’t replaced it because the shaft is still in the hole and will have to be extracted out. If that much force was on the motor mount I’d replace all the bolts and probably the mount as well.
That would make me wonder about other bolts....axle bolts, body bolts, who knows what other bolts that may not have sheered off but are bound up for you too find 2yrs from now when you try to remove something and every bolt you touch the head snaps off.....that would suck. I might would take a socket set and break loose some bolts in various places to make sure they back out okay.
9k sound like a lot BUT it is a 06 with 50k...in my area with a clean title that would sell for probably 12ish. I’d look up retail on it and subtract 1/3rd and offer him that, tell him that’s all it’s insurance for with a salvage title. To be honest he bought it wrecked and salvaged for probably $1500 -$2000 at auction and has spent 4K repairing it. I SERIOUSLY doubt he has over $6k in it. The 9k he threw out probably has a lot of meat on the bone because he knows he will get hammered on the salvage title. If I wanted it I would probably low ball him with like $6500 and see what he replies with...then after a couple days make a offer that is a little less than mid way.
After looking at some prices for 2006 Jeeps....if it really is in excellent shape and mechanically sound with excellent frame work and paint....then it’s probably going to be insurable for around 8k or so....but that’s my area....you need to find out what they sell for in your area.
That would make me wonder about other bolts....axle bolts, body bolts, who knows what other bolts that may not have sheered off but are bound up for you too find 2yrs from now when you try to remove something and every bolt you touch the head snaps off.....that would suck. I might would take a socket set and break loose some bolts in various places to make sure they back out okay.
9k sound like a lot BUT it is a 06 with 50k...in my area with a clean title that would sell for probably 12ish. I’d look up retail on it and subtract 1/3rd and offer him that, tell him that’s all it’s insurance for with a salvage title. To be honest he bought it wrecked and salvaged for probably $1500 -$2000 at auction and has spent 4K repairing it. I SERIOUSLY doubt he has over $6k in it. The 9k he threw out probably has a lot of meat on the bone because he knows he will get hammered on the salvage title. If I wanted it I would probably low ball him with like $6500 and see what he replies with...then after a couple days make a offer that is a little less than mid way.
After looking at some prices for 2006 Jeeps....if it really is in excellent shape and mechanically sound with excellent frame work and paint....then it’s probably going to be insurable for around 8k or so....but that’s my area....you need to find out what they sell for in your area.
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DeepSouthTJ
Member
Depends on why it was a salvage title. A heavy hit with frame damage? I'd probably walk unless it was mostly going to be a trail rig or the price was really good. But on the other hand my uncle got a salvage title/theft recovery JKU for dirt cheap, so I wouldn't rule out every salvage title without looking it over first.
oldb
TJ Enthusiast
I needed a car to drive back and forth to work. Wanted to keep the miles down on my pickups and mid life crisis car. I was thinking old Subaru, but my neighbor had a TJ and every day I saw it go back and forth. I decided a TJ would be a lot more fun than a Subaru. Budget was limited, I am car, pickups and project pickup poor so to speak.
In my price range in this area everything had lots of miles. I found a 2000 Sahara with 82,000 miles and salvage title in Portland Or. For what I wanted to do with it I thought it might work. Frame straight, followed it down the road, tracked straight. Interior still nice. Body work....lacking but I bought it. Added A/C, stereo, xm and speakers, and tightened a lot of loose bolts the PO had missed. I have driven it for a year and a half now, every day, no big issues. One ft. axle u joint. New fluids, stepper motor, two stop light switches, rear window struts. My insurance will full cover it. So no regrets. I typically don't sell things so I am not worried about resale. But if you buy and sell, I would worry about resale.
B
In my price range in this area everything had lots of miles. I found a 2000 Sahara with 82,000 miles and salvage title in Portland Or. For what I wanted to do with it I thought it might work. Frame straight, followed it down the road, tracked straight. Interior still nice. Body work....lacking but I bought it. Added A/C, stereo, xm and speakers, and tightened a lot of loose bolts the PO had missed. I have driven it for a year and a half now, every day, no big issues. One ft. axle u joint. New fluids, stepper motor, two stop light switches, rear window struts. My insurance will full cover it. So no regrets. I typically don't sell things so I am not worried about resale. But if you buy and sell, I would worry about resale.
B
oldb
TJ Enthusiast
Yes, a really long on going project, one of the many reasons the TJ has remained stock.
Love 'em. Used to have a '55 with a tilt front-end. Sold it way too soon, and way to cheap...
OP
I checked out Kelley Blue Book and average retail for this is around $13,700, which in this area is probably on the low end of what it would sell for without a salvage. So if we take 33% of that were sitting around that $9,000 mark which is in line with what he's thinking.
With that said that's not taking in to account the engine mount issue. That will be my big focus when I check it out.
I spoke to him again last night and he had taken the Jeep to the dealer to get the check engine light checked out. It turned out to be a faulty wire that the dealership had to fix and the airbag issue was a new clock spring which he's replacing today. That really makes me feel much better also.
I'll be checking it out tomorrow but with a really skeptical eye.
please post up pics...especially of the underside. You will be amazed at the info the people here can extract from photos.
Shatto
TJ Enthusiast
Gregory
New Member
An awful lot depends on your state. I live in North Carolina. I have heard too many horror stories hear to do it.
WillM
Member
The 65th Anniversary package added 30-inch tires on 15-inch forged-aluminum wheels, gas-charged shocks, heavy-duty Dana 44 rear axle, full-metal doors (with tinted-glass windows), fog lights, CD player with 7 speaker sound system and Sirius Satellite Radio. Aesthetic upgrades consisted of a silver center-stack bezel, the versatile Sunrider folding soft top, upgraded fender flares, and 65th Anniversary logos in the form of decals and embroidery on the two-tone seats and floormats. Just Sayin.
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Sulu
New Member
OP
Thanks for the feedback everyone. Quick update, after talking to the shop that did the repair and then seeing it in person I ended up buying! The repair looks well done and when I test drove it didn't see anything that concerned me.
So far we're living it for cruising around town, although my kids get pretty whiny when we hit the highway from the wind. We'll get them to embrace it though!