salvage title

[penski61]

What are your guys thoughts on buying a classic with a salvage title? Seller says no physical damage that he can find , frame is straight etc . Im looking at a clean 70 cuda roller with newish paint job(couple months old) has pretty much everything but a trans , the motor is a 340 but not installed for $15k . He is willing to take less without motor but not sure if i should make an offer with it being salvage title ? i planned on doing a gen 3 hemi resto mod

 

[MerlinsMopars]

Could have been lost and retitled thru a junk yard or possibly abandoned. It may have to go thru an intensive inspection if you have that in your state. I'd make sure that you can register it and then buy it. That sounds like a good deal to me.

 

[Cuda Hunter]

I agree. Good price. Go to the dmv and see what they can tell you. Sometimes a salvage title means the car was an insurance write off due to it being stolen or damaged.

 

[penski61]

Thanks . My duramax is a salvage due to theft so don’t really have an issue with salvage as long as it was like you guys mentioned , theft or restore . I’ll call dmv and see what the request are for out of state salvage title. What would a good offer be without the “running” 340

 

[Cuda Hunter]

For a value, is there a fender tag? Build sheet?
What the car was originally makes a difference.
And we really need more pictures to assess a value.
let's see the pics!

 

[DrEamer]

Since the plans are to make a resto-mod, this car is a good candidate. A salvage title only affects value if you are going to sell it in the future. As far as the value of a 340, like anything else, it depends on what it is. A complete core will sell over a $1,000, and a freshly rebuilt one is $4,500-5,5000 around here. Also, one that is 1971 or older brings more money then the '72-73 due to having the forged crankshaft and heads with bigger valves.

 

[penski61]

Originally a slant 6 auto car according to the owner , I’ll find out what year motor and fender tag

For a value, is there a fender tag? Build sheet?
What the car was originally makes a difference.
And we really need more pictures to assess a value.
let's see the pics!

 

[penski61]

Lowest he will take is 13.5k without motor , has a few other people looking at it today so have to see what happens

 

[Adam]

As a former auto-theft detective I am always suspicious of Salvage titled cars. It is a common way to dispose of a stolen car. I have recovered nearly a hundred such vehicles, usually from the poor bastard that bought a vin switched car. It works like this: bad guy has a clean title and vin tag (Never in his name) to a wreck or car with very little value. He then steals a nicer car of the same type, switches the vin and sells the car to an unsuspecting buyer. In order to protect yourself you need to locate the secondary vins on this car and carefully inspect them, from the back side! Look for welds, epoxy, etc. also look at the dash vin and door vin decal for signs of tampering, etc.

The secondary vins on that car are on the top of the radiator core support b/t the battery and radiator cap. Another is on top of the wiper cowl above the brake booster. The door decal is technically a third, but doors can be swapped, and the decals are being reproduced. If the decal is missing, this is a big red flag, if it has a reproduction decal it is still a red flag in my mind. Proceed with caution. See if the seller will allow an inspection by the state cops. Tell him you have a detective friend who is a Mopar nut, etc.

 

[budascuda]

As a former auto-theft detective I am always suspicious of Salvage titled cars. It is a common way to dispose of a stolen car. I have recovered nearly a hundred such vehicles, usually from the poor bastard that bought a vin switched car. It works like this: bad guy has a clean title and vin tag (Never in his name) to a wreck or car with very little value. He then steals a nicer car of the same type, switches the vin and sells the car to an unsuspecting buyer. In order to protect yourself you need to locate the secondary vins on this car and carefully inspect them, from the back side! Look for welds, epoxy, etc. also look at the dash vin and door vin decal for signs of tampering, etc.

The secondary vins on that car are on the top of the radiator core support b/t the battery and radiator cap. Another is on top of the wiper cowl above the brake booster. The door decal is technically a third, but doors can be swapped, and the decals are being reproduced. If the decal is missing, this is a big red flag, if it has a reproduction decal it is still a red flag in my mind. Proceed with caution. See if the seller will allow an inspection by the state cops. Tell him you have a detective friend who is a Mopar nut, etc.

That is the correct and also he most clever way to do it!

 

[MrMoparCHP]

Some insurance companies will not insure a car with a salvage title.


Alan

 

[Adam]

That is the correct and also he most clever way to do it!

Well my personal favorite is when they (usually Russian and Armenian gangsters) steal a high end car Mercedes, BMWs, etc, strip all, and I mean all, the parts off it. Then dump the undamaged shell a block from an LAPD station and call it in. LAPD tows the shell to their contract tow yard and takes the vehicle out of the system. The bad guys then go to the tow yard and arrange to buy the shell from the insurance company. The insurance company is looking at a huge loss and are all too happy to recoup a couple of thousand from the shell. The bad guys then re-install all the original, number matching parts. They now have a high end car, with all the correct parts, and can get a clear title.

 

[budascuda]

Well my personal favorite is when they (usually Russian and Armenian gangsters) steal a high end car Mercedes, BMWs, etc, strip all, and I mean all, the parts off it. Then dump the undamaged shell a block from an LAPD station and call it in. LAPD tows the shell to their contract tow yard and takes the vehicle out of the system. The bad guys then go to the tow yard and arrange to buy the shell from the insurance company. The insurance company is looking at a huge loss and are all too happy to recoup a couple of thousand from the shell. The bad guys then re-install all the original, number matching parts. They now have a high end car, with all the correct parts, and can get a clear title.

Its brilliant! But every job has its risks. If they just went and got a regular job in a car restoration company, they could do well, but dang it, they would have to do the 9to5 and that is a deal breaker by itself, never mind the "having to listen to he man! " part.
There is something to "doing your own thing, at our own time"
That was one of Peter Fonda's lines in the movie Easy Rider.
Great movie, at the same level as the Vanishing point, TOP!

 

[penski61]

Well he ended up pulling the ad . found out he had the cuda at his parents , he was out of state with the title and had some link called escrow to pay for the car .
I would have had to get an Az level 3 inspection due to out of state title

 

[budascuda]

Well he ended up pulling the ad . found out he had the cuda at his parents , he was out of state with the title and had some link called escrow to pay for the car .
I would have had to get an Az level 3 inspection due to out of state title

Its all beginning to sound a bit fishy now....
Doesn't matter, you will find your cuda..

 

[oldkimmer]

Being patience never hurts. What these scammer type sellers are after is someone that is so horny for the car and throw caution into the wind. 1 red flag is 1 too many for me. Good luck in ur search. Kim.

 

[penski61]

I found another in el paso which I could pick up on my home to az but 13.5k is a little much . Supposedly the car is " all there"

 

[budascuda]

13.5k? Too much

 

[70chall440]

13.5k? Too much

IMO WAY.. too much.

 

[Adam]

IMO WAY.. too much.

Agreed. But he can make an offer...