rebuilt status

[lint]

just wanted to know people's thoughts on cars with a rebuilt status. There are a variety of reasons that an insurance company will write off a vehicle. Seems that there's quite a process to get a car back in shape so that it can have a rebuilt status (http://www.infratrans.gov.ab.ca/Drivers_&_Vehicles/Motor_Vehicle_Inspection_Program/Medical_Conditions_and_Safe_Driving.htm).

Having a rebuilt status makes a car harder to sell. How much harder?

[Weapon_R]

Considerably harder in my opinion. When people hear "rebuilt status", it doesn't matter whether the car was written off in a major accident or whether it was a theft recovery, since there is no way to tell. The average car shopper will rarely buy a rebuilt status car unless the price is much lower than the market value of an active title

[78si]

It's like a STD!

[dudeman]

friend of mine recently bought a rebuilt status sunfire for considerably lower than the market price. There is a very rigorous inspection process that goes into rebuilding the vehicle to alberta government standards. That is assuming the person doing the rebuilding isnt having his inspections done by mail, if you catch my drift. :eek: As long as you get the vehicle inspected by a reputable mechanic not of the sellers choosing, you should be fine. Put about 15k on the sunfire so far and have had no problems what so ever! Perfect condition!

Basically if its rebuilt right, it can be like a new car.

[lint]

Originally posted by Weapon_R
Considerably harder in my opinion. When people hear "rebuilt status", it doesn't matter whether the car was written off in a major accident or whether it was a theft recovery, since there is no way to tell. The average car shopper will rarely buy a rebuilt status car unless the price is much lower than the market value of an active title

I've called my insurance company and the registry. As long as it actually has a rebuilt status and gone through the inspections, they say it's all good.

Good point about the cost. For those who voted yes, how much lower?? 15%? 20%? 25% lower than a similar car with clean title?

[rc2002]

I'd say at least 25% lower. Maybe even 50% lower. I for one, wouldn't even consider buying a rebuilt status car. Even if I knew that the accident wasn't major, I wouldn't buy it just because I know it'd be impossible to sell without losing my shirt.

[749009]

what is your personal safety and those who ride with you worth?
Put a dollar figure on that and I guess you can decide how much of a deal buying a rebuild is worth.

I suppose you can fool yourself into believing that insurance companies are willing to write off cars with minimal damage and that the repairs done were excellent, but, that is a delusionary argument.

The insurance company wrote the vehicle off because it would cost too much to PROPERLY fix the vehicle. It is a purely economic decision for them. What is the lower cost...payment to the insured less the recovered salvage value vs. repairing the car properly.

The parties that buy insurance writeoffs know that they aren't able to resell them for the same value, even after repaired, as a non written off vehicle. So, the only way they can make money on buying and repairing those vehicles, is to repair them for much less money that it would have cost the insurance company to do the same repairs. How do you do that? By doing a very substandard repair that will still pass an inspection. And obviously, not every inspection will be as rigorous as the next and do you think the rebuilder doesn't have his favourite inspector?

Why does the government not simply insist that all written off cars are taken apart and only certain undamaged parts are entitled to be resold? All society would be much safer if that happened.
Again, it is all economics. If the insurance companies could not recover the salvage values, their losses would be much higher. They would have to charge much higher premiums. Think any government would stay in power being in favour of much higher insurance premiums?

A few years ago, one of the maratime governments lost an election because of the auto insurance rate issue. That's how big a deal it is.
The rebuilding industry also has economic spinoffs for the parts wholesalers, the body shops, etc. It employs people.

It's totally sick. Society overall gains economically by allowing some of its people to be subjected to much greater risk and rationalizes what its doing by "inspecting" the rebuilds.

I've seen and driven numerous rebuilds. I love the stories the sellers always tell you. It was a minor hit. It was only a rebuild for theft. and on and on. I can tell it's a rebuild and I know why it was written off, even if the average buyer can't. I have never and will never touch one. It's purely a personal safety issue with me.

The money saved isn't going to do me any good if I or somone riding with me is killed or injured because I bought something that should have been put into the crusher instead of resurrected. What if a critical part fails and my cars hits and injures (or worse) sombody else. I'm just not willing to take those chances, but, many people do every day. That's why the rebuilding business goes on and hey, it also keeps police, fire and ambulance personnel as well as doctors and lawyers employed.

And yes, I agree, not every rebuild will wind up in a bad accident, which is the excuse people who sell and drive them use for justifying their existance.
If you knew an airplane was repairing and maintaining their fleet with substandard parts, how comfortable would you feel about flying with them? Fortunately, repairing airplanes with damaged recycled parts is illegal, but, it's interesting that per mile travelled, airplane travel is enormously safer than car travel notwithstanding the spectacular crashes in the aviation industry.

Long rant, I know. I feel very strongly about a safety issue that is being so rediculously sacrificed for economic reasons. And please don't waste my time with stories about how great you think a particular rebuild was repaired. You don't get something for nothing. That's a fact of life.

[CryoCarnage]

my subaru was a "rebuilt status". it was in a small frotn colision and i needed to repalce bumper supoports. Considering it was a us car the 1500 it took to fix it well was well worth the money it would takre to buy a car. i dotn know, maybe its just me but i trust my work and im proud to save 3000 bucks

[AllGoNoShow]

I'd buy one.... ask to take it to a rep. shop YOU trust and maybe know someone at or have dealt with before and get them to check it out. Newer car + Cheaper + Repaired right = good deal in my mind.

No car out there is going to be 100% perfect so as long as you do as much as you can BEFORE you buy it then you will be good.


One other ting to try, ask the seller to pitch 50% of the cost of the inspection towards it and you pitch the other 50%, if he backs out then you know something is wrong as he won't even pay a little to help get his car sold. I've used that before on cars I didn't even want to get an inspection done on.

[ninspeed]

I would... but only if i fix it... i am in the middle of buying an 03 pick up that had a major front end hit/roll over.. but i know i can fix it right, and it will cost me not too much to fix... why not?

[takeshi]

Rebuilt is the way to go just for price and only if you plan to keep it a while. They do go through a very rigorous process to get that status and its wayyyyyy better than buying a clean title car that has been in so many and worse accidents that the insurance company and an average joe don't know about. But make sure you get it for at least 30 percent off the normal price. Also keep in mind that market value of your car will decrease by about 50 percent. (if you do a trade in with a dealership)

[3G]

Originally posted by takeshi
Rebuilt is the way to go just for price and only if you plan to keep it a while. They do go through a very rigorous process to get that status and its wayyyyyy better than buying a clean title car that has been in so many and worse accidents that the insurance company and an average joe don't know about. But make sure you get it for at least 30 percent off the normal price. Also keep in mind that market value of your car will decrease by about 50 percent. (if you do a trade in with a dealership)

:werd: i remember going with my cousin to get his car inspected, holy crap they look at everything they were going to fail him because he had a chip the size of a dime in his tail light

[Lanks]

I have a related question. If you have a re-built status car and you get into an accident that writes it off, does the insurance company pay out the value of a rebuilt car or the same value of a clean titled car?

[CryoCarnage]

Originally posted by Lanks
I have a related question. If you have a re-built status car and you get into an accident that writes it off, does the insurance company pay out the value of a rebuilt car or the same value of a clean titled car?
hmm interesting question, i wont be one to tell you as i refuse to crash any car or be hit. ( trust me i dont think i can be)

[barbarian]

Originally posted by dudeman
friend of mine recently bought a rebuilt status sunfire for considerably lower than the market price. There is a very rigorous inspection process that goes into rebuilding the vehicle to alberta government standards. That is assuming the person doing the rebuilding isnt having his inspections done by mail, if you catch my drift. :eek: As long as you get the vehicle inspected by a reputable mechanic not of the sellers choosing, you should be fine. Put about 15k on the sunfire so far and have had no problems what so ever! Perfect condition!

Basically if its rebuilt right, it can be like a new car.
Could have had a new Sunfire, non-collision, for $15000.

[Weapon_R]

Originally posted by barbarian

Could have had a new Sunfire, non-collision, for $15000.

I'm pretty sure he meant mileage.

[BerserkerCatSplat]

Originally posted by barbarian

Could have had a new Sunfire, non-collision, for $15000.

He put 15k miles on it, not $15k in it! :rofl:

[600cc's]

sorry about bring this thread back from the dead but would you guys recommend a place to get a salvage inspection done

Cheers J

[ninspeed]

Master Frame

[gofastmerc]

Just because a car has rebuilt status does mean it was fixed on the cheap. I bought and fixed our 01 A4, it was fit in the front, no air bags though. I used all Audi parts, almost all of them new, and I saved a bundle, just because of labor costs are high.

The quickie estimate I did on the car was someing like 15K, 6K parts, the rest labour. So I fixed it, using the right parts, and saved 9K. I'm pretty happy with the car. that was almost two years ago and we still drive it. When we look for another car, I would do it again in a heart beat. Bascily a free car for the three or four years we would have driven it.



But not not all cars are fixed with the intent to keep them, so you have to be carefull for sure.

[Scourge]

Back from the dead!

Well, I'm picking up this RSX-S for $6000 ($6300 with GST)...
Went to the registry with it's VIN and it has a salvage (repairable) status...
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f164/ScourgeRSX/RSX/54ea76da.jpg
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f164/ScourgeRSX/RSX/2c7e5190.jpg

And for an extra $200, I'm getting the hood and driver side fender from this...
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f164/ScourgeRSX/RSX/7fdc2308.jpg

I've been collecting parts for an 05-06 conversion for my current RSX so I've already got some of the parts I need to repair it.

I'll sell my lower KM RSX-S with clean title and keep this little virgin RSX-S (until I have my way with it!). Transferring all mods over including the K24.

So, I pretty much bought myself another Type S for $7000ish.

[Eleanor]

Originally posted by Weapon_R
it doesn't matter whether the car was written off in a major accident or whether it was a theft recovery, since there is no way to tell. Why is there no difference? I mean some dude taking it for a joyride and leaving it in a ditch is very different than someone plowing head-on into another car. It doesn't make any sense IMO

[funkedelic2]

I wouldn't unless you are getting an AMAZING deal. Once salvaged, the car will never be the same again..

[slick2404]

Gonna bump this thread from the dead again.


Never usually do I consider buying a car that has a rebuilt status, however I'm seriously considering this one.

IMO it's priced pretty aggressive (a little more than 35% lower than market prices) with only 20K for an 07.

Here's the history off the carproof report:
When the car was ~16K it was in an accident with a claim of $7,200
No structural damage was reported. I test drove it myself, its passed an out of province inspection already and its seems fine. Front end does show it had previously hit something if you look carefully at the fenders/hood as they are a bit misaligned.

My question is, and I'm leaning towards this regardless - but should should I take it to the mazda dealer for a pre-purchase inspection. Will they know what to look for in a rebuilt status vehicle, or does it even matter.

And does it effect insurance/registering it at all? I know I will have a tough time selling it later, but if I can get it at a solid price and drive it for a bit I'll be fine with taking a little loss knowing that its okay and still under warranty until 60k or next year.

Thanks for your input as always

[tom_9109]

Should usually stay away from rebuilt unless its older and not very expensive anyway.


a $20,000 car takes around 15 - 17 in damage to be a write off.
a 3,000 car takes like 2,000 - $3,000 in damage which can be a bumper cover and a hood on an old car with parts, labour, and proper paint.

[Moe Man]

Insurance companies write vehicles off for no reason, trust me. here are some expamples of vehicle that are writen off last week.

rebuilt status 740il

http://edmonton.impact.liveblockauctions.com/images/auction/CMV48_01.JPG

THIS ONE IS NON-REPAIRABLE this 2010 jetta with 1km can be fixd for 5 grand thats back on the road ready to drive. but sadly it will never be allowed on the road.

http://edmonton.impact.liveblockauctions.com/images/auction/5V243_01.JPG

rebuilt status

http://edmonton.impact.liveblockauctions.com/images/auction/CMY12_01.JPG

non repairable matrx, the air bag didnt even go off!

http://edmonton.impact.liveblockauctions.com/images/auction/CLN07_01.JPG

15 grand truck writen off because of a door!

http://edmonton.impact.liveblockauctions.com/images/auction/5I492_02.JPG

I could go on and on. money is time right, so take the extra few hours that its going to take, and get the vehicle inspected, or hell just drive the damn thing, if it has serious problems there is no way of hiding it. the car will tell you if its fucked up or not. Again these cars go through a very harsh inspection and it just got harsher...If the vehicle is leaking any fluid what so ever then it fails inspection. so next time when you look under that pecfectly good no accident vehicle and its sweating diff oil....there is a rebuilt status vehicle that is in better mechanical condition for 3 grand less:thumbsup:

[tom_9109]

I definitely do not agree with branding some of those non repairable.

[Sebasshole]

I have repaired a couple of Salvage cars,
Who in their right mind would buy a car that is completely smashed and fix it to make a profit? Not very many.
Like in the pictures above how many of us can pay to have the frame pulled and install and fender headlights and a hood. get them painted and have a mint car.

Its mainly cosmetic ones that are repaired. Nobody fucks with mechanical repairs cause there usually body shop workers. So really the car will drive the same but cosmetically the car was damaged and repaired.

Not to mention the inspection you must go through. If you have never fixed a car and had it pass an inspection then you have no reason to believe that they are not safe. Because you simply just don’t know the process and detail that it takes. There’s a reason why you need multiple pictures of the damage, why they do a wheel alignment, a test drive, sometimes even plug it into a computer to make sure the ABS TRAC Air Bags are all in proper working order. They look under above around everything to make sure the repair was done properly. Thats why they are legal again.

[03ozwhip]

its the same with bikes. i bought my R6 as rebuilt. it only had a scratched barend, broken brake handle and a cracked fairing. ZOMG itll never run right!!:rolleyes: i would buy a rebuilt in a heartbeat for the right price.

[Sebasshole]

Here is a word of advice.
ask for the inspection sheet and they will usually have pictures of the car before repair.

Ask to see them and then you will know how bad it was, instead of being ignorant and sounding like a idiot.

[Moe Man]

yes pictures of the damage is great, then you can decide whether it was hard or not.

Its true, it only takes one guy to try and fix a very hard hit vehicle to realize its not worth it. the auto wreckers pay big money for the hard hit ones so it makes them not worth purchasing.

the best thing about these cars is that someone was driving them right before the hit, so these cars were taken care of, clean, maintained. were as if you go buy a car from a used car dealer the vehicle was either a trade in (the owners never gave a shit about them) or a leased vehicle (ownerns never gave a shit about them as well) in most cases it costs more to fix a lease back vehicle than it is to fix a salvage vehicle.....seriously no bullshit, the leased vehicles need ball joints, linkages, windshields, tires, brakes, even some have major mechanical issues like diffs, or trannys.

80% of salvage vehicls dont need any mechanical work, usually just body. 30 dollar fender VS 300 dollar brakes?

[bjstare]

Originally posted by 03ozwhip
its the same with bikes. i bought my R6 as rebuilt. it only had a scratched barend, broken brake handle and a cracked fairing. ZOMG itll never run right!!:rolleyes: i would buy a rebuilt in a heartbeat for the right price.

I've had a rebuilt 636, and it had the same kinda thing - scraped bar end and crank case.. nothin else really. Looked fairly clean. After I purchased it I started talking with the previous owner and he told me the truth about it... he basically replaced all the bits on the bike. The only thing original was the frame, tank, and engine. He replaced the subframe, forks, triple, clip ons... everything. Lucky for me, the frame was straight haha. Anyways, my point is that yea, for the most part a salvaged bike will run fine... but its nearly impossible to tell the difference between one thats been completely fucked and one that was written off from cosmetics. Kinda scary.

[ShermanEF9]

my civic is a rebuild. got it for less than most SiRs on the market and only thing wrong with it is it was painted pretty poorly.

[GTI1671]

the frames on rebuilt status cars are like tofu. so you tell me if you would consider one or not.

[tom_9109]

Originally posted by GTI1671
the frames on rebuilt status cars are like tofu. so you tell me if you would consider one or not.

If an inexpensive car is damaged to the point of write off it doesn't mean the 'frame' was even affected. Further most vehicles now are unibody structures and don't have a frame in the traditional sense.

[AE92_TreunoSC]

I'll never buy a rebuilt again, its insane hard to sell, even if it was just a theft recovery, or a minor accident.

[T-Dubbs]

so rebuilt status doesnt mean it was written off?
i had a buddy just buy a 05 bmw m3 for 23k. 90,000kms.
he was told that it just needed the bumpers and hood replaced?

But i have also had another buddy get into an accident with a newer 335i, with 15k damage, and it wasnt written off....
so i dunno
that doesnt add up to me.....
:dunno:

[tom_9109]

A vehicle gets branded 'SALVAGE' by an insurance company because they deemed it to be a write off. The vehicle was then fixed and passed the required salvage inspection. To differential the vehicle from an undamaged one, they then brand it 'REBUILT'.

[T-Dubbs]

Originally posted by tom_9109
A vehicle gets branded 'SALVAGE' by an insurance company because they deemed it to be a write off. The vehicle was then fixed and passed the required salvage inspection. To differential the vehicle from an undamaged one, they then brand it 'REBUILT'.
so then a 2005 bmw m3 to be written off would require more than just bumpers and hood?
that is what i thought, it sounded fishy to me

[tom_9109]

Originally posted by T-Dubbs

so then a 2005 bmw m3 to be written off would require more than just bumpers and hood?
that is what i thought, it sounded fishy to me

an 05 m3 would likely need $15,000 or more in damages to be a write off.

[corsvette]

I was looking at a 2006 Trailblazer SS the other day that had a damage claim in 06 over $17,000 in repairs. It had a clean title,but in 06 it was a $40k truck so it got repaired.I would never have know this unless i paid $40 for a carproof report.The current owner said he bought it used in 07 and did not know what the damage was.

It all boils down to the worth of vehicle vs the repairs needed.If that Trailblazer suffered $17k in damage today it would be salvage truck for sure as its only worth $25k max.Today it would get salvaged for alot less damage than it suffered when it was much newer.

My miserly self would not hesitate buying a salvaged vehicle if i could see the before damage,better yet fix it myself,and then know its been through a complete inspection.

Also,salvage vehicles were owned by people who were not trying to unload their car,they can be very well maintained by owners that had no plans on selling it,so the spent all the money keeping it in top shape,unlike some that are sitting at Auctions or used car lots.

[asifka]

if its rebuilt right and you are planning to keep it for long time, then go for it.

In 2001, my brother bought a rebuilt 1997 maxima for 7 or 8000 dollars. He has put over 230000 kms and still driving . Now that was worth buying.
:thumbsup:

[T-Dubbs]

Originally posted by corsvette
I was looking at a 2006 Trailblazer SS the other day that had a damage claim in 06 over $17,000 in repairs. It had a clean title,but in 06 it was a $40k truck so it got repaired.I would never have know this unless i paid $40 for a carproof report.The current owner said he bought it used in 07 and did not know what the damage was.

It all boils down to the worth of vehicle vs the repairs needed.If that Trailblazer suffered $17k in damage today it would be salvage truck for sure as its only worth $25k max.Today it would get salvaged for alot less damage than it suffered when it was much newer.

My miserly self would not hesitate buying a salvaged vehicle if i could see the before damage,better yet fix it myself,and then know its been through a complete inspection.

Also,salvage vehicles were owned by people who were not trying to unload their car,they can be very well maintained by owners that had no plans on selling it,so the spent all the money keeping it in top shape,unlike some that are sitting at Auctions or used car lots.

haha i have a 06 trailblazer SS, that i would be willing to part with! pm me!

[Kloubek]

I wonder how rigorous California re-certification is. All I can find is that the CHP checks to make sure it was not repaired with stolen parts. Then it goes through a light and brake check. As far as I know, nothing about a frame check... which would seem rather ridiculous....

http://sacramento.craigslist.org/cto/1719524956.html

2002 Corvette with only 35k miles for $12,000.... If it is safe to have on the road, that's like... half what one would expect to pay here...

[Vanner]

Well, it all depends to people in what "rebuilt" means to them. New or 2, 5 or 10 years old models makes no difference - the ONLY difference is the value between two models. People, it's not just some fancy BMW car or an import... auto repair workers also did rebuilt classic cars like a 1966 Chevelle car right brought from a junkyard!

I'm talking about a old car sitting in a yard for YEARS! Image what kind condition it'd be like: Rust, grime, damaged body panels and even yes, collision damages from long ago!

So... NO DIFFERENCE than what one would do to the newer car. It's all in the value that makes the decision of purchase for a rebuilt vehicle.

I see that myself all the time, even I have done that few times and all ran fine for a good commuter after having passed a rigid inspection.

On the other side... what about people who drove real R-U-S-T-Y cars or trucks (some with ready-to-drop-off doors!) I see on road?? They are more UNSAFE than rebuilt cars as far I'm concerned :banghead:

[Maxt]

<---- The car in my avatar pic, was written off and has a rebuilt status. Rear ended, tail lights pushed in an 1", the lights weren't even broken.. Cost to repair , 600.00...
I would just look at the damage repair and judge whether it was a decent repair or not...

[m10-power]

Originally posted by Maxt
&lt;---- The car in my avatar pic, was written off and has a rebuilt status. Rear ended, tail lights pushed in an 1&quot;, the lights weren't even broken.. Cost to repair , 600.00...
I would just look at the damage repair and judge whether it was a decent repair or not...

Real reason for the write off on your car was the silly contraption that powers it.

;) :poosie:

[Maxt]

Originally posted by m10-power


Real reason for the write off on your car was the silly contraption that powers it.

;) :poosie:
A 4 cycle internal combustion engine? Yours runs on the laughter of children, I forgot about that...:)..