2nd Gen Non-Engine/Transmission buying a salvage truck

[VicR]

Am looking at 2000 CTD Ram 4x4. Its a regular cab, 6 speed, with 35,500 miles on it. Its been rolled and has lots of new sheet metal (cab, bed, etc) but supposedly professionally rebuilt. It does have a salvage title.



Is there anything in particular to look at? If it drives straight and isn't drafty, is there anything else to look for?



Any feel for how much of a discount off of book a salvage title is worth?



Thanks,



-Vic

 

[dresslered]

Just my personal opinion, but I wouldn't touch it with a 10-foot pole. There is no money in restoring a wreck properly so I would suspect that short cuts were taken.

 

[jberelson]

There is no "discount" off of book. How would you put a value to that CTD? Parts?



Also, call your insurance company and see if they will even insure it. I know Allstate won't insure a rebuild in the state of WA.

 

[gsbrockman]

Vic R :

I have a friend that re-builds Dodge RAM pickups. He has always been straightforward with any truck he has re-built, including pictures before the repair work was started. It's up to you and your wallet to best determine if a vehicle with a salvage title is right for you. If you plan to drive it until the wheels fall off, it would be a good buy if you can get it around $1000 below LOAN VALUE. If you may want to trade in a short period of time, think twice. Most likely Daimler Chrysler has killed any and all warranty on the 3/36 and the 100K Cummins warranties if it has a salvage / re-built title--just one more thing to consider. I bought my pickup new, and I would consider buying a salvage title truck if it was properly repaired. My friend has purchased salvage vehicles from insurance companies for over 8 years or so. There has been several times he's purchased water or "flood" cars that he has been unable to even find the first drop of water inside the truck or engine compartment. I guess alot of it has to do with who has their hands in the insurance company's back pocket. I also have seen trucks with "good" titles absolutely killed and "salvage" title trucks only lightly damaged. I commute 114 miles round trip daily and my daily driver is a 1995 Dodge Neon Sport Coupe. It was a rebuilt car with salvage title--all it needed was a hood, front bumper cover, and r/f fender. I was out $3000 for a 100% operational car and have already received 103,000 miles on the car and it's going great. The car now has 180,300 miles on it, and was purchased in February 1999. Hope this helps !

 

[krs]

"There is no money in restoring a wreck"



There sure is money in doing that - for some people a great deal of money. Vehicles can be bought wrecked at insurance auctions for small fractions of their original cost and a well equipped enterprise can make them new again, or very nearly so. I have an old friend who's been doing it with high end cars for several years. Though I haven't seen him in eight years I can presume that he's still at it. He employed over twenty people full time and had a shop of some 40,000 sq. ft. in 1994. I have seen things produced in that place that truly amazed me, and I'm coming to this question with a cumulative 30 years of professional auto repair experiences.



That said, there are also a lot of questionable-at best-operations doing essentially the same thing who do cut corners and cannot be relied upon to produce a safe vehicle. A prospective buyer should be very experienced or be able to have trusted and experienced advise available. In no case should a salvage vehicle be purchased without full attention to every detail that can be discerned. The advise about insurability is very well found as big problems can arise in that area - particularly in the case of a vehicle accident in which the driver/owner of a reconstructed vehicle is found to have or share culpability. The owner could face serious uninsured losses as well as possible criminal and civil censure.

 

[Deezul1]

when it comes time to sell it you will have to darn near give it away as Salvage title will kill most deals.

 

[midwestdually]

like someone said... buy it if u plan to run it til the wheels fall off... otherwise i would definitely not do it... u will never b able to sell it.

 

[jpolston]

Another thing to consider is if the repairs were done with OEM parts, "After market sheetmetal parts are usually of less quality than OEM". If it did not have any frame damage, then I would consider it at a very reduced price ie; 60% of loan value if it looks good. Most salvage dealers plan on making a home run on these vehicles, ie; a great profit.

 

[Reb.B]

okay, here's the deal. Salvage vehicles can make great deals. The proffessor at the college, jrobinson1, and i look for salvave vehicles all the time. Some are complete salvages, and some trucks just have a couple of dents and they can't get the motor to start. My last truck i bought i paid $3,000 for, put about $300 into it, and it runs like a charm. U usually take $2000 of blue book for salvage vehicles. On a roll over, make sure the frame has been checked, as well as front and rear axle. The dealer selling this truck should have all records of this. The air bags must be changed if they went off. I'll never buy another new truck again. There are a lot of good deals to be made out there, u just need to be carefull what u are buying, and who is selling it to you. Make sure that u see all of his records. Good luck

 

[CFAR]

I don't know about this one, if it was rolled, then the cab and doors should have been replaced. There is a VIN tag usuallyunder the carper under the passenger seat, check that tag against the one on the dash the tag under carpet should be painted the same color as the inside of the truck. Also check the upper knuckle arms make sure they are not bent upward, sometimes when the tow truck driver flips them back over they will bend (big problem on the 1500's).

I rebuilt a 96' wholesale yard got 4750. 00 for it and it was a roll over, had to get new cab and doors, front end and lots of bed and front fender and hood work. also had to replace the steering box, you can't tell by looking at it but if you pull the pitman arm and the splines are twisted you need a new box.

As you can tell these salvaged veh's especially a rollover need a lot of attention, so make sure you check everything. Another thing as far as price goes, it depends on you, low ball an offer, can't lose anything,

This took place in CA, so the other posts are correct there are several states that will not insure a Sal.

If the vehicle is paid off, and there is no ins co involvment then there will be no record of salvaged title, any vehicle you buy even new could have been wrecked.

 

[jmeehan]

Wheel alignment

If the truck looks good the first thing I'd do is have a four wheel alignment check done. If it passes that I'd look the whole frame over at the suspension and body mounting points for shims or washers that don't belong there. This may tell you if the frame was tweaked and not repaired. My two cents.