Looking to buy an E46 323i with salvage title - any advice?

[David70]

Originally Posted by tdott

Using your example numbers. The salvage cost $7k less and had $1k less depreciation.
So doesnt that mean in that example a salvage car would have saved $8k total over buying the clean titled one?

In my example

I buy a standard car for $20k and sell it for $15k so it cost me $5k for the time I owned it (20-15=5).

Or I buy the salvage car for $13k and sell it for $9k and it cost me $4k for the time I owned it (13-9=4).

The salvage costs a lot less when you buy it but you will also get less for it when you sell it and this should be considered.

[BEM-S4]

Originally Posted by tdott

Using your example numbers. The salvage cost $7k less and had $1k less depreciation.
So doesnt that mean in that example a salvage car would have saved $8k total over buying the clean titled one?

Wow. Just wow. Don't even know what to say.

[tdott]

Originally Posted by David70

In my example

I buy a standard car for $20k and sell it for $15k so it cost me $5k for the time I owned it (20-15=5).

Or I buy the salvage car for $13k and sell it for $9k and it cost me $4k for the time I owned it (13-9=4).

The salvage costs a lot less when you buy it but you will also get less for it when you sell it and this should be considered.

Originally Posted by BEM-S4

Wow. Just wow. Don't even know what to say.

Ha, yea I was trying to understand his example and looking at it the wrong way. He's saying there is only a $1k difference at the end so it's not worth it to buy a salvage if the savings is only $1k. That make sense. Assuming you had $20k to spend, otherwise you'd be financing which might make the difference greater, probably still not worth buying a salvage unless the person really couldn't afford it. If you are not financing you have to consider the opportunity cost of what you could have done with that $7k you saved from the initial purchase.

[David70]

Originally Posted by tdott

Ha, yea I was trying to understand his example and looking at it the wrong way. He's saying there is only a $1k difference at the end so it's not worth it to buy a salvage if the savings is only $1k. That make sense. Assuming you had $20k to spend, otherwise you'd be financing which might make the difference greater, probably still not worth buying a salvage unless the person really couldn't afford it. If you are not financing you have to consider the opportunity cost of what you could have done with that $7k you saved from the initial purchase.

No big deal and you are right that there are other variables to consider. One is if you plan to drive it a really long time. Buy the non salvage at $20k and drive it until it is worth $2k or the non salvage for $13k and it might be worth $1000. Savings goes up as they both get closer to $0.

[bimmer456]

Originally Posted by David70

No big deal and you are right that there are other variables to consider. One is if you plan to drive it a really long time. Buy the non salvage at $20k and drive it until it is worth $2k or the non salvage for $13k and it might be worth $1000. Savings goes up as they both get closer to $0.

Like I said earlier, spend no more than $200 on a salvage car. If you part it out you'll make some money. If it drives maybe you can use it as a daily driver if it's well sorted. Salvage is just the title, it could be a perfectly good car that you can score a deal on. Spend more than a grand and you're spending too much unless it's something really rare or something.

[doc_faraday]

Having purchased, driven, and selling a salvaged vehicle before, it's not worth the hassle. You'll forever be chasing alignment issues, electrical gremlins, replacing parts prematurely, and then explaining to whoever you are trying to sell it to that you've fixed the issues (as far as you know) and that it's not a rolling money pit any longer (which it still could be despite your best efforts).

It's a lottery and I can't remember a post on any forum for any vehicle talking about how happy they were to have bought salvaged. Just a new guy's opinion, though.

[supra93]

It does makes more sense if you plan on driving it for a really long time or until its on its last leg. For example my dad back in the days brought a new Camry LE for $20k. My mom being cheap brought the same car at the auction lightly flooded with 40k on it for $4k. It worked fine, water only got a few millimeters into the carpet.

My parents drove the crap out of them both for years. The clean title Camry ended up with 120k and sold for $2k. The flooded Camry had 168k on it and was sold for $1k. The funny part is they actually had less issues with the flooded Camry vs the brand new clean title Camry. I know its apples to oranges when comparing new vs pre owned + salvage. But the usage they out out from the two were roughly the same.

Everyone is going to have a different experience when it comes to buying and selling salvage/rebuilt cars. Personally, I had a really bad experience with a E60, but the rest of the buys were pretty good.

[David70]

Originally Posted by supra93

It does makes more sense if you plan on driving it for a really long time or until its on its last leg. For example my dad back in the days brought a new Camry LE for $20k. My mom being cheap brought the same car at the auction lightly flooded with 40k on it for $4k. It worked fine, water only got a few millimeters into the carpet.

My parents drove the crap out of them both for years. The clean title Camry ended up with 120k and sold for $2k. The flooded Camry had 168k on it and was sold for $1k. The funny part is they actually had less issues with the flooded Camry vs the brand new clean title Camry. I know its apples to oranges when comparing new vs pre owned + salvage. But the usage they out out from the two were roughly the same.

Everyone is going to have a different experience when it comes to buying and selling salvage/rebuilt cars. Personally, I had a really bad experience with a E60, but the rest of the buys were pretty good.

Agree, I would also be much more likely to buy a $4k Camry over a $13k BMW, mostly because the worst case on a $4k car is losing around $4k but also because fixing the Camry is normally less money, less likely, and less difficult.

[IndotagSwizz]

If you have 2 identical cars but one of them has a good tittle and the other car has a rebuilt tittle, the one with the rebuilt tittle will be worth much less.

[CalCarNut]

Putting aside the cost of the car (Salvage vs Non), INSURANCE companies typically hate (read higher cost to insure) Salvage Title cars, won't insure them or under-insure them. If the car is built poorly, it's not safe. Unless you're going to part one out, stick to non-salvage title cars imo.

[Efthreeoh]

Originally Posted by CalCarNut

Putting aside the cost of the car (Salvage vs Non), INSURANCE companies typically hate (read higher cost to insure) Salvage Title cars, won't insure them or under-insure them. If the car is built poorly, it's not safe. Unless you're going to part one out, stick to non-salvage title cars imo.

I think this needs to be put in perspective however. So my E90, with a ton of miles on it, got hit in April 2016 by a deer. It was cosmetic damage on the left rear door and rear quarter panel. But being of the age and miles, a traditional repair of remove and replace body panels would have totaled the car, other than the fact the car is in perfect shape. I discussed this at length with my insurance agent (an M3 owner and a car guy - lucky for me). He assured me that if the repairs totaled the car due to value, he'd fully insure it, including full collision coverage, as if it had not been totaled and was of salvage title.

I got the car repaired via PDR (I posted a thread on it) and avoided the salvage title issue, but my insurance agent was clear that as long as the car is repaired to industry specification, it was re-insurable as if it were a new, undamaged car.