Salvage Car Questions

A few years ago my parent's Acura TL was parked on a downtown street and got rear-ended by a drunk driver early in the morning (on his way to work, go figure). Major damage to the driver side trunk and rear door area, bumped the car into the curb, taillight was nearly in the back seat. Both cars were immobilized and after an estimate, the at-fault insurance paid out on the TL as it was a total loss.

A few years pass and I'm looking for a daily beater. It turns out I came across the same car at a used car dealer just 30 minutes away. Reviews say this place is shady at best and typically deals with salvage/rebuilt autos. They only buy and flip; no mechanic or garage on site.

I went to look at it, body repair work seems surprisingly good, drove straight, pretty good drag in the rear brakes. Got it up on a lit at a nearby garage and was able to poke around a bit closer. Nothing too suspicions. Being a DD, I'd be fine with the salvage title as I'd plan to drive it into the ground anyway.

The next week, I made another visit, test drive, and then I gave what I felt was a fair offer based on salvage condition (~60% dealer retail) and showed the kid my calculations. He went off to speak with the manager, who denied it and no counter. They are not seeing it to have a salvage title and are pricing it accordingly.

Does this make sense? If it was written off does that not get reflected on the title? Minnesota car, fwiw. I've never bought from a dealer or a salvage title. VIN checks I've used show salvage flags but the dealer handed me a (inauthentic?) Carfax printout declaring severe damage but no title blemish. The Carfax also doesn't have the vehicle VIN on it anywhere...

TL;DR: Family car got smooshed hard and is now for sale with a clean title. Is this possible or title-washing?

 

Carfax has VIN # on it, that seems suspect.

 

Can’t believe anything you read on Yelp...

 

Front page was missing? I dunno, something seemed off though.

Also, they showed me the actual title they have to show no liens/salvage. Well of course it doesn't! The title still has my dad's name on it and is dated from over 10 years ago! Shouldn't a title transfer have gone through by now? The accident was in 2015 and I think was at an insurance auction some time in 2017. If no title activity has occurred and they're going off the original title, that doesn't seem right at this point either. Do dealers transfer into their names at any point?

 

They are supposed to. They are basically acting like a private seller and not a dealer.

Easy enough, you can run your own CarFax or ask here. usually peeps here are helpful

 

What's your end game here? Do you want the car or do you want to expose a shady dealer (which clearly they are)? If they somehow managed to "wash" the title, then good for you if you can get the car for a good price. If you just want to burn them- as long as you know for sure it's the same car and that it was totaled by ins. then I'm sure the BMV/cops would be interested to know that the dealer is trying to sell as clean titled.

 

According to this- yes, a repaired/inspected title will show as such

https://dps.mn.gov/divisions/dvs/forms-documents/Documents/SalvageandBranding_Just_the_Facts.pdf

 

I was hoping to get the car at a fair price as a salvage. I know the mechanical history and besides fixing the rear brakes, it is sound. With a clean title, I'm not willing to pay what they're asking so if I can prove it will be deemed salvage once I go to register, then hopefully my offer makes sense.

 

Ah, that's helpful. Looking at those bullet points, it is OLDER than 6 years and valued UNDER $9k so it doesn't meet that criteria. However, the next paragraph note: An insurance company acquires a damaged vehicle after paying a total loss claim which IS what happened here. Must it meet the top criteria first and then the next conditions apply?

 

It is a bit cryptic- I'd think this would apply:


Rebuilt


This is stamped on a Minnesota title when:

The vehicle has sustained damage in excess of 80 percent and the "PRIOR SALVAGE" brand does notapply.

 

Just my 2 cents, but 60% of KBB dealer retail on a salvaged car sounds a bit high... It's not like TL's are super sought after or hard to find.

 

If the title is in fact not a salvage title, then you can't expect to pay salvage price for it. Its pretty clear cut.

 

And they implied 20% off dealer retail is more typical as that's where a bank would typically consider a loan value... Completely wrong compared to true market value. No one is paying 80% for a salvage compared to clean. This could be a dead end with these guys even if it is a true salvage.

Right, I'm mostly wondering how it doesn't appear to have a salvage. I thought that was clear cut after any insurance buy-out.

 

Do you care about the car for sentimental reasons? If so that's a personal choice on what it's worth. If not, there is no reason to deal with a known shitty dealer and a car with possible title issues.

 

Meh, kinda? Not letting it play a role in spending more than it's worth. Fuck dealers always, I'd rather just throw down the money and be out of there. I have no plans to go back there at this point based on what I know.

Another curious thought, since the guy pulled out the original title in my dad's name, who's car is it? Could my dad submit for a duplicate title? Seems unlikely but also seems like it should have been transferred at some point along the way?

 

If he showed you the title and it still has your dad's name on it, have your dad go reclaim the vehicle.

 

Trying not to get the old man too involved as he's made it almost 70 years with no GTA charges. What could possibly go wrong?

 

Seems shady to me. At the very least incredibly lax on the paperwork bordering on outright fraud.

 

It works here, why not IRL

 

Well vehicle in question is a sedan, not a wagon, so are we still good?