Buying A Condemned Car

[cjcjcj]

Dear experts,

I would like to know how to buy a Condemned/accident vehicle in sri lanka.

1.Is there a special licence to buy a car like that?or any other "not-normal" things i have to follow before buying something like that?

2.And whats the point of buying those cars?I mean what are the possible things we can do to the car after buying?

3.Any known places to buy one of those cars?

Expecting a answer.
Thank you.

[Komisiripala]

Read that aloud yourself, cjcjcj, can you see how suspicious you sound?

Condemned cars are condemned for a reason. If your plan is to put one back on the street, then thou shalt be frowned upon

[cjcjcj]

heh thanx for the quick reply but im NOT trying to buy one to put it back on the road.where did u get that thought from? tbh im a automobile student and im looking for a wasted car to be used as my college project.a totaled car for a special project.and putting it back on the road is not part of it.i could get a older abandoned car from a shadetree garage but id like to go for abit new one.thanx

[Crosswind]

check in any insurance yard. u can get one without the registration

[jehan80]

heh thanx for the quick reply but im NOT trying to buy one to put it back on the road.where did u get that thought from? tbh im a automobile student and im looking for a wasted car to be used as my college project.a totaled car for a special project.and putting it back on the road is not part of it.i could get a older abandoned car from a shadetree garage but id like to go for abit new one.thanx

Based on the above answer, why are you asking this in your first post "And whats the point of buying those cars?I mean what are the possible things we can do to the car after buying? "

[shane6399]

I think what he meant was

Can u buy a condemned car? If yes, why would anyone buy it.. For instance - dismantle the remaining part of the car and sell the spares or use it as scrap metal.

[Sylvi]

heh thanx for the quick reply but im NOT trying to buy one to put it back on the road.where did u get that thought from? tbh im a automobile student and im looking for a wasted car to be used as my college project.a totaled car for a special project.and putting it back on the road is not part of it.i could get a older abandoned car from a shadetree garage but id like to go for abit new one.thanx

cjcjcj,

You have a valid reson, to do your special project. We should encorage this young person to do this project

Sylvi Wijesinghe.

Edited January 1, 2013 by Sylvi

[Rumesh88]

I think what he meant was

Can u buy a condemned car? If yes, why would anyone buy it.. For instance - dismantle the remaining part of the car and sell the spares or use it as scrap metal.

If you are looking for a condemned car for you project be mindful of the following things.

1. Price of the car. If the vehicle can be scrapped for spares and if it is a popular model expect to pay a higher price.

2. What to do with the thing once your project is over. Again the question of demand for spares comes.

3. Decide what should essentially remain in the vehicle. Whether u want engine, dashboard, etc to remain in the condemned car or just the shell with suspension and steering. As a donor car, VW beetle is the best for almost any project but you will not find a condemned one easily.

4. You seem to think you can get away by paying a lesser price for a condemned car as opposed to a registered one and recover a part of the investment by reselling it after completing the project. To do this you should hv a good knowledge on the demand for spares for each car model. You need to try your luck here.

[JadeyBlitzen]

Dear experts,

I would like to know how to buy a Condemned/accident vehicle in sri lanka.

1.Is there a special licence to buy a car like that?or any other "not-normal" things i have to follow before buying something like that?

2.And whats the point of buying those cars?I mean what are the possible things we can do to the car after buying?

3.Any known places to buy one of those cars?

Expecting a answer.

Thank you.

1. you don't need a special license. I don't know what you mean by not normal. usually the vehicles are allowed to be inspected before bidding or auctioning. this is where you need to have a keen knowledge about the vehicle and its components cos you need to identify which parts are damaged/needs replacing and the costs involved. as this would help you calculate the true value of the vehicle in its current state and place the most reasonable bid.

2. there are two types of condemned vehicles. repairable and irreparable repairable ones are meant to be repaired and put back on the road. the book in most cases will hold the insurance companies name thus informing future buyers the vehicle that it was once condemned (there are companies that don't do this however) and this information cannot be changed legally. As for the irreparable once the book and the VIN plates are cut off and sent to rmv which again cannot be retrieved legally. As for the vehicles they are cut in half and sold for parts or scrap. These vehicles change hands for their scrap value or salvageable parts' value.

3. Insurance companies usually call tenders once in a while. those are advertised on papers. smaller insurance and finance companies have small yards where vehicles can be purchased after negotiating with whoever's in charge. You can always call them and ask.

Anyway unless you are salvaging parts or buying a rare vehicle for your own use this system is pretty pointless at its best. There are people who specifically deal with this kind of cars and its a cesspool. condemned cars change hands at prices as high as the roadworthy ones. because these people do botch jobs and most importantly don't fix new airbags and belts. which in most cases cost about 15% of the vehicles value. So even if you are a ordinary person who's trying to save a few bucks by buying a condemned cars its not practical cos it'll end up costing just as much as a roadworthy car or maybe more. I know one guy who pawned all of his wife's jewelry to buy a wrecked allion for 2.7 mil. It had about 700k of damage on it and seemed like a good investment. but when he tried to start the car up after fixing most of it they realized all the sensors and computer boxes behind the dash was cut right off the harness and stolen before it was delivered. That would add another 400k and this being a condemned car with the insurance company' name he can never get that money back.

There are good stories once in a while. My garage fellow brought down a beautiful alfa 156 with frontal damage for 500k and repaired it with parts brought down from singapore. all in all it cost him less than a million and ended up with something really nice in his hands. So it works for rare cars but not the common ones. so don't invest in this unless you know what you are doing.

[Kavvz]

heh thanx for the quick reply but im NOT trying to buy one to put it back on the road.where did u get that thought from? tbh im a automobile student and im looking for a wasted car to be used as my college project.a totaled car for a special project.and putting it back on the road is not part of it.i could get a older abandoned car from a shadetree garage but id like to go for abit new one.thanx

What kind of project will you be using the car for / what exactly is the nature of your project?

Edited January 2, 2013 by Kavvz

[Watchman]

Jokes aside cjcjcj would make a great apprentice to sylvi to carry forward his knowledge.

[AyeshRandima]

Can someone really help me ???

[Frappie237]

Yes u can buy salvage cars, and one you fix it you need to get state inspection. If u pass the inspection, the salvage title will be removed and will be replaced by a rebuilt title. Once you get the rebuilt title, you can register your rebuilt title car and drive it on public roads

NOTE: since it's a rebuilt title, when it comes to selling the car, you may need to sell it about 20% below the average price of a car with the same mileage and model 

Example :if a clean title suzuki wagon R with 60 000km goes for 3 million, the same wagon R with 60 000kmbwith a REBUILT titled goes for around 2.7 million