Anybody bought or sold a 914 with a Salvage Title... Options

[quadracerx]

Just curious if anyone has bought or sold a 914 with a salvage title....Is it worth substantiallly less because it is a "salvage repair"? Is it even worth spending money on a "salvage car"?

Im looking for info from all parts of the US but I live in the Seattle area if that actually makes a difference?

Thanks...

Steve

[ConeDodger]

It depends on the reason for the salvage title. I bought the Bumblebee Racer from a member here with a salvage title. He had bought it at auction with a salvage title. The reason for the salvage title is that the car had been in a flood. Only part of the car got wet and the engine was a total mess due to water inside and the fact that an idiot had rebuilt it... When I considered the well documented reasons that the car had a salvage title I had no problem paying the asking price. When I sold the car, I got my asking price which was more than I had purchased the car for.

With that said, a salvage title car can be a real pain to register. In California, you must first have a CHP inspection where they take the car out of your sight and go over it looking for signs of reassembly with stolen parts. This is not really a problem with the 914 as the numbered and documented process they are using postdates the 914. Unless you put in a 3.6 liter flat six! The second step is to have a brake and light inspection. I found that the certified stations are hard to find and some that are listed have given it up because the State is a pain in the arse... I never actually got the car through the Brake and Light as the Ebrake was not hooked up and the interior light didn't work. I am not the kind of person who has time to "richard" around with appointments to deal with people who tell me my interior light isn't bright enough.

California is one of a number of States that has an emigrant population that make a living salvaging and rebuilding cars. A small number of them would not hesitate to steal parts or cut corners that could cause you a problem with the car you purchase. I go down to the pick and pull on occasion and each time I have lately, they are busting guys for throwing parts over the fence to their friends.

I guess the moral is to know why the car is salvage titled. Sometimes it can be as simple as a 914 that someone backed into. File a claim and the insurance adjuster totals it. Unintended consequence is a salvage title. Regardless of what Excellence says our cars are worth, the insurance industry thinks they are nearly worthless.