Let's talk salvage titles if we may Options

[Tdskip]

First off let me say that I know they'll be lots of room for personal opinions here, with some people holding the opinion that with cars of our vintage a salvage title isn't that big of a deal if it comes from a non-critical issue back when the cars weren't worth much.

I just looked at exactly such a car that was totaled by the insurance company over what today we would look at as a minor bump. Back when it happened, close to 15 years ago, I'm sure a $1500 repair was probably enough of a threshold to total the car so the insurance company wrote it off and the previous owner bought it back and then never restored it like he thought he was going to when he bought it back.

So all that brings us to today - otherwise clean car that had some rust repair done to a solid but not cosmetically attractive level, just needs an engine to be back on the road. 17's that are ready to Bolton can be readily had for not a whole lot money and you can see where the rest of this thought process goes. Except, except, except the shell has a salvage title.

I was thinking I would just throw this thing together and then drive it for six months and sell it, which I do in a heartbeat if I didn't have a salvage title but I'm worried that even at driver pricing ($4000?) i'll get stuck with it because other people will get the heebie-jeebies about the salvage title just like me.

What do you all think?

[Larmo63]

Back in 2014 I looked at a really nice Bahia Red highly optioned '73 2.0 in Thousand Oaks.

The guy wanted $11K for the car, but it had a salvage title. It had been involved in an (small front passenger fender) accident. The guy got the insurance payout money, worked a deal to buy the car back, and fixed it perfectly. The car was a 9.5+ out of 10. It was that nice.

I didn't buy it at the time, somebody else here did. I think the car went to Texas and it is/was a great car. You can re-title cars in some states to circumvent a ST and then bring them back into California.

I often wonder where that car is today.

To answer the OP's question, if it's a driver/beater, buy it and enjoy it.

If I would have bought that red car, I would have never EVER mentioned to anybody that it was on a salvage title. None of anybody's business.