Normally I would NEVER consider a rebuilt title car, but this particular car looks and drives immaculate. Damage was to the passenger side, but it looks like nothing ever happened to it. Like I said, I would normally never consider it, but it’s pretty much exactly what I'm looking for.

Anyone ever dealt or bought a car that has a rebuilt title? Did you run into any problems insuring it?

 

I have an officemate that bought a salvage monster truck.
It wasn't wrecked it had an electrical fire, confined to the
driver door. I am not sure why the insurance company
declared it a total loss it was not that old.

Anyway, her brother owns a professional body shop and such.
So he repairs it perfect for her, but it has a salvage title on it.

I forget the timetable maybe a couple of years later, she is
rear ended bad. I mean BAD BAD.

The other people's insurance company adjuster types claim
mega diminished value because of the salvage title. So she
ends up taking half of the normally half the BV they would have
offered anyway. That was her choice she had room to fight on it
but with hospitals and medical stuff and rehabilitation and <on and on>
she just took the check, which was like lunch money, and financed
a new-new monster truck.

In other words if you are buying a salvage title you need to be
paying pennies on the dollar because that is all you are going to
get back if something happens.

 

some insurance company will not insure at all.

 

Had one which earned a salvage and bought one with salvage unknown to me.
The first was an accident which the car was a total but very repairable. I drove that car another 100k and never had a problem.
The second I bought with salvage and did not know it. It hurt the resale but I never had problem with insurance and drove the car for 80k without problem.

If you can get a really good deal and someone you trust says it is a safe car it can work out. However as said above you can have troubles with insurance and resale.

Think hard if you want these problems or would rather just spend some more for a car you can trust and know what to expect with insurance.
Just my $.02

 

I forgot.
My sister drove a saturn for a while. It was made from
the front 1/2 of one saturn welded on the back 1/2 of
another saturn. Or maybe it was an altima.

She paid about 1/2 of the regular price for it.

 

Insurance can be a hassle and you can expect to get next to nothing as far as value is concerned should anything happen.

Other than that, you may want to check into the laws in your state. Some states allow a rebuilt title to qualify as a clean title if you go under certain rules and the state checks it out. Others, like SC, don't accept the "rebuilt" moniker and simply label it salvage.

 

My son has a 2000 Honda Civic with a salvage title. He got it for $2K. Great first car. It was rebuilt when less than 1 year old, so the fix has stood the test of time - this was the clincher for me. Can't get any kind of insurance but liability, so I told him "drive very carefully".

 

Thanks for all the input everyone. This car is pretty much EXACTLY what I'm looking for, but the worry about something happening to it and not being able to get any money out of it make me hesitant.

Wasn't there someone on these boards who can do like an extensive VIN check? Like more information than a carfax report?

 

Anyone else have any experience with a rebuilt title?

Also, anyone want to buy a 2005 Acura RSX Type-S?

 

I would steer clear of a salvaged car. Sellers will always say that there was little damage and it was fixed up anyway. You run the risk of that one seller who is cheating people by cutting corners on safety and you end up driving an unsafe car.

Below is a post I put in another thread regarding the subject.

Personally, I support the proposed federal legislation that will standardize salvage title law in an attempt to prevent frauds from reselling totaled cars. On the national news there was one father who was interviewed. He said he got a great deal on a salvaged car, for his daughter.

The car was unsafely "put back together" and literally fell apart on the freeway. His daughter was killed.

Frankly, unless you know exactly how a car was damaged, the extent of the damage and how it was repaired, one has no business even considering buying a salvaged vehicle.

But there are those experts in here who know all about salvaged cars, engineering and repairs, so you can listen to the experts rather than I.

Bonus Tip: The pros at salvaged title sales always make the cars look cosmetically perfect. That's how they make the sale. The MINI GP I mention below had been in two accidents. In the first accident the car was totaled. The second time only one side was damaged. The dishonest seller was showing people pics of the second accident and misrepresenting that it was the accident in which the car was totaled. In fact, the car damage was far more extensive in the first accident, and that resulted in it being totaled.

____________________________

Fed legislators are trying to pass a law that will standardize car title law because it varies by state. Some states, like California, call it "salvaged" while other states call it something different, for example "totaled."

The car in question here, MINI GP, appears to have been salvaged due to an auto accident. The seller misleads [and violates Craig's List posting rules] by saying that there was just a little damage that was easily repaired. Fact is, if a car that cost as much as this MINI did was totaled there was serious damage to it. In any event, a lot more damage was caused to this car than what the seller is describing.

In some states once a car is deemed salvaged it CANNOT be repaired, title "rebuilt" and the car sold.

Many states allow salvaged or totaled cars to be repaired and driven, but the title keeps its salvaged designation.

Some states [and this is the problem] allow a title to be "laundered" to where it will lose its salvaged designation after being repaired.

Some dishonest sellers launder totaled cars in states with lax laws and import the no-longer-totaled car into states such as California. That is why astute buyers in California always ask "is this a California car?" If not, the buyer won't give the car a second look out of fear that the car may have a laundered title.

Unless a seller can show clean title from another state [e.g., one owner car] most people will not look at cars with no plates, etc. If you look at a car and it does not have plates, that is a red flag that deeper inquiries are in order and most likely to steer clear of the car, regardless of the BS the seller gives you.

Most insurance companies will NOT insure a salvaged vehicle for coverage of the vehicle itself. They may insure you for liability, but the car won't be covered. There are exceptions, but they are few. Those companies may insure for the actual cash value of the salvaged vehicle.

The safest thing to do is BEFORE buying a salvaged vehicle is to simply call your insurance carrier and ask if it covers the vehicle itself, liability only [meaning the car is not covered] or neither.

 

If you mean "rebuilt" as in the title was salvaged, but eventually designated and rebuilt to remove its salvage designation, that is what I mean [and law enforcement means] by a laundered title. But some states obviously don't like that negative connotation, so they call it "rebuilt" titles.

Some states allow title laundering, most states do not. For a title to be rebuilt, the car usually has to be inspected by the DMV to make sure the car has been repaired properly. Many states don't want to get into messy inspections and fights, nor deal with safety issues. So in California, for example, a salvage title stays with the car forever. It can never be "rebuilt" However, in California salvaged cars can still be roadworthy, so there are no rules prohibiting their being driven.

Some states allow one to repair a salvaged car and apply to have the salvage designation removed. It's those states that dishonest dealers [criminals] get their cars to sell in states with stricter laws.

 

Here is a speech made to the U. S. Senate that says it all. More than you want to know in a NAM thread, but what the hell, fill your head with knowledge.

I have bold printed parts for emphasis.

_______________________________


CONGRESSIONAL RECORD

Mr. President, today I am introducing legislation along with my colleagues, Senators Feinstein and Bryan, that will protect consumers from the unscrupulous practice known as "title washing" the current practice of selling rebuilt wrecks to unsuspecting buyers.

The objective of this legislation is to make it more difficult for unscrupulous auto sellers to conceal the fact that a vehicle has been in an accident by transferring the vehicle's title in a state with lower standards than where the vehicle is ultimately sold. In developing this bill, Senators Feinstein and Bryan and I worked closely with national consumer protection groups and a number of state Attorneys General. We have crafted a bill that is truly consumer protective and sets high national standards that did not previously exist.

We took great care to ensure that our bill would not preempt the rights of states to retain or enact laws that exceed the minimum federal standards in this bill.

National automobile salvage title legislation is needed because there is no uniform standard for when a vehicle must be declared salvage or nonrepairable. About 2.5 million cars are severely damaged in auto accidents each year. More than half of them are returned to the road.

Many of these rebuilt cars are sold to unsuspecting consumers without disclosure of the car's prior history, increasing the chance of serious injury to the drivers and passengers of these rebuilt cars. The National Association of Attorneys General estimates that the sale of rebuilt or salvaged motor vehicles as undamaged, costs the motor vehicle industry and consumers up to $4 billion annually.

Currently, some states, like Michigan and California and others, have tough consumer protection laws dictating when a vehicle's title must be branded as salvage or nonrepairable, but other states do not. Unfortunately, unscrupulous people now take advantage of this lack of uniformity and take wrecked vehicles to states with low or no standards to retitle them and thus wipe out the vehicle's prior damage history.

Our bill would provide for uniform standards of nationwide seller disclosure for every vehicle sale of previous salvage and major damage vehicles, and ensure these title brands are carried forward with all titles each time the vehicle is sold. This proposal is consistent with the National Association of Attorneys General auto salvage resolution adopted in 1994. I ask unanimous consent to have that resolution included in the Record.

This bill also has the support of Michigan's Attorney General, who wrote in a letter endorsing the bill,

"This bill will further empower consumers to have more information available in making an informed decision about what is generally their second most costly purchase, motor vehicles used for personal transportation. I urge Congress to enact this bill".

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that this letter be included in the Record.

The salvage title requirements in our bill are modeled after the successful 25 year old federal odometer law which requires the milage of a vehicle to be disclosed before a vehicle can be transferred. This law requires each seller to fill out a statement on the odometer reading that verifies its accuracy and a vehicle buyer cannot get a state title without this disclosure on the title. Our bill would work in a similar manner.

Our bill is basically a disclosure bill. It requires that whenever a vehicle's title is transferred, the seller must disclose in writing to the buyer any accident history of the vehicle which includes: salvage, flood, nonrepairable or major damage. Our bill defines "salvage", "flood", "nonrepairable" and "major damage" to provide broad disclosure and to protect consumer safety. These definitions are consistent with recommendations from the state Attorneys General.

Mr. President, in conclusion, the sale of rebuilt wrecks to unsuspecting buyers is a serous problem and should be stopped as soon as possible. The Feinstein, Levin, Bryan bill will do just that by establishing uniform disclosure standards for all vehicle sales and requiring all states to carry forward this disclosure on the vehicle's title. Simply put, our bill will put an end to title-washing.

 

They will still figure out a way to do it.
That's why they are called 'criminals'.
That's how criminals get paid.

Just like criminals figure out how to reset odometers still
on supposedly un-resettable odometers.

 

Thanks for all the input MichaelSF. Even though its a great looking car, and pretty much exactly what I want, I'm going to steer clear.

I'm just going to have to keep looking to find my dream mini!

 

Of course, criminals always figure out ways to circumvent laws, but that does not mean we should not address the issues and problems.

The federal odometer laws reduced odometer fraud by 90%. Almost has eliminated the problem. [What helped too was digital odometers and the Net, with services like CarFax. Plus after the fed legislation individual states imposed stricter odometer laws too.]

But for sure, there's criminals out there tampering with odometers, near impossible to do it now since computers keep track of a car's history from birth to the scrap heap.

Now we have to get the title washing / laundering problem fixed. Most people on knowing a car has a salvaged title will not buy the vehicle. This is because the majority of car buyers are not vehicle experts and don't know squat about car mechanics, engineering, safety, and repairs.

So disclosure is a good thing.

 

Hello everyone, I have been reading and following all of your posts about the Salvage vehicle rules, and rebuilt laws, and all the "criminals" out there. I just want to say that I have seen many mis informed statements, and like the " legislators " that tried for a bill for salvage disclouser, and many posters on this site, 90% of people that don't know will just make something up or play of what they heard. I have been rebuilding salvage vehicles for over 10 years and took over my dad's business of rebuilding vehicles with 20 years prior so all together we have over 30 years of experience in this field. If you have any questions, or would like for me to pull any file on ANY salvage vehicle ( with pictures ) please ask. I also absolutely agree that buying a savlage, rebuilt, reconstructed or non repairable vehicle can be tricky. But it is not a scam, ripoff or criminal if you follow a few simple pointers.

To correct one very commonly mis-used piece of information please pay very close attention to the following.
INSURANCE) NO, Absolutely NO insurance company that is legally licensed to sell insurance in any state other then CA, SC, TN, and Washington state, will sell insurance on a ( pay attention this is the "catch" ) salvage vehicle. Lets re-type this. Other then CA, SC, TN, and washington state, NO insurance company in any other state will insure a salvage vehicle............. Ok here is the explanation. A salvage vehicle may not be legally driven on public roadways unless it has been "rebuilt" or " reconstructed" and allowed by your state to be licensed for road use. Here is where the rumers and general " I don't know what i'm doing" comes to play..... Pick up the phone dial any insurance company and say the following..... " hi I would like to buy insurance for a salvage vehicle " denied, right off the bat it's a no because what you just said means this " hi I have a smashed up totaled worthless hunk of doodoo that I would like for you to insure" no everytime and now the rumers fly " oh god a salvage car no one will insure that don't buy it"
Now hang up call right back and say " hi I would like to buy insurance for a rebuilt or reconstructed vehicle " you will purchase a policy and have no problems getting comp or full coverage, what your saying now is as follows
" hi I am buying or already have bought a vehicle that has been previously totaled, rebuilt and authorized to be put back on the road" the word "salvage" is very broadly used but not always correctly. Now point two Insurance pay out procedure. This is Federal law.
Any insurance company that practices the selling of insurance in said state may not reclassify declassify or deny coverage to a rebuilt or reconstructed vehicle once it has been rebuilt and titled. The said insurance company may deduct up to 25% of the vehicles current replacement market value, depending on it's currect physical condition.

WHat the above means....... If your buying a previously totaled, salvaged or rebuilt vehicle the insurance company you have may take up to 25% if the car is totaled again off your check. OMG!!!! heres something to quickly think about. lets say your buying a $20,000 mini. The car has a $14,000 price tag on it because it is a rebuilt, 2 months later the 85 year old great grandmother in her cadillac doesn't see your tiny cooper and plows into your car. It's totaled, her fault your fault doesn't matter, the agent that cuts your check has to replace your car or pay you to replace your car and lets say he does take the full 25% deduction, you get a $15,000 check.... I know theres going to be plenty of people who will read this and say "well my friend, or my 3 cousin from my aunts side and so on didn't get anything from safe auto or some other 4th rate insurance company for his or her rebuilt so and such" Listen, I have been doing this long enough to have repeat customers buy a 2,3 and even 4th car after totalling there vehicle, and every single time they come back with a huge smile on there face and a fat pocket. I have sold vehicles for $5,000 that have "totaled out" for $8,000, and $10,000 vehicles that have totalled out for over $15,000...... the bottom line is this, KNOW what your buying, and WHO your buying from if it's previously salvaged, ASK for a car fax, no one can cheat carfax, carfax has a contract that anytime ANY insurance company issues a total loss check for ANY vin# it is put into a national data base and reported.... <----- because of this there is NO such thing as "title washing" since 2000, people are just to cheap to buy a carfax. GET a second opinion of bring your mechanic to inspect the vehicle, and finally IF YOUR UN SURE ask me... I will pull that vin and provide you with pictures of the wreck and a full damage report from the isurance co that handled that vehicle.... and to every also remember this.... Lets not double dip, if you bought a rebuilt vehicle for half the book value, and then sold it or had it totaled out for half the book value then don't cry... Good luck to everyone.... ( P.S. any and every dealer selling a previous salvage has pictures and documents of what and how the vehicle was purchased and repaired, if they don't want to share that with you, run because that car will be hatched from 3 others, most rebuilders take pride in there work and will gladly show you the before ) both the vehicles my wife and I drive are rebuilt and both have full coverage insurance with progressive, no issues, my dad purchased and rebuilt a 2009 silverado last year with a book value of $24,000 and this past winter someone hit his truck when running a red light causing just over $17,000 worth of damage, he recieved a check for $22,195 to get another vehicle I can post that on here if anyone would like. There is no reason to be afraid of a savlage car if it's fixed correctly by a reputable rebuilder, not joe dirt in the back yard, stay informed, be safe and save some money while your at it! thanks again. If you have any salvage title or that nature questions please ask me I will help you the best i can.

 

While I can't speak to every states peculiarities, I can speak to my own experiences with my own 04 MCS. I bought it in march with Georgia salvage title. I brought it back to Mississippi where I live. It was damaged on drivers side. In some states if it damages 4 or more body panels it's an automatic salvage title. My MCS had hood, drivers fender, driver door and driver rear quarter panel damage. The rear quarter was the real issue...it had to be replaced entirely unlike the other panels that were just bolt on. I had it checked out and repaired by someone whom I trust. It's all a matter of how well something is done. I used 100% genuine mini parts, no after-market at all. When it was being repaired, I took before, during and after pictures. I documented the entire repair thoroughly. The rear quarter panel is better than factory now due to the use of pre-weld primer and primed weld fillers used, as well as the fact that I had my guy add 20% more weld points in general. All parts werefinished to match exactly to production processes. Things such as sound proof pads glued inside the panels just like factory, vinyl bead where panels meet and flat paint underneath hood to visually match the factory look. All bolt on panels were painted off-car so no overspray could occur.

In the end it was as good as the original. I took it to the state inspection station to get a clean title....passed with flying colors and once I received my title I had to take the Mini to dealership for inspection so I could order a new VIN decal for door jam. They wont just let you order a new one. My insurance agent ran my car through his system and it was valued at $11400. I now have full coverage for less than my 04 jeep liberty or my 06 civic coupe. If I decide to sell it, I have over 100 pics of my car in every stage of repair and they can talk to my bodyshop guy as well as have Mini look it up in their computers due to it having an inspection. Btw, the Mini inspection wasn't just a body work inspection, they ran all the ecu checks and put it on alignment rack. Cost me $50 but it was good insurance for any future potential buyer.

There you have it. Not bad at all in my mind. I'm damn sure a body shop guy would spend days trying to determine if my car had actually been rebuilt. As long as it is done correctly, most states have a mechanism to get it back out on the road. Due diligence is whats needed. If someone handed me all the documentation I have I wouldnt hesitate to own my MCS. If there is no one you can discuss the car with or slim documentation I would bail. My final say on this is, as long as you have no frame alignment issues all else is fixable.

 

I too have been rebuilding cars for 30 years. My mini I fixed last winter was totaled. I repaired 3 cars in the past year to replace 3 of our older salvage repaired vehicles.

I always take pics and put them in a file of the damaged cars so when I sell them I can show buyers.

I just repair my own vehicles as I dont have time to do resale any more.Banks wont loan full loan on a salvage vehicle and alot will only loan full loan value so keep that in mind..

I bought a 07 Colorado on ebay last winter.I took it in for inspection.I only replaced 1 fender, bumper and headlight plus core support.Only painted the fender and core support. I pulled the frame about an 1nch and thats it.Inspector couldnt belive it was totaled when he saw pics. I could have drove it home but it was 600 miles away.

What I am getting at is it all depends on how a car is damaged..I have saved many thousands and made many on salvaged cars will continue as long as I can.. Just be very careful..

Ps...I fixed a rental car that was rolled several years ago.The car had 7000 miles on it and a present year model year car. The buyer ran a carfax on it and it showed it clean..The car was self insured and no insurance company had a record of the accident.People couldnt believe this..They bought the car but it shows you that things arent always what they appear. I am honest and told them.....Some wont..Buyer be ware..

 

Many people have many different experiences with rebuilt vehicles. If you know what your looking for and deal with a reputable seller, like the two posters above, you will have an awesome experience and YES save a bunch of money!!! Mississippi is one of the only states I know of that will issue a "clean title" if the repair is 4 panels or less.... very tricky, but like i posted before, if the vehicle had been totalled by an insurance company it would have that record and show up on a carfax report. BTW if you ever sell that mini and it goes back to GA that customer will be bringing the car back as GA will require a new salvage/rebuild process and ask for all original reciepts and so on, it sucks!

as far as the banks loaning money on a rebuild depends on a few things, one they use the same 25% discount point and it has to make a certain price relevance meaning, if they repo it with a rebuilt title they will only loan what it will do at auction.... and most credit unions do lend. most main stream banks don't.

The states to watch out for are MA and RI, Massachusetts is a "private" insurance state, commerce insurance is a state funded insurance company and they have grandfathered a law that says it's totally at the insurance companies descresion weather or not to "salvage" a title if a total loss is paid, example below this lincoln LS was totalled and paid out but sold at auction with a clean title, you see the insurance industry knows they will net more if the title is clean, so they use a " 10 year " loop hope in the system to keep a clean title. Heres the loop : 10 year disclosure law, 36 states follow a 10 year disclosure law, if it's 10 years or older the seller does NOT need to disclose any previous salvage history. So in MA and RI insurance companies take advantage of this rule and keep there titles clean to increase the bottom line! and we're the criminals right?????? RI does it by transferring a car on a straight bill of sale no title if over 10 years old. so you just walk your bill of sale in and title the car, comes back clean, in KY anyway. I do buy a lot of the MA cars like this, but I buy them with very light damage, no frame work and no airbag deployment, just easy bolt on parts and paint. I tell ALL of my customers the vehicle has been wrecked but by buying them this way since the title is clean most of my customers can get a loan this way so it takes the stress off the purchasing part for them.

Another state I like is Florida, Florida has a Certificate of Destruction title they love to assign to almost anything... I recently purchased a 1999 Mitsubishi Eclipse Spyder. This car has a full molded body kit, 19" wheels with almost new tires, customer pearl white 2 stage paint job, custoer wing, all custm 2 tone interior, aftermarket lights, and so on and so on, someone had probably spent about $10,000 building that car. Well one day they must have clipped a pothole or curb and cracked the front lower portion of the fiberglass body kit.... do to the expensive nature of the fiberglass repair ( cost my shop $600 in materials and man hours, lol ) all state totalled the car. Florida issued a CD title, I bought this car for $950 because other then KY and OH no other state will let you rebuilt this title, regardless of how easy or minor the damage is it all comes down to the paperwork. KY or OH will turn the CD into a salvage title and let you rebuild the car, now heres the catch, instead of a regular blue colored title the state sends you a red rebuilt title and prints on top " may not be eligible to title in other states" so this car will have to be sold either in KY or OH. Heres the loop hole.... if the rebuild process takes place in a customers name and the vehicle then is titled right away in a private customers name if that customer moves to any other state, since the title is already in their name, every state will title the car and give you a rebuilt title from that state. I'm going to add this eclipse to my small collection of import tuner cars and keep it for a while....... I have 100's of people calling me to help them with a Parts only title or CD title every month and if they don't live in KY or OH they can either move here or scrap the car?!?!?

 

First of all "Buyer beware". Having said that, I recently purchased my 2008 MCS with a "Salvage Title" from a "Rebuilder" in N. Hollywood, CA. I've had previous experience in purchasing salvage title vehicles and I can only attest that if you do your homework you will come out way ahead. I just paid $14,000 cash for '08 MCS with 14,000 miles on it. I had the seller send me pictures of the vehicle which had what appeared to be minor front end damage. I couldn't believe that the car was totaled. I did some research and found that the seller's shop specializes in rebuilding salvaged Minis. I took the car for a test drive and it drove like a brand new car. It looked great but had a bit of gap adjustment that needed taking car of around the hood. I bought the car and had the seller sign a two week guarantee so I could take it to the shop of my choice and get a full inspection of their work. It cost me $140 to have the inspection done and it passed with flying colors. I have AAA insurance and they have no problem insuring it but I have to take it in for them to look at if I want comp and collision. I think I got a terrific deal. The only draw back with this car is that since it is a salvage title the dealers will not honor any of the remaining warranty so I'm on my own there.

 

very nice car and good deal, if any of you guys or girls wish to see the previous damage on your car all i need is the vin.

 

This is turning out to be a very good thread. One thing I would suggest is if the owner or bodyshop won't talk to you or give any supporting info walk away. There are good bodyshop guys out there. I'm kinda OCD about stuff like this. If it smells fishy walk away. If the seller is willing to give info such as who owned it, carfax, pictures and original receipts you are on your way to a pleasant deal. I feel I got a great deal as well as an education on my Mini. I checked in a few days a week to see the progress on the rebuild.

If anyone is going to have a salvage vehicle rebuilt, take lots of before during and after pics. That way if you do sell down the road, the buyer will feel more comfortable.

 

You guys do realize that you are "opening" a Thread from 3yrs. ago??!! :-s

 

Yes...I see that but ehen someone post today it brings to forefront a topic that may otherwise be overlooked. Don't know about you, but I learned a lot I wouldn't have otherwise thought about. I think its a good thing to follow up on same thread rather than start a new one.

 

my very first car 3 years ago was a salvaged 2001 honda civic that my father purchased for me with the salvaged title from an insurance auction in the state of Florida. Absolutely ridiculous in my opinion, especially for his then 17 year old son's first car . He had assumed that the recent accident that totaled the car which is why it was being auctioned was the only accident the car had been in. WRONG. Upon doing a carfax myself on the car as it was in the process of being repaired by "friends" of my dad's, I found out that it had been totaled once prior, both accidents with airbag deployment. Long story short, my dad lives in Florida and is in the car salvage business and thought he had decent resources to do the repairs and fix the car adequately to send it up to me in New Jersey. WRONG AGAIN. It took longer than expected to do the repairs, and there was frame damage that wasn't fixed before he gave me the car to drive. This was discovered when I took the car for the very first drive and noticed a horrific sound (made me pull over) whenever I made right turns. This noise was caused by too much weight/pressure on the right side wheel bearing because everything in the engine compartment was shifted ever so slightly from the accident and never repaired correctly. Thousands of dollars in correct/necessary repairs and about 3 years later, as well as unmeasurable amounts of frustration due to trying to get the car proper documentation to be registered to hold a "rebuilt" title in the state of new jersey, the MINI dealer I purchased my Cooper from gave me $2k for it as a trade in, generous in my opinion. The first thing my MA said after he performed a carfax on my civic was "oh my god, what happened to this car?!" If you ever come across a car with any type of salvaged or rebuilt title, RUN IN THE OTHER DIRECTION, imo.