i am going to look at a 05 MCS with 30k miles.
it has a rebuilt title, the dealer bought it like that @ auction.
what in paticular to these cars should i look for?
thanks....chad

 

Walk away.


Really.


If you're bucks down, and we've all been there, get a car that you can afford and save up for a MINI. If it's just a cheap way to get into a MINI, it's not a good way. OTOH, if you're going to strip it down to bare metal and turn it into a race car and you have the skills to do all the measurements and check the non-facotry welds that are going to be holding it together, then maybe there's an outside chance that it'll do.

Rebuilt titles can mean almost anything, but none of it is good. I've seen rebuilt titles on cars that were constructed of two separate cars welded together in the middle. Really. That particular one was a Suburban (as if it wasn't already silly enough) and the owner wanted to know why it dog-tracked down the street. Almost always (and I stick that modifier in only 'cuz I haven't seen every rebuilt title car on the planet) a rebuilt title means the car was totalled by an insurance company. Insurance companies total cars when the damage is so severe that it'll cost more to repair the damage than the car is worth. You need to ask yourself how someone can buy the wrecked car, repair it properly and then sell it for cheap.

Doesn't happen, in my experience.

But others are free to disagree.

 

Check your state's rules and regulations for titling rebuilt vehicles. It took me 6 months, hundreds of dollars, and countless hours of cutting through red tape to get mine titled in Georgia. Make sure that the dealer has the title in the state he's selling it from, otherwise you are going to likely need a surety bond, which costs around 400-500 dollars, depending on the appraisal value of the car in your state.

Find out what was damaged on the vehicle. If the dealer doesn't know, don't buy it. If you can, have both a body shop and a mechanic give it a thorough inspection.

I budgeted 5000 bucks for mine to fix anything missed by the rebuilders, but have already spent over 6000 dollars, and I'm still holding back another 2000 for anything that might pop up.

You will also have no warranty coverage from MINIUSA. If you're planning on going mod crazy, that probably wouldn't matter anyway

Good luck with whatever you decide to do!

 

I agree. Unless it's for a race car as well.

Too many risks. You have no idea how bad the damage could have been. Plus, you own a car with a rebuilt title meaning that when you decide to get something else, it's going to be a very unattractive car to buyers.

 

Look for another car. You may not be able to find out why it's titled that way until it's too late. But, whatever the reason, it has to be major.

 

Here's some info from Wikipedia about vehicle titling, including rebuilt titlling:

So to answer your question about what to look for... pretty much anything, though depending on the state you might be able to get previous history on the car to see exactly why it was salvaged in the first place (most likely was totalled in a wreck? In that case you also have to consider what kind of condition the frame is in). Unless you are willing to take the risk of having to sink serious $$$ into this car or you are a proficient mechanic, then I'd look elsewhere.

 

This is one instance where Carfax might actually be useful in determining what happened. In some states, "rebuilt" can also mean flood damaged, a recovered stolen vehicle, or many other things.

 

A few words about Carfax: No history does not mean crap. So, it may be good for seeing what has been reported (yes, the info has to be reported), but is useless for determining IF something happened to the car. I had 2 cars totalled and another damaged in a wreck(my daughter). None of them ever had a report show up in Carfax.

 

A 'rebuilt' car can be any variety of canned worms. A lot of them come from flood-ravaged areas these days. The cars are stripped, cleaned, and most water-damaged items are replaced. Potential headaches can be accelerated rusting, electrical gremlins, trans/engine issues and nearly 'permanent' mold problems. The quality of the resutling car is in direct proportion to the care and thoroughness of the cleanup and repair.

Most rebuilts come from 'totalled' cars sold at auctions by insurance companies trying to recoup their payout costs. these are truly mixed bags and should be avoided unless you are absolutely certain of the car's history and the competence of the repair shop. Needless to say, more often than not such crash damaged cars are never going to be as good as a car that has not seen such damage. Worst case are those slipshod hack 'repairs' that leave a car looking cosmetically sound, but hide suboptimal, dangerous repair work. Stories abound of shops taking a car that has been damaged in a frontal collision, chopping off the front half and welding it to the front section of a car that received rear-end damage. It is highly unlikely that such a shady shop would employ a welder with aircraft welding certification willing to take the time to make sound welds (it can be done, but takes lots of time and effort (read:money) to do it right), so any work done in this manner is a time bomb of headaches and hazards waiting to go off.

It's wise to look elsewhere unless you are willing to put up with any nuisance that might arise. Buyer beware!

 

Surprisingly it can work, though. My son had a major rear-end wreck that totaled our Audi Quattro. We bought back the car, grafted a new rear end (at a reputable shop), and drove it for quite some time before my son--again--wrecked it, this time for good. The car never had any problems at all. I assume the title reflected this loss, but I can't recall.

 

Greatbear, I've seen cars BRAZED back together. After 15 years in the autobody business, there ain't nothin I haven't seen. And some of it scared me!

 

While a rebuilt title isn't damning, it introduces more uncertaintly than a lot of people are comfortable with.

I bought a three-year old Honda Civic with a clean Virginia title, only to find out later that the car had previously been titled in Maryland, where it was totaled and given a "salvage" title. (I bought the car back befor CarFax and similar services were widely-available).

I don't know what the previous owner went through to get the Maryland salvage title converted to a clean Virginia title, but that Honda was one of the best cars I've ever owned - I put eight years and 70,000 more miles on it, and never had any squeaks, rattles, alignment problems, paint/electrical/interior issues - nothing.

If I had known about the car's history at the time, I wouldn't have bought it, but sometimes you still luck out, even with a salvaged car.

 

Check to make sure you can get insurance also. I had a co worker that bought a salvaged Saturn. He drove it one day and hit a deer wrecking the front end. He called his agent thinking he had the customary 30 days tto call for insurance. They said no problem, then called back the next day to tell them they don't insure salvage cars. He had to fix it out of pocket.
The other thing to consider is resale. Selling a salvage car is more than difficult. Not many people want them. If you are planning to keep the car and drive it into the ground thats a different story, but if you are just looking for something for a year or two, I'd pass...

 

What to look for in the car? The fastest way out the door. Its not worth it. Even if you say your going to drive it forever, eventually, your going to get sick of it, repairs are too costly, your bored, you want the new model, whatever. Like Chpsk8 said, selling a salvage car is difficult to say the least. You are going to take a huge hit on resale, not to mention the safety aspect. How well was it repaired? Is the crash integrity still there? IMO its not worth the risks, pass on it, and keep saving. In addition to insurance issues, you`ll probably find financing issues as well.

 

My G/F bought a 1996 Acura Integra GSR with a Salvage Title before we were together . She had to get a personal loan (at a rediculous interest rate) in order to get financing. A conventional bank wouldn't touch the loan, so she had to go to a credit union for financing.

Although, the Integra finally blew up... so now we drive a MINI So I can't complain.

Not worth it IMHO...