Rebuilt title?

[Fuzz]

Hi guys:

Anyone have thoughts on whether to go with a vehicle with a rebuilt title? My feeling is if the vehicle looks good, and the owner has a reasonable explanation, I'm OK with it.

[Jesus Christ]

I am ok with a rebuilt title. I would be better if they have the paperwork showing the repairs.

Keep in mind in most cases, whenever you have salvage titles, they post the mileage on the  title at the time it was issued. Which should be the mileage the accident happened

So if the salvage title stated the mileage at 83,200 miles and the car has 85,000. That tells me the owner invested a lot of money fixing the car up to drive for the unforeseen future however quickly changed his or her mind to sell for who knows what reason. They must know something is not right.

Salvage titles should come at a discount. You have to assume the person you eventually sell the car to will expect this same discount.

[Mr. Frugalwoods]

Just make sure you believe the story.

And stay away from flooded cars.  Modern vehicle electronics will never be the same after being submerged.

[southern granny]

I know a guy who bought a vehicle with  a rebuilt title.  He had a nightmare of a time getting it licensed with the DMV.  I'm not sure what the issue was with the paperwork, but it was a big deal requiring multiple trips.  But they did finally get it.

[GetItRight]

Need to know why it has a rebuilt/salvage/whatever title. It comes down to insurance and government BS and has nothing to do with whether the car is driveable or was easily repairable for minor damage or something major. You might see salvage title and think it was a flood or the whole thing burned to the ground or some other major wreck twisting the frame where to be usable it's either totally hacked together or restored like it came from the factory... But salvage titles are typically what a vehicle gets after insurance "totals" it on paper. That could mean a tree limb fell across the front end, or interior or paint was vandalized, hail damage, etc. anything trivial to fix but shop rate would be more than the insurance company wants to call the value of the car.

Anything flood or fire though, I wouldn't touch it if it has electronics. Too much risk of the car always having issues unless the car was actually torn down to bare everything and restored to new including all new wiring or a harness from a vehicle junked for other reasons. Having dealt with many DMV and insurance nightmares I would avoid anything with a title issue unless it's truly rare and you can't find something comparable that you'd be happy with.

[Cwadda]

I would say avoid at all costs, unless you or someone you know knows a lot about cars and can tell exactly what's going on with it.