1987 911 Salvage / Rebuilt Dilemma

[evan717]

Thank you all for the comments. My wife, seller, & I came to an agreement and I am the proud owner of this vehicle. I absolutely cannot wait to share this new chapter with my family and you all! Thank you again!

[quadpod]

It's not a stock original street car so what do you have to worry about resale value? Bottom line, if you sell parts off it only, would you be well ahead of what you paid? Seems like it. If it were me, I'd buy it.

[bourgeois911]

If a junkyard offered 25k, why would you try to sell it at 14?

[evan717]

Thank you for the input. I honestly just want to drive it. Just looking for reassurance. My wife is weighing in on the other side of the argument and making me feel guilty about spending the money on a salvage vehicle.

[evan717]

Originally Posted by bourgeois911

If a junkyard offered 25k, why would you try to sell it at 14?

I do not understand...

[SalParadise]

Originally Posted by evan717

Thank you for the input. I honestly just want to drive it. Just looking for reassurance. My wife is weighing in on the other side of the argument and making me feel guilty about spending the money on a salvage vehicle.

Well you can tell your wife that Salvage means myriad things to myriad people, and that to me Salvage has so many levels that it almost means nothing if you're a smart buyer.

All Salvage means in most cases is that the "salvage" of the car is worth less than the complete, clean working car minus all the work that needs to be done to make it the clean working car again. Most cars when totaled go into the red immediately with how much body people charge to bring a car back. In the case of many old 911s - this is certainly the case, HOWEVER many old 911s do have a salvage title, and it means nothing because it's now 2018 and they are worth more than they have ever been.

I have bought a lot of salvage cars over the years and have never been burned. I bought a BMW Z3 that I drove forever - and it was salvaged because of the front hood, etc (which cost $5K new then). I have also bought classics that were salvaged.

In your case the title brand really means nothing. It's just important to check to see if the car is SAFE and you can drive it SAFELY without issue.

Don't get cold feet and bring it back. As long as it's legal and titled, who cares.

[RedCoupe]

I know of a Cadillac that had a salvage title due to a deployed air bag. Apparently, the original owner drove onto the shoulder to avoid a deer and the airbag popped. The insurance company totaled it rather than fix it.

[john walker's workshop]

Better be sure it's not bent/twisted from the wreck. Just parts in that case.

[OldSpool87]

I’m confused. Is the car fixed or are you buying a project? I’m thinking it’s fixed. You’re buying a car with history and you need to get comfortable with that first. Given its history as a known track car and accident, how it’s titled would not be of much concern to me as a buyer. Both my cars have “issues” and I love them just he same.