Hey guys, I am from Iowa, and i am having a hell of a time finding a good G35 up here for my price range, Id like to be around 16,000 to 18,000 for a good coupe, preferrable manual, But the only car i can find close to here for close to my range had been backed into pretty hardcore and the guy let it go to insurance company and got a new car, it had to have replaced, front right headlight, hood, bumper cover and right panel. it is a 2004, automatic, located here..

http://www.autotrader.com/dealers/in...ASC&cardist=25

Im trying to talk to him on the price, the car has low mileage, but still a salvage title. I really want to get a G35, and have been test driving 350z, but just cant pull myself up to love such crappy interior and no back seats or trunk size of the 350z. If anyone can give me some advice or try to help me find a car in the Omaha, Nebraska.. Council Bluffs Iowa area, it would be great. Right now i drive a Pontiac Grand Prix GTP and it has no problems, im just ready for something a little nicer. Thanks guys

 

Its Hard Finding A 6mt Coupe On That Price Range But Good Luck

 

Ive seen quite a few actually, on here, on ebay and on autotrader, they just arent in my area unfortunately. It doesnt have to be a manual either, i could settle for an automatic coupe as well, atleast it has the auto stick

 

Please, please stay away from salvage titled cars.

 

^^ Why? Some salvage titled cars are great to buy. But in the G35's case, I wouldn't. Parts cost an arm and a leg. New cars with all this technology are going to be very expensive to fix when something does go wrong.

 

Mike, what is your honest reasoning for that? all that was replaced was the headlight, hood, front panel and bumper, no frame damage was done, and i guess the car did not have to be totalled, the guy just let it go to the insurance company.. i really wish i could find a better deal

 

A car is only totalled and considered salvaged title, if enough damage was done to the car, that the repairs would cost more than 80% of the value of the car with most insurance companies.

If all that was replaced was the headlight (~500 bucks?), Hood (1000 bucks?), front panel (1000 bucks?) and Bumper (1000 bucks?), do you REALLY think that 3500 is worth at least 80% of the car?

I'm guessing on the part costs btw.

A car doesn't get salvaged very easily; I had to go through quite a few people to get my car salvaged... and I had frame damage.

 

I guess that makes sense, He told me that the rediculous part was that the headlight was the most expensive part, at 500 dollars out of the panel, hood, and bumper. But i also asked him if the frame was affected or if anything else was and he said no, by the way, the car looks flawless, its 74 miles away from me so i dont know how it drives yet, but its def over priced for a salvaged vehicle
Thanks for your input Mike.

I looked on craigslist and there are a handful of coupes with 40, 50,000 miles priced at 15-17,000 just about 300-400 miles away, i really dont want to do business that far away however.

the guy with the salvaged car just informed me he would take 17700 for the car now. Im trying to get the full story on the salvage title however

 

Mike, I got the lowdown on the slavage title, The guy that owned the car, said hey you hit my car, it has 17,000 miles on it, took it in on a property claim i guess, and not an auto claim, had minimal damage. the way he explained it to me was that the insurance company had to buy it from him, so that brands it as salvage. But it was a property claim instead of an auto claim, and he said that he has all of the documentation to go with it on the repairs that were made and the title has been certified as previous salvage, he told me that we wouldnt even be able to tell the car was ever hit. so what is your input on this

 

why would the insurance buy it from him? Because they lose less money by buying it back than fixing it.

There is something here that is missing...

 

all i know is that it was a property claim instead of an auto claim, and that the guy that hit it, his insurance had to buy the car. Possible that the guy that hit it didnt have auto insurance? i dont know, im no expert on it

 

even if the guy that hit him had no insurance, the owner's uninsured motorist coverage should take care of it.

There is more damage that was done to the car than is visible to the eye.

I'd be careful; I'd personally never buy a salvaged car to drive.

 

I don't know, I don't think I'd buy that car, Mike is right, why would it have been totalled for that little damage. I for one have never had great luck with buying used, let alone salvage, so...... I know people who are in the auto recycling (junk) business, they buy them all the time, but usually, the ones they buy have been stolen vehicles, not damaged vehicles. I never knew being stolen would make it a salvage title.

 

Ive got a dealership searching for a car for me in other states. I just wish i had one to be driving right now

 

If you've got cars in the ballpark pricewise but 400 miles away, do not buy salvage at a comparable level. If I were you I'd be looking at at least $3-4k lower than apparent value to accept a salvage title and then only after I'd research the full history. Check the dealer records on the VIN. If the history is sound, and if you think an appropriate price can be struck, then have the vehicle inspected by a real pro who examines and reports on EVERYTHING. Then, only buy the car if you are willing to own an illiquid asset. It'll be a pain to sell, could take months and months and a steep discount. (BTW, I've considered a couple salvage cars but never bought one. I might yet buy one someday still for a project car but probably not.)

Imagine how easy it would be to find out months later the alignment is out and multiple visits to the shop and a couple sets of tires later you find you are still struggling to sort out a problem. Or the windshield leaks. Or a door is out of line and you didn't notice. Or the panel alignment just isn't quite right between the fender and the hood. It bugs you and you want to fix it but it'll cost a thousand or three. Buy salvage and you wear that risk. You have GOT to be compensated for the risk with a big discount.

I traveled 200 miles to buy my car out of state. I bought my 2004 premium 6MT Sedan in Nov '06 for $20k with 28,000 miles. I bought it off a BMW dealer who took it in off lease, it was perfect. I did research on current auction values and offered $500 over auction value sight unseen (subject to inspection) after I'd called the dealer that serviced it through it's life and reviewed the service records and got to hear a little bit about the previous owner. I figured the BMW dealer didn't want a manual Infiniti on the lot, much better to turn the cash into another BMW or two on the lot.

Point is, its easy to deal with a dealer that's 200 or even 400 miles away, just research the vehicle by phone as well as in person. Buy a salvage and you well and truly own it.

I've bought a lot of used cars, I don't like buying new cause the depreciation smacks you. Research, common sense, caution and diligence can set up a good purchase.

Buy a salvage for anything but a DEEP discount and you are paying several thousand cash to the guy who got the deep discount and then WHACKED you. Your net worth =less, sellers net worth =more.

By the way, Infiniti holds two sets of auctions for ex-lease cars, one for prime cars, to Infiniti dealers only. They Certify them mark 'em up $5k and move em out. (I don't personally like losing 5k out the door) The other auction is for sub-prime, which are sold to other dealers, mainly independents, obviously. Those cars have higher mileage, have had a bumper repaired or other paintwork, missed a service or something to make them less than ideal candidates for cleanup and certification. (I don't like buying suub-standard cars) The car I bought would have been certified if it went back to Infiniti rather than a BMW dealer.

I firmly believe I got a terrific deal the best way possible. Scan ads for a car that is one owner, on the lot of a non-Infiniti Franchise dealer that took it on a trade. Do your research, ascertain the true value and offer a hair above auction value. I'll buy privately the same way if the opportunity presents, but so few cars are sold privately these days that dealers can be the only way sometimes. (I hate hate hate dealing with dealers generally. There are some decent folks but agghh! the number of ******** and scum along the way! I feel riled just thinking about the jerks I've had the misfortune of spending a half hour with.)

This process takes more brains and more work than a straight franchise or independent dealer purchase or lease but saves thousands, without having to take on an impaired asset like a salvage title vehicle. Just my 2 cents.

Good luck buying, I hope I've helped.