Question

[Intrepidation]

So I want to take the route of finding a totaled 300M (an LHS would work too) and use it as a parts car for mine. I was wondering, and sorry if this is s a stupid question, but will junkyards sell you a whole car that still has a good drivetrain, and will they charge you a crapload for it?

[Intrepidation]

I've never had the pleasure of looking for an entire donor car. I was wondering if I was better off trying to find an owner with a wrecked one, or if this was a viable option.

[daves87rs]

Honestly, I think it will depend on the junyard. Some might, while others might want to make that money parting it out.

You may have to call around..

[Intrepidation]

Lucky for me there's a fair amount of junkyards in the area. Man, I so wished I had bought that wrecked 300M on Craigslist last year for $500.

[fightingbee]

Any salvage auctions in the area as well?

[Intrepidation]

Hmm, I'm not sure about dedicated salvage auctions. There probably is, but I would have to investigate.

[balthazar]

Junkyards, in my experience, generally refuse to sell whole cars.

#1 : junked cars seldom come w/ titles, and technically titles are required for resale.

But this is going to depend on the individual yard... and what exactly the state/junkyard considers to be a 'car' vs. --say-- 2000 parts bolted together. :wink:

[SAmadei]

Junkyards, in my experience, generally refuse to sell whole cars.

#1 : junked cars seldom come w/ titles, and technically titles are required for resale.

But this is going to depend on the individual yard... and what exactly the state/junkyard considers to be a 'car' vs. --say-- 2000 parts bolted together. :wink:

My experience is that junkyards don't want to sell the whole car. In NJ, all junkyard cars have titles, but they are savage and the yard _can_ sell you the whole car... but they want outrageous money for it. I offered about $800 for a trashed Bonneville coupe... they wanted $2K... two weeks later, it went to the shredder. They got about $300.

As far as going to an auction, you generally will need either a dealer license or junkyard license or they won't let you in the door.

eBay, CL seem to be the only ways to go. Also, drive around looking in backyards...

[balthazar]

>>"In NJ, all junkyard cars have titles"<<

You're talking about modern car junkyards.

Most I've been in (tally is about 14 or so), which leans towards vintage and, as you prolly know full well, it's been a few years for that here -- hadn't wanted to sell whole cars, primarily because they had no titles.

[XP715]

It's pretty much impossible to buy a whole car from a junkyard; doing so from a private party is probably easier. However, when going to dispose of the hulk, some junkyards even go to the point of only issuing a check for the hulk to the name of the person on the title after you provide a photo ID proving you're that person (I know from experience: went to junk a '78 Coupe DeVille I had picked up for parts and the yard wouldn't make the check out to me even though I was dropping it off with paperwork. Lucky for me it WAS titled in my girlfriend's name, from when I had to keep it at her house for a few months)

Best way to go is just to find a place that deals with low-mileage late-model wrecks and give them a shopping list. Atlantic Auto Salvage in Lowell is probably the best in our neck of the woods; that's where the engine for my '96 Riviera came from. It came out of a totalled '02 LeSabre with 13,000 miles on it. They even let me start it up and let me see and hear it run before I bought it.

[Camino LS6]

That's why I title everything right away. Even my parts Camino is titled in my name.

[Intrepidation]

It's pretty much impossible to buy a whole car from a junkyard; doing so from a private party is probably easier. However, when going to dispose of the hulk, some junkyards even go to the point of only issuing a check for the hulk to the name of the person on the title after you provide a photo ID proving you're that person (I know from experience: went to junk a '78 Coupe DeVille I had picked up for parts and the yard wouldn't make the check out to me even though I was dropping it off with paperwork. Lucky for me it WAS titled in my girlfriend's name, from when I had to keep it at her house for a few months)

Best way to go is just to find a place that deals with low-mileage late-model wrecks and give them a shopping list. Atlantic Auto Salvage in Lowell is probably the best in our neck of the woods; that's where the engine for my '96 Riviera came from. It came out of a totalled '02 LeSabre with 13,000 miles on it. They even let me start it up and let me see and hear it run before I bought it.

Good advice, thanks!

Yeah, I've been to Atlantic once and they have the best selection of newer cars, many of which ended up their from wrecks. I went there a year or two ago and picked out Cobalts, Dakotas, Impalas and so on.

I will have to give them a call.

[SAmadei]

That's why I title everything right away. Even my parts Camino is titled in my name.

I title everything ASAP, as well. Even though a couple of my titled cars fit in a shoebox now.

If you cut it up small enough, you can always find people to take the steel. ;-)