$8k for a 2003 Jetta TDI with 105k miles? Is it worth it? this car is very clean with the following mods;
3 turbo back exhaust from Kerma TDI $750.00, front big brake kit, $750.00, Gold Koni shocks and springs, $680.00, new control arms with Audi TT bushings, $199.00, EGR cooler delete, $150.00, 17 ASA rims with Yokohama Tires $1000 from Tire Rack. The timing belt and water pump were done about 5k miles ago. The car runs great, handles amazing and gets about 600 miles on a full tank of diesel.
after getting the carfax report a major accident was reported (salvage title). The owner (car dealer) said he purchased from the auction and said the radiator support belt was broken. I think there may be more to the story. Why would the title be salvage for just a broken radiator support?
Also why would the owner put so much work into knowing it had a salvage title? What does a salvage title mean?
How new are you at this ... ! ! ! ? !
A salvage title means that an insurance company has had a claim filed against the vehicle which exceeded what they deemed to be its value (i.e. the insurance company wrote it off), so the insurance company, now being the owner of the vehicle, sold it at auction to recover what they could.
"why would the owner put so much work into knowing it had a salvage title" ... ever consider the possibility that the situation that led to the salvage title might have happened
after all that work was done?
Any time "salvage title" is involved, the question "why" has to be asked. It may have been a theft recovery with no damage at all, but the vehicle was not recovered until the original owner had been paid out on their theft claim. It may be a flood victim. Or, it could have been involved in a collision in which the repair cost exceeds what the car is worth, evidently the case here. That does not take much, nowadays. Airbags fire? It's done. Add to that the structural repairs that may have been needed.
now, as for that price ...
US$8000 for a 16 year old car that is not a collectible of some sort ... is on crack even without the salvage title situation. Then the salvage title probably cuts its value in half. There may be restrictions on how you could finance or insure the car. You may not be able to get certain types of coverage. If repairs were involved, you have no way to know how WELL they were done. There could be hidden damage.
Run away from this one.