Something sounds fishy, but......

[kcobean]

I just got off the phone with a gentleman in Green Bay, WI who is selling a 97 B/W GTS with 8700 miles on it, totally stock. Here's the catch....

He indicated that he is the third owner. The first owner (in Nebraska) had a minor run in with a barbed wire fence that scratched the hood and windshield, though no structural or mechanical damage occured. The front fascia is the original, not even a front end alignment was performed (the current seller claims to have seen pictures of the damage, thus the description). The first owner apparently owned a body shop and performed the hood repair/repaint and windsheld replacement himself. After that, he sold the car to someone else, who then sold it to the man in Green Bay. Now comes the sticky part....The car has a salvage title. Can anyone explain why a car with such minor damage would have a salvage title? If this is possible, is buying a physically sound car with a salvage title even worth considering? He's only asking $49K for the car, which is pretty decent for a low-mileage '97, but not if the Salvage title indicates a different story than the one I was told over the phone.

What do you think?

 

[Casey]

Yeah, barbed wire fence, a few scratches and a Salvage title! Makes sense to me!
But then again, Today was the first day I tried CRACK!

Run away, Run Away!

 

[RedLiner]

If it has a salvage title, that means it was totalled out by the insurance company. The body shop probably bought the car at auction, fixed it and resold for profit. I wouldn't touch the car, you will have a problem selling it as well. If he was asking $25K, you couldn't go wrong, drive it for a while, get bored sell it and get your money back.

 

[zen garage]

49 is too much gelt for a car with a branded title. At the end of the day, that salvage word will be hanging in the air, pushing the value down. A salvage title will knock an extra 20-30% off the value of a comparable clean titled car. I am not knocking salvage cars, they are a great way to get into a viper at a reasonable price, but 49g is not reasonable. keep looking, if you want salvage, you should be able to get something that has been repaired in the low 40's. If you dont want a salvage car, pay a few g more and get a clean car with no story.
As for the reason it was totaled...the hood. Its a fortune. The owner of the bodyshop cashed out on the insurance claim, bought the car back from the insurance company and repaired it himself pocketing the balance. I would offer him 41,42,43 g tops for a salvage titled car. Just my .02, not worth the paper its printed on

 

[kcobean]

Thanks guys. Think I'll hold off for a clean title. I've been at this for awhile now, so it's no big deal to keep shopping until I find just the right car, this sounded like a good deal until I said, "So the car has a clean title, right?", and he said, "Well...". I knew things were going downhill from there.

 

[Kaya]

My husband spent 6 years at Allstate as an auto adjuster....to total the car, the damage has to equal 75% of NADA retail value(that is in Louisiana). I am sure that the hood and windshield are expensive but are they 75% of the car's value?

Did the car possible cross a lake before it hit the barbed wire? You start wondering if the car had water damage.....or a heck of a lot more body damage.

 

[Leslie]

for 2K more you could get a nice Viper with a clear title-I payed $50K for my '01 GTS

best to you on your search for your new ride

 

[carguy07]

Dullus to Akron is only $200, come on up and take a look at the one that I looked at for you the other day. It is the same money and definitely not a salvage title. I can probably pick you up at the airport. If you like the car you could jump in it and be home before the sun goes down.

 

[kcobean]

Dullus to Akron is only $200, come on up and take a look at the one that I looked at for you the other day. It is the same money and definitely not a salvage title. I can probably pick you up at the airport. If you like the car you could jump in it and be home before the sun goes down.

That car is probably the cleanest I've investigated so far. I'm really hoping it'll hang out for another week or two until my funds are all set up, but I'm keeping my options open. I can't believe it's still there.

Thanks Keith! Hopefully, I'll be calling you.

 

[OSUbrew]

Uhhh...$49k for a salvaged Viper??? Are you kidding me?

I bought my pristine 99 GTS with only 12k miles and a clean carfax and title for $48k. I think you should keep looking!

 

[BDZ1984]

49k for a salavage title.... I feel like im giving my car away at 45k

 

[99 R/T 10]

Click here for a very nice 1996!

 

[kcobean]

Click here for a very nice 1996!

LOL...I'd recognize that engine bay anywhere. BDZ1984, you've done great things to that car.

 

[BDZ1984]

Thanks... 45k and its yours

 

[V10SpeedLuvr]

There's more to this story than youre being told. Id stay away from this one

 

[FE 065]

Maybe it's originally from New Orleans.. which reminds me, any known Vipers that fell victim to Katrina?

 

[sbkim]

Here's mine for sale... clean title and no fishy stories...
http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp;jsessionid=BNYXPJCMCLUBJLAZGINE2VA?tracktype=usedcc&searchType=21&paId=195172570&pageNumber=0&numResultsPerPage=50&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=descending&sortfield=PRICE+descending&certifiedOnly=false&recnum=20&leadExists=true&criteria=K-%7CE-%7CM-_12_%7CD-_156_%7CN-N%7CR-30%7CI-1%7CP-PRICE+descending%7CQ-descending%7CZ-60108&aff=national