EastWind

$9000. It's black on black, I think it's Ultra Luxury but not sure. It's fully loaded, has Nav, MarkLev sound, Air bags, the rear massage seat, rear windows shade, cup cooler, etc, this is why I think it's Ultra luxury.

It has 101k miles. Don't believe the timing belt has been done. It's has a salvage title. I worked through and thorougly inspected it and can't find out where it was hit. Think the passenger side perhaps. But all that aside. The guy wants $9000. Is that a good price? If I do get it, I will most likely do the timing belts at once, but outside of that, the other thing that worries me is the airbags, how well are these holding up?

CarGuy89

Always be careful of salvage titles. It must have been in a relatively serious accident otherwise the airbags wouldn't have deployed. Get it checked out by a body shop to make sure it's still safe structually. Also, try to get service records from the prev owner. A poorly maintained one will be more costly (not to mention induce more headaches) than a well-maintained more expensive car. Some of the board members have picked up mint 01-03 430s for 10-11k so keep your eyes peeled for one of those.

BTW, Which part of MI are you from? I'm b/t Ann Arbor (home) and East Lansing (school) a lot.

GLIDESUL

Price is a steal but I wouldn't mess with a salvage title. To many unanswered question when you go that route. Only if you knew what really happened I would keep looking patience is best.

caddyowner

Remember that flood damage will also cause a salvage title and leave no obvious accident repairs. Enter the VIN at www.nicb.org where there used to be some detail about why the salvage title, especially for flood vehicles.

A flood damaged car may run fine for a while...

Bocatrip

I would be somewhat hesitant with a salvage title car, especially a high end one. Good luck.

caddyowner

Is this the car you are looking at?

http://detroit.craigslist.org/mcb/cto/1937767535.html

You may want the check out these:

http://annarbor.craigslist.org/ctd/1939524029.html
http://detroit.craigslist.org/mcb/ctd/1940304377.html
http://detroit.craigslist.org/mcb/cto/1927933768.html
http://jxn.craigslist.org/cto/1916581197.html

CarGuy89

The last 2 links Caddyowner provided look especially nice. They are well optioned cars for just a bit more than your 9k price mark. Definitely check those out if you have time. I would personally stay away from ultra lux unless you really need those power rear seats. Ultra lux adds air suspension which is more costly than the tradition suspension setup and is more prone to failure. Also, while ultra gives you more toys, you also get an increased chance of electronic failure on these gadgets. I personally think nav is all you need, especially if you drive the car (which you should, it's excellent to drive!)

Jabberwock

Salvage title means car was previously totaled. There is virtually no discount to market price that would make me want to own a car with a salvage title. You can do better - save your money for a little longer. Get a no issues car - you will be a lot happier in the long run. Imagine how hard it will be to sell a salvage title car when you want to get rid of it. Nobody wants these cars.

CarGuy89

Yep, what Jabber said. As a consumer I even shy away from cars that have an accident reported (no matter how minor) on car fax or autocheck.

Playdrv4me

In some circumstances, and depending on the state, a salvage title can be issued to a theft recovered vehicle if the amount of the stolen parts/vandalism equals to be more than the fair value of the vehicle. You really have to have an eagle eye to know exactly what to spot on those cars, and you have to have an owner or dealer with specific detailed information about what happened.

Salvage usually is, however... Someone else's problems.

EastWind

well, my first LS400 is salvage title and a 1990. I still have it and it has been super reliable. I will check if it's flood or accident.

Playdrv4me

In 2005 your 1991 car was 14 years old with 167k miles (according to your sig) and that car originally stickered somewhere in the high 30s, low 40s. It would have taken VERY LITTLE damage to total that car as it had very little value by that time.

The 2001 car is only 9 years old with 100k and had a much higher value to begin with (70k), especially if it was an ultra-lux. Thus it would have taken significantly more damage for the insurance company to consider it a complete loss in the event of an accident. Also, the 2001 is infinitely more complex than the '91 so a bad car could be REALLY BAD.

Bocatrip

The way I see it, there are so many cars to choose from with fair prices, why take a chance with a Salvage title?

Bon

I've enjoyed owning a salvage title SC430 and don't regret it at all. If you know what you're buying and get it at the right price (<50% book) it can be a great deal. You have less in the vehicle and depreciation won't hurt you but maybe half as bad as buying a clean title car. My insurance company doesn't have any problem with it and I carry comp and collision. They say they'll repair to book value if it's totaled. I hope I'll never have to test them on that. I paid cash for it to avoid any loan issues.

In some cases, the car was stolen but wasn't recovered before the insurance company had to settle; so nothing wrong with the car at all. In other cases, such as mine, it was a fresh water flood that was recovered quickly and dried out by pulling all the seats, carpets and padding. The two seat computers were replaced and all else is fine. I've had the car for 1-1/2 years without any electrical or mechanical issues that are attributable to the salvage. The longer I own it the less the next buyer will worry about lingering issues. Works for me.

Bocatrip

Your story only confirms how reliable the Lexus line really is. Even after flood conditions they still go on and on. How many cars can you say that about?