Flood Damaged Vehicles

[Hobo Hilton]

A word to the wise.
I was surprised to get an email advertising flood damaged vehicles up for auction. Being from Louisiana I have seem thousands of flood damaged vehicles. Seems I remember some laws of the State that said they had to be destroyed. I remember after hurricanes every flood damaged car was taken to a giant area, fluids drained and a D-10 Caterpillar walked over them until they were flattened. This eliminated insurance companies from paying more than once for a vehicle. I guess with the shortage of used vehicles and perhaps different laws in other states.... We will be seeing flood damaged cars showing up in the market place. Let the buyer beware.

https://www.copart.com/lotSearchRes...id=email_G2US_mktg_20210915_HurricaneIDA_CTA1

 

[candyx]

In our area they change the car titles to salvage so you can only sell them for parts. Insurance agent said the water starts to corrode the air bag connections and they had several cases where the people were driving and the air bags would deployed.

 

[Hobo Hilton]

Car prices are about to soar again. Blame Hurricane Ida

Just when car prices looked like they were edging down from their record highs, they're heading skyward again. It's Hurricane Ida's fault.

www.cnn.com

 

[Do-nothing]

The last car you want to buy is one that is flood damaged. Would not want parts from one either.

 

[phxfa]

In our area they change the car titles to salvage so you can only sell them for parts. Insurance agent said the water starts to corrode the air bag connections and they had several cases where the people were driving and the air bags would deployed.

After the cars are repaired, you can apply for a restored salvage title,,,,after a state inspection
most states allow this
Ive sold countless’Builders’, we called these swimmers lol

 

[The D]

The last car you want to buy is one that is flood damaged. Would not want parts from one either.

This x a million.

My first real job after school was as a mechanic at a Mercedes dealership. We had a customer that had a new-ish C-class, a small 4dr sedan, that he could comfortably afford. He found an S-class, flagship sedan, in TX that was a flood victim that he wanted bad. Everyone at the dealership told him this was a bad idea. This generation S-class is expensive to maintain even in the perfect scenario, a flood car is the equivalent to burning hay bales of cash. He couldn’t be told no so he traded his C for this S and strutted around the service dept for a few visits. The next visit was not so kind to him, we had to give him an estimate for ~$3500 for some flood damaged parts that failed.

No matter how good the deal, if anyone can see “flood damage” associated with a vehicle just pass it to the next sucker. There will be another opportunity to own a dream car but you may have to wait a bit longer

 

[rjacobs]

MOST cars that get flooded in hurricanes dont get "Salvage-rebuildable" titles anymore because its pretty easy to wash them through a few states.

They get "Salvage-for parts only". Those titles can never get washed.

I think that started happening after Katrina. I know that was the case with the Hurricane in Houston ~4 years ago. I talked to a guy who had 30 flooded motorcycles on a trailer at a big gas station. I asked "whats the title status of these, can you take them and rebuild them" and he said "no they are all parts only titles" and said almost every car down there was the same way. He said to much shit went on after Katrina with flood cars being rebuilt and just being a nightmare that all insurance companies now after a flood(especially a wide spread one) just brand everything "parts only" so they can never be rebuilt or washed into a clean title.

 

[Maggot]

This x a million.

My first real job after school was as a mechanic at a Mercedes dealership. We had a customer that had a new-ish C-class, a small 4dr sedan, that he could comfortably afford. He found an S-class, flagship sedan, in TX that was a flood victim that he wanted bad. Everyone at the dealership told him this was a bad idea. This generation S-class is expensive to maintain even in the perfect scenario, a flood car is the equivalent to burning hay bales of cash. He couldn’t be told no so he traded his C for this S and strutted around the service dept for a few visits. The next visit was not so kind to him, we had to give him an estimate for ~$3500 for some flood damaged parts that failed.

No matter how good the deal, if anyone can see “flood damage” associated with a vehicle just pass it to the next sucker. There will be another opportunity to own a dream car but you may have to wait a bit longer

Ive owned a few Mecedes. Nice cars until they hit about 150K miles then the repair bills are more than the car is worth.

 

[WGOMF]

I usually avoid coastal vehicles anyway due to potential rust issues.

For a year or so after hurricanes & stuff, 2 red flags should go up.

 

[MrSmith]

A while back we were cleaning up some old settling ponds in one of the local mountain mining districts. Had a little Cat 325 hoe slide off the mud matts and settled into the water and bottom goo up to the operators headrest. Another hoe, couple of D-9s, pull cables and a week later it was out and off to get cleaned up. After a month it was back digging dirt and making money. For almost a year. Then, while the mechanical stuff worked OK, none of the wires, sensors, computers, anything even remotely connected to electricity or copper would stay together or work for more than a week.

It got recleaned and sent to auction.

Flooded is bad, Mm-kay.

Thank you,
MrSmith

 

[phxfa]

I was a salvage broker for a few years,,,,Detroit customer would purchase a car/truck from me or the auction (AZ) on its way to MI, it would make a pit stop in Minnesota for a title washing and Bingo! clean title.
If the vehicle made it back to AZ, it would revert back to salvage. The internet fucked this up which I’m glad it did. This was over 30 years ago. Swimmers, burners, suicide vehicles, I saw em all.

 

[The D]

Ive owned a few Mecedes. Nice cars until they hit about 150K miles then the repair bills are more than the car is worth.

That’s the biggest problem with Benzes. They continue to operate really well with a pretty astonishing level of deferred maintenance.

Just an aside. If someone can justify the cost of the deferred maintenance, the car will last another 150k miles with mostly regular maintenance. **However** There are definitely some models that should be avoided at all costs

 

[plh]

That’s the biggest problem with Benzes. They continue to operate really well with a pretty astonishing level of deferred maintenance.

Just an aside. If someone can justify the cost of the deferred maintenance, the car will last another 150k miles with mostly regular maintenance. **However** There are definitely some models that should be avoided at all costs

Care to share?

 

[Mr.BR]

That’s the biggest problem with Benzes. They continue to operate really well with a pretty astonishing level of deferred maintenance.

Just an aside. If someone can justify the cost of the deferred maintenance, the car will last another 150k miles with mostly regular maintenance. **However** There are definitely some models that should be avoided at all costs

Have been running Benz exclusively for past 20+ years , so far had no issues with either Sprinters ,A,C,E,S or even Smart ,will see if the X pickup i am running now is any good,but considering is basically rebadged Nissan Frontier underneath with some mods who knows. But here in Europe Vito , B class ,M-class and some others have poor rep. Low end benzes mostly use Renault engines.

 

[The D]

Care to share?

As a general rule; The first few model years of any new chassis from late 90’s to mid 00’s were the biggest basket cases, that was the generation that was influenced by Chrysler. My personal experience with the brand ended at about model year 2010 but the later 00’s were quite a bit better. They still had their own quirks though, just not the list of issues the earlier cars had. My personal opinion is; of those models I’d probably only ever buy the last model year of a chassis. Theoretically those cars have had their bugs worked out

The best thing to do with any vehicle purchase is to visit a few of the specific owners forums and read a lot. That will be the best second step after making a loose decision on something

Have been running Benz exclusively for past 20+ years , so far had no issues with either Sprinters ,A,C,E,S or even Smart ,will see if the X pickup i am running now is any good,but considering is basically rebadged Nissan Frontier underneath with some mods who knows. But here in Europe Vito , B class ,M-class and some others have poor rep. Low end benzes mostly use Renault engines.

I haven’t been in a dealership for a long time now so my knowledge of the newest stuff is pretty limited. A buddy of mine recently went back though so I’ll get a little more insight soon. He’s already said the new models that have Nissan engines have a problem with valve seats causing running problems, which is crazy. I think any new, any one actually, Benz I’d buy would be wholly engineered by them to start

 

[...]

the real problem is the miles and miles of wiring in these damn things......once they get dunked, the wiring is fucked.

water gets wicked in under the insulation and it sits, and corrodes.

it might be fine initially, but after a while issues will pop up, and keep popping up.....and its really fucking hard to sort out corrosion that happens under the insulation.

throw out all the wiring and start with a fresh harness.

 

[deersniper]

fluids drained and a D-10 Caterpillar walked over them

Seems like a waste of a lot of good sheet metal wheels tires axles etc parts

 

[TurboTrout]

It’s a insurance scam, the whole “salvage title” thing ain’t about protecting the consumer, it’s about protecting the auto and in$urance industry.

 

[Maggot]

As a general rule; The first few model years of any new chassis from late 90’s to mid 00’s were the biggest basket cases, that was the generation that was influenced by Chrysler. My personal experience with the brand ended at about model year 2010 but the later 00’s were quite a bit better. They still had their own quirks though, just not the list of issues the earlier cars had. My personal opinion is; of those models I’d probably only ever buy the last model year of a chassis. Theoretically those cars have had their bugs worked out

The best thing to do with any vehicle purchase is to visit a few of the specific owners forums and read a lot. That will be the best second step after making a loose decision on something

I haven’t been in a dealership for a long time now so my knowledge of the newest stuff is pretty limited. A buddy of mine recently went back though so I’ll get a little more insight soon. He’s already said the new models that have Nissan engines have a problem with valve seats causing running problems, which is crazy. I think any new, any one actually, Benz I’d buy would be wholly engineered by them to start

Nissan and Renault engines in a Mercedes>

Color me shocked.

As to repairs, I replaced the windshield in my Chevy van (its huge) for about $250. The one on the Mercedes was closer to $900 because they have this automatic windshield wiper stuff built into them. No more for me thanks.

Ill buy a Camry first.

 

[TurboTrout]

Nissan and Renault engines in a Mercedes>

Color me shocked.

As to repairs, I replaced the windshield in my Chevy van (its huge) for about $250. The one on the Mercedes was closer to $900 because they have this automatic windshield wiper stuff built into them. No more for me thanks.

Ill buy a Camry first.

Life’s too short to drive boring vehicles though.

 

[roostercogburn98]

The last car you want to buy is one that is flood damaged. Would not want parts from one either.

I’d still buy hard parts from one. Nothing wrong with a head or block getting drowned. Hell they go through more that they after they get rebored, or resurfaced and people buy reconditioned parts all the time. If you don’t believe it, go to your local auto parts store and see which lineup is remanufactured versus all new component pieces.

 

[Mr.BR]

Many of the entry level Benzes (as in low HP engines in A,B,C classes) ,have engines from Renault once you get past 2L its back to Mercedes engine lineup ,Smart is a twin of Reanult Twingo . New Sprinter van offers front wheel drive variant in addition to rear and 4x4x variants that means Renault power train Benz never realy made front wheel drive stuff.

X class is/was Mercedes only pickup model they ever built so they built them on Nissan Frontier/Navara base platform and only the top of the range X350 model has a proper Benz 4-matic running gear. (Nissan is long time Renault partner)

You can imagine these days many manufacturers share platforms to reduce costs. If you looked at Benz latest lineup they have so many models that its beyond any reason for a company not making millions of them.

Yup, these days you have auto wiper and road sign recognition systems integrated into the windshield , radar and cameras in front grill and a bunch of parking sensors in the bumper so even relatively light collison damage in the right places can cost $$$ ,but that is not something brand specific that is modern cars for you.

 

[hlee]

Look up "title washing." While illegal, it is BIG business and prevalent in LA among other states. I read an article that said that more than 30% of vehicles in Louisiana that were checked were found to be operation on a "washed" title.

 

[TurboTrout]

Look up "title washing." While illegal, it is BIG business and prevalent in LA among other states. I read an article that said that more than 30% of vehicles in Louisiana that were checked were found to be operation on a "washed" title.

 

[Hobo Hilton]

That's a disaster... I am so sorry.

Welcome aboard

 

[sirhrmechanic]

Well, if you hate flood-damaged vehicles... wait until the soy-based wire insulation issues start to really crop up.

Yes, they are now insulating your vehicles' wiring with rodent baits. The Skwerls (not those ones) are eating car wiring harnesses as fast as you can say Ratatouille.

Don't believe me?

Does Your Car Have Wiring That Rodents Think Is Tasty?

Soy-based insulation in cars may be better for the environment, but it can also attract hungry vermin.

www.caranddriver.com

But hey, that wiring is green! I am 'sure' that the carbon footprint of building (then recycling) destroyed Green harness car is more than offset by the inclusion of a rodent-bait soy-insulated harness that saved the consumption of 4 ounces of petroleum.

Ever seen a Gas-powered minivan towing a Diesel Generator idling by the side of the road so it can recharge a stranded electric Chevy Volt battery car? I have. The future is here and it is so totally retarded.

Sirhr

 

[sirhrmechanic]