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Old 06-22-2012, 07:33 AM   #12
Bill
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Location: The mountains of Scottsdale, AZ, and the beaches of Maine
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Remember, a Salvage Title does not directly mean that the vehicle is unsafe or unusable. It simply means that the cost of returning it to its previous condition would be more than the insurance company was willing to pay out. Essentially the insurance company bought the damaged vehicle from the owner for its pre-crash value (or the amount of the owners damage insurance, whichever is less). The insurance company then owns the vehicle. The company can then sell it to the original owner for a price that they negotiate, or to anyone else they choose, and at that point it is designated "salvage". Or they may sell it to a scrapper.

So it isn't necessarily unusable / unsellable. If the damage is purely cosmetic (the most expensive kind of damage!), it may be a perfectly usable vehicle. This may be your case, as long as it doesn't leak (as RIWright noted).

Beyond all that, you may be able to clear a Salvage Title. In Arizona, where I live part time, you can register a vehicle with a salvage title, and if you restore the damage and get a safety inspection, the designation will be changed from "Salvaged" to "Restored Salvage", which is considered almost as good as a more usual title.

Check with your DMV. The rules may be similar in Washington.

Bill
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