Buying a salvaged titled trailmanor.....help

[Wavery]

Originally Posted by ProspectiveOwner

Baton Rouge, LA


Camper in Lafayette, LA


Thanks

Be darn good and sure that the salvage title didn't come as a result of flood damage........ check carefully for rust and wood-rot.

Also check with your tow vehicle insurance company - in most cases, a trailer hooked up to a vehicle is covered for liability by the vehicle policy. You may not be able to get coverage for the trailer itself, but is that realistic anyway for a $5K trailer?

If liability is all you want, you may have that coverage already.

Do a search on hail damage and you will see the cost to replace the front and rear tops shells. Usually way more than the insurance company usually allows. At a min I would ask for photos and a detailed description of damage and post here for second opinions

In Illinois the law reads:
When a vehicle has suffered damage that would cost more to repair than the vehicle's market value, it may be declared salvage. It will be issued a salvage certificate of title ($4) and removed from the road―a salvage vehicle cannot be registered.

If a licensed rebuilder performs repairs on a salvage vehicle that bring it back to road-worthiness, the "salvage" branding on the title may be changed to "rebuilt." The vehicle may then be registered and used.
Better check your states law. Also, there may be hidden frame damage or other expensive fix.

[Wavery]

Originally Posted by RogerR

In Illinois the law reads:
When a vehicle has suffered damage that would cost more to repair than the vehicle's market value, it may be declared salvage. It will be issued a salvage certificate of title ($4) and removed from the road―a salvage vehicle cannot be registered.

If a licensed rebuilder performs repairs on a salvage vehicle that bring it back to road-worthiness, the "salvage" branding on the title may be changed to "rebuilt." The vehicle may then be registered and used.
Better check your states law. Also, there may be hidden frame damage or other expensive fix.

Good point.....DMV regulations vary from State to State......

My insurance company allowed me to re-insure the vehicle, but not with full replacement coverage. I carry basic liability on it at this point. Again, if you're getting it for a very low price, replacement value is usually not an issue.

If she has a reconstructed title in her possession, then it's been cleared and should be road worthy by basic standards, meaning the running lights work, etc. This wouldn't cover anything to do with the internal workings of the camper.

Either yourself or a knowledgeable tech should look it over. If you feel you can do some repairs on your own, then you wouldn't need to worry about the minor stuff, but things like the shell, frame, axle, a/c, furnace, or any other big dollar item, should be given a good exam.

As far as I can remember, one level (ie: salvage) is to own the vehicle, but it can't be driven on the road. The next level (ie: reconstructed) means that it's been repaired to the point that it's road worthy.

turns out it actually has a reconstructed title ...she bought it that way...went and looked at it tonight....i'm leaning towards buying it, she agreed to $4500.... didn't get to test everything, but the "damage" looks like he turned to tight on a tree and drug it down the side.... lots os scratches and few dents, nothing major ...not sure what repairs were done...everything looked very factory to me ... couldn't find any rotten wood.... off the top of my head the only things wrong with it are :

the door was a little hokey, had to pull back on the opposite of it get it shut and the 2 pieces of the don't like to stay together...i imagine this is a common issue ?

1 of the latches was busted off, probably from the scraping of the tree

some of the crown molding trim (is that factory ?) was loose ....

exterior had a few places where it could use some new caulking

needs a real good cleaning...the flaps had a some surface mold, etc ....





floors looked good, ac was ice cold...tires looked good... underneath looked good...i will bump this tommorow with a more detailed post and lots of pictures

here are the pics, rememeber, i'm really on taking pics of noticeable/bad stuff :

http://picasaweb.google.com/ramlsu/2...PeEuNG8itqzTA#

the crack at the top looked superficial and was due to not taking the cabinet down

the wood on the floor in the pics (even though dirty in some spots), had no rot

the scratches, small dents, and missing latch were due to the damage (reconstructed title) from taking a turn to tight againsta a tree...

$4500... im gonna buy it

[ShrimpBurrito]

Over all, from the pictures, it doesn't look like there's anything there that can't be cleaned and/or repaired as far as body work goes without too much effort or cost.

Note you are missing the wardrobe -- with the unit down, it would lay on its side in between the bathroom and the air conditioner. With the unit up, it sits on the counter above the AC. No big deal, really; it just cuts down on your storage. A few folks have even removed theirs.

The mounting area for the missing latch can be reconstructed simply by gluing an aluminum plate over the damaged area. Paint it, and then mount a new latch to it.

You can count on replacing those tires as soon as you get it and probably the battery as well.

What is that metal cylindrical housing above the fresh water tank under the kitchen sink? It kinda looks like a water pump of some sort, but that's not where it should be.

Dave

^^ It appears to be a spray can that has been overpressurized - note the bulging bottom.