Thoughts on buying a repairable rideoff?

[silviaz]

One thing I've noticed on auctions is that some repairable rideoffs don't seem to really have all that damage, or they might have light hail damage which doesn't seem all that much to fix. i saw a car recently that is a repairable write off with fixed hail damage previously, do you think in this scenario this sort of car should be avoided? Additionally, besides revs check, is there anything else worth knowing before buying?

From what I understand, if you buy a repairable write off, it only needs to pass inspection once from the AUVIS then you just get your regular pinkslips year on year after that?

[GTSBoy]

Who's doing the work on your proposed repairable write off? Yourself with your own tools? Because that's usually the only way to make it economically viable. Otherwise, the insurance company would usually choose to repair (if it was going to be economically viable). If you have to pay the going rate, you're going to spend more. Of course, if you get a car that you otherwise can't get hold of, then it's probably worth it.

[robbo_rb180]

In Queensland from next week there will no longer be repairable write-offs.

Inspectors here started clamping down on quality of repairs and also trying to stop rebirthing.

[silviaz]

14 hours ago, GTSBoy said:

Who's doing the work on your proposed repairable write off? Yourself with your own tools? Because that's usually the only way to make it economically viable. Otherwise, the insurance company would usually choose to repair (if it was going to be economically viable). If you have to pay the going rate, you're going to spend more. Of course, if you get a car that you otherwise can't get hold of, then it's probably worth it.

The car has already been fixed over 10 years ago. Would the only way previous hail damage cause problems is if it wasn't fixed properly such as just bogging up the car?

Edited December 9, 2022 by silviaz

[silviaz]

13 hours ago, robbo_rb180 said:

In Queensland from next week there will no longer be repairable write-offs.

Inspectors here started clamping down on quality of repairs and also trying to stop rebirthing.

Oh really? So it will just be statutory writeoffs?

[GTSBoy]

17 hours ago, silviaz said:

i saw a car recently that is a repairable write off with fixed hail damage previously,

Yeah, see, this made it sound like it was currently a repairable write off (for some new reason) and that it had previously had hail damage repaired.

In reality, it is not a repairable write off. It was, but it is now a repaired write off. What will be important here is to know how severe the hail damage was, and how it was fixed. Some hail damage is so slight that your wife will argue to just leave it (ask me how I know) and some is so bad that you wonder how it can be economically fixed. And the skills of the hail repairers vary, and the tightness of the sphincters of the insurance companies vary, so you can have quality anywhere on the spectrum.

If the repairs were mostly dentless work, and only a little bit needed to be bogged and painted, then it's probably perfectly fine. If the thing was absolutely hammered and they couldn't just rub them out with dentless repair and had to cover the whole thing with bog, then....as long as it is super cheap, then fine. But if there is no record or evidence of what happened to it, then the questions raised need to be offset by low price.

[silviaz]

27 minutes ago, GTSBoy said:

Yeah, see, this made it sound like it was currently a repairable write off (for some new reason) and that it had previously had hail damage repaired.

In reality, it is not a repairable write off. It was, but it is now a repaired write off. What will be important here is to know how severe the hail damage was, and how it was fixed. Some hail damage is so slight that your wife will argue to just leave it (ask me how I know) and some is so bad that you wonder how it can be economically fixed. And the skills of the hail repairers vary, and the tightness of the sphincters of the insurance companies vary, so you can have quality anywhere on the spectrum.

If the repairs were mostly dentless work, and only a little bit needed to be bogged and painted, then it's probably perfectly fine. If the thing was absolutely hammered and they couldn't just rub them out with dentless repair and had to cover the whole thing with bog, then....as long as it is super cheap, then fine. But if there is no record or evidence of what happened to it, then the questions raised need to be offset by low price.

Ah I see, that makes sense. Yeah so car was a repairable writeoff 10 years ago so I guess it's now a  "repaired write off" as it has been fixed. The car isn't regoed currently and insurance expired, will this be a problem to re-register it, or is it just a standard blue slip and pink slip since the hail was already fixed? I wonder if some mechanics will be iffy about it, since it will show that it was a repairable writeoff.

[GTSBoy]

I can't imagine that the repair/write off status would make it any harder to re-register than otherwise. Butt I can't peak for any state that has this pink slip blue slip bullshit. Here in SA we do things the old fashioned way. Regency identity inspection followed by Regency technical inspection followed by "fix this list of shit and come back".

[Kinkstaah]

It is violently hard in NSW and VIC.

If it is on the WOVR, you need the official list of damages that put it into the WOVR, AND an itemized receipt for this work being carried out to make it "OK" again and registerable.

This list must follow every buyer, every time it changes hands, even if the damage that put it on the WOVR, and the subsequent fix happened 10 years and 3 owners ago.

If the seller does not have this information, that you can verify is enough - don't buy the car and the owner will have a very hard time ever selling it.

Yes it's dumb. Once it's fixed, satisfactorily it should be removed from the WOVR. It is after all, a repairable write off.

[The Bogan]

Plus needing receipts for all parts replaced

Rebirthing is a big problem

[Kinkstaah]

Rebirthing is what. Fixing cars?

Once it's fixed and accredited/engineered/what have you the thing should be off the WOVR with a status of repaired and that should be the end of it.

Keeping receipts for a f**kin control arm for 15 years is f**ktarded.

[robbo_rb180]

8 hours ago, silviaz said:

Oh really? So it will just be statutory writeoffs?

Yep.

Receipts are required for the wovr process. Need model, vin of that vehicle and price on it. 

It's a good and bad thing as will keep dodgy repaired cars off the and make a few cars cheaper at auction. 

[The Bogan]

1 hour ago, Kinkstaah said:

Rebirthing is what. Fixing cars?

Once it's fixed and accredited/engineered/what have you the thing should be off the WOVR with a status of repaired and that should be the end of it.

Keeping receipts for a f**kin control arm for 15 years is f**ktarded.

Rebirthing typically is buying a repairable write off, then stealing a good car or bike and swapping over the engine and numbers of the repairable write off

You haven't been able to get repairable writeoff motorcycles for ages, bikies owned that side hustle for years

I know a used car joint from years ago that made alot of money doing this until it came crashing down around them

I also know of a few "groups" of people that rented factories, they would buy cheap or damaged cars and bikes privately, and then would place orders for clean typical cars or bikes to be stolen, do body jobs, keep them for a while, then sell them on for good profit

Quite a few wreckers still do this

The police have task groups dedicated to it now and then, typically targeted, body jobs and organised crime go hand in hand

[silviaz]

22 hours ago, Kinkstaah said:

It is violently hard in NSW and VIC.

If it is on the WOVR, you need the official list of damages that put it into the WOVR, AND an itemized receipt for this work being carried out to make it "OK" again and registerable.

This list must follow every buyer, every time it changes hands, even if the damage that put it on the WOVR, and the subsequent fix happened 10 years and 3 owners ago.

If the seller does not have this information, that you can verify is enough - don't buy the car and the owner will have a very hard time ever selling it.

Yes it's dumb. Once it's fixed, satisfactorily it should be removed from the WOVR. It is after all, a repairable write off.

Are you saying getting a repairable writeoff inspected to be able to be road worthy again is hard? I didn't know that extra stuff you said cheers for letting me know, so those extra documents (the list u referred to), I understand you said the list must follow every buyer, is this only for when the car needs a blueslip and I assume it's a legal requirement the way you worded it?

Where can I find that information online that refers to the list needing to follow buyers?

I called RTA and they said as long as the car is not 3 months out of rego I just do regular pinkslips. Only thing here I can think is that the mechanic doing the pink slip will want that list?

[The Bogan]

If a car is found to be a "body job", the original owner, or the insurance company that originally paid out the claim, can be granted ownership

Quite a few people have been caught out this way, they spent a ton of coin rebuilding a car, only to have it taken off them when they tried to register it 

REVS checks, and inspections of body and engine numbers for originality are a must with everything and anything you purchase 

[silviaz]

20 hours ago, The Bogan said:

If a car is found to be a "body job", the original owner, or the insurance company that originally paid out the claim, can be granted ownership

Quite a few people have been caught out this way, they spent a ton of coin rebuilding a car, only to have it taken off them when they tried to register it 

REVS checks, and inspections of body and engine numbers for originality are a must with everything and anything you purchase 

A lot of cars people swap the engines, if it has a blown engine for example. Would the replacement engine be fine as long as there is a reciept?

[The Bogan]

2 hours ago, silviaz said:

A lot of cars people swap the engines, if it has a blown engine for example. Would the replacement engine be fine as long as there is a reciept?

I would still do an inspection and run the numbers at the RTA/RMS/ whatever your states motor transport department is

Putting in an engine that has a receipt from someone that isn't the registered owner, can be problematic, especially if they haven't done the disposal with their local transport department 

[tridentt150v]

I also thought that insurance was harder to get on a repairable write off, is this true?  is it an issue?