b18C1_liLkyLe

Hey guys,

Saw some bikes I liked and they're in my price range because of salvaged titles. Other than the obvious worries this presents mechanically, will the salvaged title affect any of the paperwork from going through 100% (i.e., registration, any insurance problems, ect?). I thought maybe it would keep me from getting it insured or, yeah I don't know. I know buying a salvaged title bike sounds bad but I just want the serious logistics on it as far as the legal matters go.

Thanks guys.

marmaladedad

A salvage title won't prevent you from registering your bike through DMV. Just as long as the paperwork went through to change the bike's title to salvage.

.Ash

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by marmaladeboy &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">A salvage title won't prevent you from registering your bike through DMV. Just as long as the paperwork went through to change the bike's title to salvage.</TD></TR></TABLE>

It will in any other state besides CA for others reading this thread.

marmaladedad

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by .Ash &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">It will in any other state besides CA for others reading this thread. </TD></TR></TABLE>
Really?? I didn't know that. CA is weird...

CaptainMorgan

I call AAA and they told me they have no problem insureing a salvage title bike. liability only

EX-JAY

The only real problem you might encounter is when you try to sell the motorcycle in the future; it will be a pain in the *** cause people will give you next to nothing. Other then that, you should not have a problem with insurance or RMV.

familysedan

Buying a salvaged bike isn't always a bad idea. I've owned one bike and two mopeds with salvage titles and had no problems with them. If you buy them from an salvage auction you'll probably have to pay tax on the bike, fix the bike, get it inspected, and then get the new title. Its kind of a hastle but it CAN save you some bucks. The woman at progressive made it sound like you can get comprehensive coverage in some states but I'm not sure if you actully can.

EGlovr

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by EX-JAY &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">The only real problem you might encounter is when you try to sell the motorcycle in the future; it will be a pain in the *** cause people will give you next to nothing.
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not necessarily. you just need to sell to the right audience.

elise

yeah i can see trying to resell the bike being a problem. Since people are worried about what they can't see under the plastics.. bentframes ect... even if it is a theft recovery..

still though... cant beat the price!

b18C1_liLkyLe

Wow. Great informative responses guys. I'm going to go check the bike out in person. The owner is very professional and the bike looks immaculate from the pictures. I know it doesn't really take much for the insurance company to consider a bike salvaged so I'm not too worried. I'm definitely eager to use this title for some leverage in price negotiation.

Hopefully this goes through by this Sat. & I will post up pictures of the bike ('03 CBR-600RR; yeah, hopping on the bandwagon).

Thanks HT.

familysedan

Its crazy how they salvage any bike with a scratch on the frame. The bike I had now only has rash on it and insureance salvaged it. Nice choice with the rr, I'll hopefully be getting one this weekend if all goes well with the sale of my current bike. Good Luck

bad-monkey

i was reading something the other day on CL that made me wary about salvaged bikes:

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">A vehicle gets a salvage title like this:

1) Something bad happens to vehicle.

2) Owner files claim with either his insurance, or whomevers that caused said bad thing to happen to vehicle.

3) Insurance Co. decides fixing the vehicle to owners satisfaction would cost more than the vehicle is worth, declares the vehicle a TOTAL LOSS, and pays out the owner the worth of the vehicle... (If you got a pair, you demand high blue book, and dont settle til you get it.)

4) Vehicle likely then becomes property of the insurance Co., but usually offers to sell the totaled vehicle back to the former owner... usually at too high of a price, IMHO.

5.) THEN, the owner fixes everything, or as the ase may be, nothing, on the vehicle. He then wades through a bunch of DMV BS, if its a smoggable car, he must get it smogged again, even if it just passed smog recently. Car or bike, he must go to a mechanic that is a "Certified Brake and Lamp inspection station" and get the brakes and headlights inspected. This costs like $60 - $100 for both certifications, usually. Some shops are way thourough, one time I had a VW bug and they had it up on a lift, all torn apart, didnt like the look of my brake hoses, and I had to replace them. Another time, I brought a volvo in, and the dude jut poked at the brake caliper with the eraser end of a pencil while the car was on the ground. ??? All of your lights gotta work perfectly, and they have to be able to aim your headlight(s) with their machine... and its gotta STAY aimed.

So, you get those certs. At this point, you may get a temporary permit to start driving the vehicle if you are lucky, but you are by no means done.
You then have to have a person of authority verify the VIN # of the vehicle. For a car, its simple, you go to either DMV, or if you're smart, you have AAA, and just go there... its a lot faster, and it doesnt smell like baby poop in the waiting room. But for a motorcycle, it sucks, because Calif. law states that the CHP must verify VINs on bikes. There's only ONE CHP station I know of that does it, and only ONE patrolman that handles it... up in Altadena, and man, is that dude swamped. So, you make your appointment, trailer or truck your bike up there when the day comes, the officer looks at your by now INCH THICK stack of paperwork and goes "Hmmm." He'll then looks at the VIN, and the engine number, and boy, that crap better match up with whats on your paperwork, or you are in deep doo doo. If the numbers dont jive, you have to start all over again and register your vehicle as a current year model "special contruction." I've never had to go through that, so dont quote me, but the process looks like a major PITA. If your numbers are cool, you're home free. The officer may try to sweat you a bit, if the were sloppy at the factory dozens of years ago punching the numbers in the case, he may say "Hey, this kinda looks altered!" Stand your ground, tell him thats how they made the damn thing at the factory.

So, he keeps half your stack of paperwork... for like a MONTH. Hopefully you have your red temporary permit and are riding the bike now. The officer is now MANUALLY going through old books of stolen reports from the days before computers, to see if your numbers are hot. I've never had that problem, but if your crap is hot, you're likely in deep doo doo again. If all is cool, you get the call that your paperwork is ready, and you drive all the wat the heck back to Altadenan to get your stuff.

(*** Please note... you old farts, who have left your old bike in your garage for twenty years... ok, four or more... and have LOST the title: Whoever you sell your bike to will have to GO THROUGH ALL THIS CHP BS!!!! Lesson: either keep your bike fully registered, or PLEASE non-op it... and PLEASE PLEASE keep the title in a SAFE PLACE where you can find it again when you want to sell the bike... replacing a title cost SIXTEEN BUCKS... no matter what. Just for that little piece of paper, it saves somebody SIXTEEN BUCKS, and potentially two boring trips to Altadena and back. DONT FREAKIN LOSE IT!!!!!!!!!!)

ITS STILL NOT OVER!!!!!!! You then go BACK to DMV, with your freshly CHP approved VIN verification form, surrender your old plate, get a new one, pay the last of your fees. Ok, now you're done. Your new title later comes in the mail and it says SALVAGED in big ugly letters in the red box on top.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN to a buyer? Well, it all depends on what #1 way back at the beginning was. If you know what happened, and are cool with how the repairs are done, you have a better handle on whether or not it matters to you. A salveged late model vehicle is worth less than a perfect one, obviously. How much is a mater of debate... I've heard it slashes the value of the vehicle IN HALF. But yeah, right... no seller is gonna willingly bend over and submit to that, especially with the cost of re-aquiring the vehicle, fixing it, and going thru all that DMV/CHP related BS laid out above. In a perfect world, yes, but HAH, this is Los Angeles, so dont expect any fairy-tale stuff.

So, try and make your best deal if you want the thing, walk away if you dont, and walk away if the seller wants too much for it in your opinion... YOU are the one owning, insuring, driving, and some day reselling the thing. You too, will someday have to deal with a pink-shirt wearing metroboy sniveling about your salvaged-titled bike! Keep it in mind.

Here's more food for thought... If you own your own bike, outright, dont owe any more money on it and you drop it/lowspeed it and shave all the plastic off in the process... BEWARE! It may serve you better in the long run to NOT submit a claim to your insurance, and just take it in the pocketbook and pay for the repairs yourself. No one but an insurance company can TOTAL LOSS a vehicle. Ok, well, MAYBE the CHP can if they are using a pushbroom to move the small pieces of it off the freeway, but I'm not sure.

Anyway, back to my original point about being in control of whether or not your vehicle is totaled... Most of you wannabe-BIKERBOYZ who are likely upside down on your rice-o-matics... if you trash your bike, you WILL be out of the picture and have NO control over what goes down... the conversation will be entirely between the Insurance Co. and your lender... someone will come to take th bike away, and you'll be left paying off what the Insurance settlement DIDNT. Sorry, thats the way the cookie crumbles. (Note- you dont have to be upside down... you could be only one payment away from paying the thing off, but keep in mind, until you DO pay the thing of, it belongs to the bank, NOT you... she's not YOURS, just your mistress and you are PAYING to keep her around!)

***ALSO*** check with YOUR particular insurance company BEFORE BEFORE BEFORE buying a salved titled vehicle... they may not want to insure a salvaged vehicle!! Or, they may not insure the thing to the full cost of what you paid for it... Remember that HALF business? An insurance company aint in business for their health, you know.

***ALSO!!! check with your bank/credit union/lender BEFORRRRE trying to buy a salvaged vehicle... they may not want to front you a sweet loan to buy it... they may only want to give you a crap high-interest, short term, high payment loan, and there may also be a cap on how much they'll let you borrow on a salvaged vehicle... because, as mentioned above, its the BANK's vehicle until you pay it off... and just like mentioned above, say you default on your loan and they repo... THEY dont want to have to try and sell a salvaged vehicle either!!!

So... to recap: If you know just exactly what you are getting yourself into... AND the price is right and you know you will have NO problem financing and insuring your purchase, and you DONT CARE about potential resale hassles...

THEN, A SALVAGED TITLE DONT MEAN SQUAT!

Otherwise, buyer beware, caveat emptor, etc. etc. I'm not a lawyer, but if this stuff doesnt answer all your questions, you're probably better off asking them to an actual lawyer, not me. I'm just a regular dude who has tried to score some deals on old ratty bikes and has been through a lot of DMV bs, and has asked a bunch of smart questions to my insurance and bank people when I had the chance.

***Please save this document, and post it again the next time someone asks... I dont think I'll ever be able to type this much again, my freakin fingers are sore as heck.

Later!
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