?? about water damaged 02 OB

[LocalHero]

Continuing my hunt for a used OB I can both afford and enjoy I came across one with this description:

 

i am second owner of the subaru i bought it st 30 something thousand miles. early this year about may, we had a lot of rain here in GA. as i was driving from work one evening i went along a road that was still had high water i slowed down but kept driving. water got in the car and soaked the carpet the seats never got wet. it was less than a 3 gallons of water that caused this problem i drove home and everything was fine but then when i shut the car off next day it wouldn't start we took it to Subaru in Decatur GA and they told us the main computer had got wet i told them it drove fine but it indeed had got water damage. the computer lies up against the passenger side foot floor board well it was going to cost 2000 for a new computer & labor but they said we could claim it under the insurance so we did and the minute we said the computer got wet they totaled it out leaving me with the balance of the car note due to the credit card CO. so we bought the car from the insurance CO. and made the repairs out of our pocket we replaced the computer and the carpet it runs like it did before the computer was changed everything is still original equipment minus a used computer and carpet it does not smell or look like the car had any problem with water i had to get a state inspection done to make it road legal because the insurance CO. gave me a salvage title so all inspections have been doen it is now registerable in any state buyer or bidder can arrange to get a pre sale inspection at the dealer some of the pictures i have here are of damaged parts like mirror and scrathes on the car everything else is mint i will help with shipping or will deliver for the right price and one way ticket this will be cheaper than freight or you can pick it up we still drive it every day to work and such keep in mind the car belongs to my wife and is free of any leans because we bought it with a credit card, interest was mush lower do a car fax on the VIN (4s3bh675527636803) it will prove it was not a victim of the hurricane in new Orleans it has good GA title

 

Would I be crazy to consider this car? Can it be checked out well enough if I found an able mechanic or would the problems be too hard to predict?

It's an 02 with 60K miles.

 

Thanks,

John

[the_bard]

I'd approach this like it was a potentially rabid bear. The kind with teeth and claws.

 

Salvage title isn't good... it brings the resale value down like a rock, from what I've heard. Banks usually won't finance it, either. Salvage title usually means that it's been rebuilt, which brings into question the skill of the rebuilder, and what's been done. For all the buyer knows, it could've been a major rebuild... not just "oh, the computer got wet."

 

I'd also have to wonder about any car bought on a credit card because the interest was (much) lower...

[Esteban32696]

I am very leary of any salvaged title car, evem though I have owned a few. You could look it over really good, or let a mechanic. Look up under dash, for rusty wire connections, etc.Use a mirror & flashlight to reflect. IF it was saltwater, it will destroy everything, eventually. Freshwater, so, so! Be careful, & remember that the salvage title KILLS resale value.They shouldn't be asking much over 50% of retail for this car. So, if you buy it, you may just have to own it 4ever.

[LocalHero]

Two good warnings already! Hmmm, I was afraid of that...

 

bard, I'm not worried about the credit card aspect, I have a two credit cards that I carry balances on because they gave me permanent 2.99% and 3.99% rates. Besides, should I care about how they paid for the car as long as I get clear title?

 

Thanks for the warnings. I'll heed them.

 

John

[friendly_jacek]

BTW, there must be tons of new and recent cars flooded in hurricanes on the market these days. A potential to scam lots of people.

[Zephyr]

"A good Georgia title means that it wasn't in the hurricanes"? I don't know how this statement is qualified.

 

Why is he getting rid of it? And why is he so adimant about stating they bought it on a Credit Card? The reason he purchased it on a card may be because a bank wouldn't loan him the money for it... for whatever reason. Maybe he saw an opportunity with a flooded car and put it on the credit card thinking he would pay it off quickly and make a dime in the process.

 

If this were a junker that you wanted to do some random utility work and off roading in, you could get lucky and everything would be cool. If it has further problems, you can leave it in the garage and work on it as necessary.

 

If you are looking for a reliable commuter car that you depend on to get back and forth to work and such, I would gamble on something with a little better odds.

 

(and why doesn't the seller use any periods? It is maddening to read his statement. Never trust a guy that doesn't use periods. )

[tunered]

flooded cars are easy to spot,they take out interior,seats,carpet and clean everything in sight,but what they dont clean is behind the door gaskets.this is the seal when you shut the door,just t6ake your fingers and roll back that seal and see if there is any mud under it,look in places that a pressure washer wont go. more than likely it is ok.i would call the insurance company that paid it off and get a copy of the estimate,should show all damage.

[WoodsWagon]

We have a local "repairable" auto's dealership. Watching the tricks of the trade and warnings from the junkyard owner across the street, I have to say you should avoid it. Consider this: the crankcase is vented through the airbox through the PCV system, the rear diff and tranny both have vents, and the seals on wheelbearings ect. are not ment to be submerged. Floodwaters usually have silt in them, and bearings don't like silt. Silt gets stuck in lots of places in the drivetrain, and just swapping fluids won't get it all out. Lots of bearings will start letting go a few thousand miles later. The resellers change the fluids so they look clean (fooling the buyer) and take a pressure washer to everything. Keep an eye out for a waterline in the headlights and taillights, not a good sign. I have seen pounds of dirt be washed out of the intertior of cars. What was left in the tranny?

[bulwnkl]

It would make absolutely no sense in all the world for an insurance company to total a car just because the ECU needed to be replaced. That's a flat-out lie, IMO (perhaps by someone other than the seller, but a lie none the less). Insurance companies are supremely good at taking the cheapest route no matter what. If the 'only' damage was the carpets and computer, totaling a 2002 Subaru is NOT the cheapest way to fix that. Neither is there any potential liability trouble down the road from replacing the ECU. This story is seriously incomplete at best, and likely a fabrication IMO.