Determining value on a free car.

Just like the title says. Someone is giving me a 2004 Mazda 3. It currently does not run. How do I go about determining the value for budget purposes? 

Thanks. 

Check out the $2000 Challenge Rules; the process is spelled out there.

In reply to Toyman! :

I would suggest getting three quotes from local junkyards.

In reply to Stampie :

This seems like the most reasonable approach.  You are serving as their junkyard.  Around me that would ~$325-400 depending on if you deliver it or not.  So If they bring it to you use the quote for you bringing the car to the yard..  if you have to pick it up..  use the pickup quote.  

I'm assuming here they genuinely where going to scrap the car and you really are simply the guy that is serving as their JY.  Otherwise inside deal and all that jazz.   I also have a free car that I considered a similar approach, however mine strains credibility for being a Miata with aftermarket suspension so I did not persue FMV applied to a free car as I would of possibly ran afoul of the DBAD rule.  Unless this is a MazdaSpeed 3 or otherwise somehow super valuably modified I don't have any issue with a Mazda 3 that someone was going to scrap being a ~350 FMV.  

In reply to Toyman! :

Is it junk?  Were they planning on scrapping it?  Is it an insider deal?

Follow Tom's advice. 

I entered a free probe gt in the challenge one year.  It was legitimately free from a random person on Craigslist.

Free probe gt

This is a car given to a friend. It stopped running and they want it out of their yard. 

I have zero info beyond it being a Mazda 3 and a manual trans. I'll update here when I know more. 

I picked up the car yesterday. 

The deal was the lady offered it to everyone she works with for free. Come get it. She works at Lowes so figure 100 +- people. Several people said they were going to get it but never showed.

My friend is a manager at the same store and the car owner knows he plays with cars so she offered it to him. 

It was not advertised on CL or marketplace.

Does that count as an inside deal or can I claim it as free?

As retrieved. It has been sitting for several years.

I put it through my local yard online offer portal.  It came up with $364.  Not saying it's not free just throwing it out there.

I'm going to make some calls today and see what the local yard offer. 

I would like the group to make a decision on if I can claim it as free or if it is considered an inside deal. 

I think it's a free car if the seller's next step genuinely was to list it publicly for free. If they were going to call a yard for pickup, FMV scrap.

It certainly sounds like free in my opinion. She offered it to many, many individuals before the manager. Had anyone shown up to actually retrieve it, it seems like they would have been able to take it away for $0. 

I don't know what the seller's next step was going to be. 

I have entered it into 3 online junk car places and called LKQ. Two of the online places offered $265, one offered $212-$265. LKQ offered $425 if I brought it to them. 

I kind of think it's free, but I'll let you gents decide if I can claim it as free or should go with the average or highest of the scrap values. Y'all are more familiar with this than I am.

Thanks. 

Id feel good at $265 since it was an average of three. Lkq is an outlier.

I'm good with free. Others were offered and did not complete the transaction.

If you can scrounge up some documentation that it was free to anyone at Lowe's I'd back it as free.  If not I'll second the average scrap price.

In reply to Mr_Asa :

Yeah, I thought about that but beyond a verbal, "I had 3-4 people that were interested but never showed up to get it," from the PO, there isn't any good way to document it. I guess I could ask for a signed affidavit but that might be a little weird after she just gave me a car. 

If everyone is good at $265 like Michael suggested, I'll use that as a starting point. I've printed out the sheets from the salvage companies as proof. 

I'm good with $265 or free, your choice

In reply to Toyman! :

Yeah, an affidavit would be weird.

I was thinking texts, a pic of any ad she may have put up on the staff notice board, or anything like that.  

In reply to Mr_Asa :

I'll have to ask my friend. I think it was mostly word of mouth, but I'll find out for sure. 

I'm good at $265.

Hah, I'm looking for an inexpensive manual trans Mazda3 hatch for my kid's first car. Good score!.

Free is OK by me. Right place right time but not really insider.

I would say free if only because the owner (a middle aged woman I imagine) wouldn't likely sell the car to a scrap yard but would most likely call one of those local "companies" who advertise cars and scrap removed for free. You're functioning in the same regard, removing scrap metal from a woman's front yard without charging her for the service.

I'd also say free.  If it was free to you (or a small contingency) but not to anyone else, that's an inside deal.  
 

but she gave it away to the first person who would show up and that was you. 
 

her advertising was poor and only reached a few people but that's usually the nature of good deals.