Copart car: To buy or not to buy?

Hows it going people? I found this forum while googling around, alot of rebuild threads that are inspiring. Im a college student looking to buy a car from copart since it would be fun rebuilding it with my dad and also the possibility of getting a kickass deal (it is risky though). My thoughts are that salvage cars can be a good deal but often sellers fix it as cheapily as possible so why not do it myself?

I really like this car: http://www.copart.com/us/Lot/15518446?searchId=93329809

Normally id go look at it in person but its ~6hrs away (auctions in my area kind of suck)..........What do you guys think, worth checking out? Frame damage? One thing concerning is the passenger fender/door, worried that the whole front end is shifted and would need a professional with frame puller (I can use a come along for minor pulls).

That motor looks cockeyed to me. Now, i could be, and usually am- wrong. My best guess is by the time you parts and labor a car that new you could almost get into a real new one. Now were it something old and oddball...id say go for it. This doesn't seem like that great a deal to me.

Is Colorado one of the few states that allows public buyers at the insurance auction? Most places make you use a broker.

It's also (oddly enough) usually easier to get a better car if it's a bit older. Totaling a brand new car like that means that it has some serious damage that is probably structural. A 5 year old car might get totaled from a radiator support, a front bumper cover and a hood.

I'd pass on that car.

With some ebay trickery/skills, I got a free autochecker report

"05/01/2015 - VEHICLE REPORTED AS TOTAL LOSS VEHICLE HAD COMPREHENSIVE DAMAGE"

"12/24/2015 - FRONT IMPACT COLLISION ACCIDENT REPORTED (Case #:4C-15-3238) AIR BAG DEPLOYED VEHICLE WAS TOWED"

This makes sense since copart says front end damage for primary damage but lists secondary as hail damage....Im thinking it was salvage due to hail damage on 05/2015 and the original driver kept the check and kept driving then later got into a wreck.

I dont know if this really changes anything from what you guys said. Im thinking maybe you sober+helpful forum members are right.

EDIT: To answer your question Brett_Murphy, id need a broker for either NM or CO. AZ and TX im in the clear to buy it without a broker.

I am watching to see how it goes, looking at trying a copart purchase later this year. (but leaning P71 myself)

Front end impact hard enough that the back of the front fenders is deformed? I'd pass - sure sign the front unibody is tweaked.

Made me look at the local Copart listings...

http://www.copart.com/us/Lot/39301435

How the heck does that happen?

In reply to dculberson:

Someone chained the rear axle to a light pole?

I don't see that car being worth the time. The front end has been shunted pretty hard. I would say very confidently that the frame is tweaked as well as basically anything in the engine bay. However that M5 is seriously impressive, takes the meaning of "drive the wheels off it" to a different level.

Thanks sober people. I will keep an eye out for a second gen mazda 3, as they are alittle older and more likely to be reasonable to fix. Copart is fun, could see myself getting addicted if I wasnt a student

In reply to BrotherAli:

Welcome. Stick around and put your next choice up for review too.

You're lucky. Most of the time, we tell people to buy what ever junk they post asking if they should buy it.

JohnRW1621 wrote: In reply to BrotherAli: Welcome. Stick around and put your next choice up for review too.

Thank you for the welcome, this forum is badass, really like the diy spirit and "wheeler and dealer" threads.

Next option: https://www.iaai.com/Vehicles/VehicleDetails.aspx?itemID=21246800&RowNumber=5

Im curious what it looks like under the doors. Passenger curtain airbag deployed, seems like a cheap fix ($50 airbag module reset, $50 belt tensioner reset if needed, curtain airbags are pretty cheap)

Two negatives:

-I am itching to get a car pretty soon and god knows when IAAI will actually put it up for auction

-Not skyactiv (2.5L not much more powerful than skyactiv 2.0L) so fuel economy isnt that great (25mpg mixed)

Other than that that car is pretty much what im looking for.

Appleseed wrote: You're lucky. Most of the time, we tell people to buy what ever junk they post asking if they should buy it.

Hahaha. Well my dad wasnt down, and hes got that old school intuitive car knowledge so I was already not too thrilled. Still that 3rd gen mazda 3 design was tempting me, but the sober people won this round

Appleseed wrote: You're lucky. Most of the time, we tell people to buy what ever junk they post asking if they should buy it.

There are worse ideas out there for him to find. Have you seen how cheap Maseratis have gotten?

The nice thing about those Maseratis is they all have low miles

dculberson wrote: Made me look at the local Copart listings... http://www.copart.com/us/Lot/39301435 How the heck does that happen?

Somebody cannibalized the suspension and probably LSD to re-use in another car.

I wanted to thank @pimpm3 (hopefully tagging works on this forum) for the motivation. His thread gave me hope that I was heading down the right path with copart:

https://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/grm/lets-flip-a-car-350z-copart-edition/103861/page1/

Just wanted to update, I think I succeeded! Way nicer than what I hoped for: http://mazda3revolution.com/forums/2014-2016-mazda-3-skyactiv-discussion/126458-brotherali-s-rebuild-thread.html

BrotherAli wrote: With some ebay trickery/skills, I got a free autochecker report "05/01/2015 - VEHICLE REPORTED AS TOTAL LOSS VEHICLE HAD COMPREHENSIVE DAMAGE" "12/24/2015 - FRONT IMPACT COLLISION ACCIDENT REPORTED (Case #:4C-15-3238) AIR BAG DEPLOYED VEHICLE WAS TOWED" This makes sense since copart says front end damage for primary damage but lists secondary as hail damage....Im thinking it was salvage due to hail damage on 05/2015 and the original driver kept the check and kept driving then later got into a wreck. I dont know if this really changes anything from what you guys said. Im thinking maybe you sober+helpful forum members are right. EDIT: To answer your question Brett_Murphy, id need a broker for either NM or CO. AZ and TX im in the clear to buy it without a broker.

One tip, when my RX8 was hit in the front the air bags did not go off (if the bags went off it would have definitely been a total loss,) but because they had to reset all codes it shows up on the software they use that it did and in turn shows on the carfax.

Just know carfax is an extremely basic guide, not an end all history.

Brett_Murphy wrote:

dculberson wrote: Made me look at the local Copart listings... http://www.copart.com/us/Lot/39301435 How the heck does that happen?

Somebody cannibalized the suspension and probably LSD to re-use in another car.

"Primary" damage was noted as undercarriage.

"Secondary" damage was listed as rear end

Methinks something much more interesting than a stolen rear suspension has occurred here.

And is it just me or does the underside look a bit grotty for a car that only has 28,000 miles on it?