Would you buy one wrecked?

[ceekay]

So in my newly-started quest to stuff my fat posterior into a VR4 of my very own, I've come to what one could probably consider a 'conundrum...'

Was thinking I might be able to get into one cheaper if I bought it wrecked and fixed it myself. I am a hobbyist-level body worker (did it professionally for a long while but got burnt on it), so I do have a bit of auto repair knowledge...

So, if you were in my shoes (more/less know-how than you have now), would you buy a wrecked 3S?

Also, if you did get a wrecked 3S, what would you pay particular attention to prior to purchasing and/or during the repair?


Thanks,

- CK

[MK_94_3000GT]

No, the price for our cars is in the shitter. 5 years ago maybe. Right now you can by rolling shells for nothing an a wrecked car and just swap over. Less headache and just as cheap if not cheaper. I've built TTs for less than $1000 so I'd go that route. Good luck

I guess my answer is yes and no lol. Buy wrecked yes, but don't fix the wrecked one. I meant no in regards to your body work comment.

[RealMcCoy]

I have and I would again if the circumstances were right.... Title status is a biggie. If it has a salvage title you'll be less likely to get a decent resale value out of it. I doubt it would be worth it for a 1st gen unless it was a really low mile nice car that could be fixed reasonably.

If you can find a damaged 2nd gen cheap, and buy a cheap N/A to part out as a donor, you can come out ok... That's what I'm doing with my 95 RT/TT. It should have gone to the boneyard as bad as it is, but the complete 94 RT I bought with blown head gaskets is going to make it all better again....

[westcott]

Just depends on how damaged the car is. Aligning the frame\body can be a real challenge and not something you could do at home unless you had a frame straightener. Even then, if they are damaged in the front, they may never be the same again. And, if may not look bad from the offset but once you start pulling it apart or know what to look for, you could be stuck with something way over your head and spending a lot of money to fix it.

[sleeksl]

All the above have good points, but it depends on what you want to do with the car. Daily driver, resale, or track use.
For a daily driver, if really cheap (as in less than rollings shells are going for), then sure I would. Parts are all over this site. Title may not matter but clean would be nice.
for resale, you're going to put alot of time which may/may not be worth it depending on how bad the car was damaged. In this case... No I wouldn't if frame damage but if it was just panels, maybe. Make sure title is clean.
Track use... You'll need it to be straight and true with very little to buy for gutted interior. In this case, yes I would if no frame damage. Title will not matter.
So I guess I would look for frame damage, time required to fix, ,title, and parts needed. Then assess $$$ depending on what you want to do with the car.
I've fixed them before, and will still continue to do so but will not buy one with frame damage. Sometimes with one part out car, you can get 2 running cars, depends...
Hope this helps and enjoy the hobby!

[jordache16]

My advice for getting into a VR4 at a decent price is to be patient. I suppose it depends on where you live but I know around me VR4s do not come up for sale very often. Every once in a while a deal on one will come up but we're talking several months here. It took me 9 months of looking before i found mine. Now obviously you could expand your search radius to increase your chances of finding one but then you will end up having to spend money to have it delivered.

To answer your question about buying a wrecked one though, as others have pointed out, a wrecked one could very easily end up costing you more in the long run. I suppose it would all depend on the extent of the damage and what you could buy it for. Personally I would not buy a wrecked one if I was you unless the damage was purely cosmetic. This doesn't mean i would never buy a wrecked one though. Since I already own one, I would maybe buy a wrecked SL or VR4 for cheap down the road for parts.