Would you buy this frs?
 

Hello there, I've been searching for a red frs for a very long time in reach of my budget, 15k - 17k $ I found one with 12k miles & the trd kit. Exhaust & air filter, but here's the thing I found a scion frs, red exactly how I wanted it, it's been in a collision & the insurance wrote it off as salvage but it's been rebuilt, there was no frame Or engine damage, I took the vehicle for a pre purchase inspection at miller toyota & everything passed. No leaks zero issues frame & alignment all passed. The seller is pricing it at 14,500 out the door. What do you think? I'm really afraid of investing this much in a salvage.. Due to resale, I love the car and the results.. I just feel like I'm buying something with no value... Is it really that hard to sell a salvage if I have too down the road? Toyota also provided me with all records of oil changes & scheduled maintenance & everything has been on point I'm scared to miss this deal because it's perfect but I feel like I'm buying something with no value... I just sold my toyota fj cruiser to buy a new car also

A salvage car will be a hassle to sell as not many people look for these unless they are on a budget or are building the car ground up for a special purpose. In my opinion, test-drive the car for an hour. See how it runs at 60, 70, 80, 90..., 120kms. Then for some spirited driving. Try setting up the same sort of test drive with the dealership on one that has 0 problems. An inspection can say a lot, but driving it will provide some cues for you on whether the salvageable car is rebuilt well. Regardless, I would probably go for a higher mileage with a clean title as my personal preference.

You will want to check the panel gaps and you will want it to be checked by a frame alignment shop. Just because it was repaired doesnt mean its not tweeked in some way

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no

Why cheap out on such a big purchase? Buy a quality car that was taken care of. The extra money spent will be worth it in the long run.

I'd never pay more than a few grand for a salvage. Give it a couple years and you'll find perfectly legit ones for the same price.

Nope, would not get anywhere near it unless I was building a dedicated track car that was not street legal.

Nope. Get a loan on top of what you have available to spend if you want a legitimate FRS.

14,500 wouldn't be a good enough price for me to buy it just because of resale. The main benefit of buying a used car is the pleasure of someone else paying a huge chunk of the vehicles depreciation.

You may very well have trouble selling the car for 10k in a year. Thats just a guess but you'd probably take a bigger hit than buying a brand new car.

There are valid reasons to buy a salvaged car but just to save a few bucks up front is not one of them.
http://www.ft86club.com/forums/showthread.php?t=67509

No. I don't think it will have a warranty. Toyota like most other manufacturers cancels warranty coverage on salvage cars. It will be difficult to find an insurance carrier and also financing for the same reason. This is the time of year for lease turn-ins and new models so you might be able to find a straight used car for <$20K.

Yes I would. Cars end up looking "old" after 3-4 years anyway and what would you do if you wrecked a new car but the insurance didn't total it? I wouldn't trade it in/sell it. Fix and keep going. If it drives fine, is straight, makes no funny noise.. err, stratch that.. then it should be fine. See if you can negotiate another 1500-2000 off the price. :)

i had a salvage car that i drove for 6 years...bullet proof and not one issue. it really depends on how bad the damage was, where it was damaged and how the repairs were. good luck

May I ask what it was, date of mfr and purchase, and how much? Did you sell it?