Advice for purchase

[nicks]

Hi all,
I’m new here and i’m looking to purchase a 2013 subaru BRZ limited
it has 72k miles
it’s a rebuild title (flood) - rebuilt by dealership
the purchase price is 9k obo
flawless exterior and interior, garages during winter
the current owner has had it for 3 years after the rebuild and has not experienced any problems
the oil has been changed every 7.5k miles

wondering if anyone has any advice, anything to look for, etc.
this car meets my budget and it interests me very much
keep in mind, i will be daily driving this car and plan to own it for at least 3 years and drive it until it doesn’t run.
Thank you!

[Tcoat]

About right. Go for it.
Loads will say to much but they are in areas where there are piles of them and they sell for cheaper. A quick look at your area shows 13s with around that mileage going for $14K to $16K so a flood salvage at $9K is good and if OBO you may get even a little more off at this time of year.

[nicks]

should i be worried about the flood though? i mean, it was bought at auction, rebuilt by the dealer, and sold to another person. theyve had it for 3 years and had no issues, which they probably would’ve experienced some of the car was rebuilt wrong or sloppy right? also, in terms of length, with a little bit of TLC, hopefully it can last me around 3 years. i dont have the money to be doing constant repairs. i’ve heard horror stories of brz engines blowing at 90-100k, but i’ve also seen some brz’s with over 120k miles. i drive about 15k miles a year btw.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by nicks

should i be worried about the flood though? i mean, it was bought at auction, rebuilt by the dealer, and sold to another person. theyve had it for 3 years and had no issues, which they probably would’ve experienced some of the car was rebuilt wrong or sloppy right? also, in terms of length, with a little bit of TLC, hopefully it can last me around 3 years. i dont have the money to be doing constant repairs. i’ve heard horror stories of brz engines blowing at 90-100k, but i’ve also seen some brz’s with over 120k miles. i drive about 15k miles a year btw.

No I would not worry about the flood damage at this point. The reasons not to worry are exactly as you said. Unless of course the seller is lying about having no issue.
The horror stories about engines blowing are for a very small number of cars. The vast majority have not had issues. That said since it is a 13 you should check and see if it has had the recall done. If yes and t was a while ago all will probably be fine. If no DON'T do it!

[nicks]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

No I would not worry about the flood damage at this point. The reasons not to worry are exactly as you said. Unless of course the seller is lying about having no issue.
The horror stories about engines blowing are for a very small number of cars. The vast majority have not had issues. That said since it is a 13 you should check and see if it has had the recall done. If yes and t was a while ago all will probably be fine. If no DON'T do it!

okay, so if it has the recall done then it should be fine and if it doesn’t then don’t buy it? also how do i find out if it was affected by the recall?

[nicks]

ps: is there any way to share a car fax report here? i just bought it and i’m looking for help interpreting it, as i’m inexperienced with them

Edit: i found a way, here's the report.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by nicks

okay, so if it has the recall done then it should be fine and if it doesn’t then don’t buy it? also how do i find out if it was affected by the recall?

No. The recall was done poorly by some dealers which resulted in the engines losing oil pressure and spinning bearing. It usually happened fairly soon after the work was done though so if it has been driven since it should be fine.
If they have not done the recall work don't get it done. The only place it is mandatory is California. The failures from the original issue are almost no existent so why increase the risk breaking it by fixing something that probably will never break?
You can search the vin number here: https://www.subaru.com/vehicle-recalls.html

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by nicks

ps: is there any way to share a car fax report here? i just bought it and i’m looking for help interpreting it, as i’m inexperienced with them

Screen shot it or take a picture.
Edit: Yep just like that!

[nicks]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

No. The recall was done poorly by some dealers which resulted in the engines losing oil pressure and spinning bearing. It usually happened fairly soon after the work was done though so if it has been driven since it should be fine.
If they have not done the recall work don't get it done. The only place it is mandatory is California. The failures from the original issue are almost no existent so why increase the risk breaking it by fixing something that probably will never break?
You can search the vin number here: https://www.subaru.com/vehicle-recalls.html

It says it has no recalls!

[Tcoat]

The report shows exactly what you knew that it is a flood damage salvage title.
The good news there is that the damage appears to have been restricted to the rear of the car so the engine bay was not impacted. Also no further issues are on record so that supports the claim that he had no problems.

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by nicks

It says it has no recalls!

So it was either done already or not in the range for the valve spring recall. That is good news.

[Dadhawk]

Originally Posted by nicks

okay, so if it has the recall done then it should be fine and if it doesn’t then don’t buy it? also how do i find out if it was affected by the recall?

No, he's saying if you buy it, don't get the recall done. Likely you would have to pay for it anyway since this is a rebuild. Don't believe recalls apply to rebuilds, but I could be wrong.

[Dadhawk]

Originally Posted by Tcoat

So it was either done already or not in the range for the valve spring recall. That is good news.

Could that be because it's a salvage car though?

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by Dadhawk

Could that be because it's a salvage car though?

OHHHH good point! It would have come off the recall and warranty lists since it technically no longer exists as far as Toyota is concerned.