Total car scrapping question

[klava]

I have late model buick seirra at my disposal and plenty of time. My thought is to take my time and really see the most I can get by parting it out and taking off all metals with value over regular steel price.

I also would lik to know if there are companies that buy in bulk things like starters, altenators, etc for rfurbishing. I have already done alot of research on catalytic convrters.

So if you take the time factor out of it. What would be the best way to go about getting top dollar out of a car. All ideas wlcome. Im looking to do all I can do to minimize waste.

Also I have been working on cars my whole life.

Thanks for your input

-K

 

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[klava]

actually its an oldsmobile cutlass ceirra. total weight listed on the door is 4154. I undertand that after i drain fluids and tak tires off this will decrease but i do have alot of other metals to fill it full whn i take what is left of the body once i get done with it.

=K

 

[petecnc]

i have allways wondered how it would work out. stripping all the different metals vs shipping the whole car. you might have some luck ebaying the headlamps tail light lenses, trim and interior items.

 

[klava]

Im sure this will b quite time consuming. I plan to put parts on ebay and local papers. I just want to see the time versus profit ratio. It will be interesting to see just how much just how much stuff is worth the effort versus the time involved. But it will b a great learning experience.

-K

 

[EDDE]

Im sure this will b quite time consuming. I plan to put parts on ebay and local papers. I just want to see the time versus profit ratio. It will be interesting to see just how much just how much stuff is worth the effort versus the time involved. But it will b a great learning experience.

-K

My Brother and I scraped for a year ANYTHING aluminum we came across we scooped up.Part time jobs would have been better paying.....

 

[aaron7]

That number in the door is the GVWR (gross vehicle weight rating) and is NOT what the car weighs. That's the maximum it can weigh when fully loaded with people and stuff.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gross_vehicle_weight_rating

Most scrap yards will pay $200 or so for a complete car. Once you start pulling parts off of it most yards won't touch it unless you pay THEM, so do your research and make sure you won't end up PAYING in the end.

 

[MCPrice302]

Okay, deep breath, and here we go:

What aaron7 said about GVWR is true. From my experience your average car weight is around 3100 lbs. This of course wouldn't apply to a Honda civic but that should be ballpark for a Oldsmobile cutlass, and I would think it would in actuallity be a little higher for that car provided the engine/tranny were still intact.

Aaron7, I don't know what kind of hustle your local yards are trying to pull but even $200 for a full car is darn near stealing it when a business is buying it. Hell, thats usually what I pay for cars to scrap and still make healthy profit everytime. With prices being up right now, a 3000 lb. vehicle would bring $322.50 just in the body locally. Then of course there is the convertor(s), alternator, starter, wiring harness (copper wire), radiator and condensor, battery, tack on another $56 if it has aluminum wheels, and any usuable parts that you can re-sell.

The biggest thing to re-selling auto parts is knowing what is in demand. A fender from a Chevy Celebrity will not move near as quick or for as much money as say a Chevy Camaro. The only cars I would recommend trying to re-sell parts off of when you are just starting out are cars will a following such as Mustangs, Camaros, Just about any Honda, newer models, and alot of trucks as just about every house hold owns a truck. The more popular the car, the easier it will be to sell parts. On the flip side, rarer cars and their parts bring big bucks too. Take for instance a pre 1982 Corvette, I've got a buyer that will pay $25 for EACH brake caliper(4 per vehicle) just for a core, and $150 for EACH trailing arm assembly (2 per vehicle) in any shape.

Diesels are big money parted out. Most diesel injectors bring about $40-$50 EACH (6-8 per engine) and injection pumps are bringing $50-$200 EACH with most bringing $100 just as a core, ie. doesn't matter if its good or not. A word of caution though, diesel fuel systems operate under extreme pressure, so much in fact that a leaking system can very easily slice through skin and even bone much like a water jet would, BE CAREFUL!

There are core buyers for everything you can imagine, ABS units, AC compressors, Mass Air Flow sensors, Brake Boosters, Brake Master Cylinders, CV axles, Wiper motors, ECM's, Alternators, Distributors, Smog Pumps, Fuel Injectors, Rack and Pinions, Steering boxes, All kinds of Electrical Components, Carburetors, Water Pumps, Cylinder heads, and of course engines and transmissions just to name a few . It's a tricky business to be in though, as not all cars have a strong demand for these parts and it's not really obvious as to which ones most of the time, and it's constantly changing. In other words, you will waste time and possibly money if you dont know what you are doing in this business.

To sum up, if you are getting this car for free or already own it, you will have no problem making a quick $400 on it even after you figure in gas for transportation. Like I said, I usually buy cars for $200 and under (sometimes more if it's worth it), and always double my money, guaranteed. Not bad for about 2 hours of hauling and pulling parts part time huh? Of course you need a truck and trailer for this though, or a rollback if you are wealthy (I'm not). There's so much more that I havent even covered yet, but hopefully this will give you a direction to start in. I will be putting up a thread on RealCent hopefully over this weekend that covers the last group of cars that I bought to scrap for more information to anyone wanting to know more about recycling/parting out vehicles. But thats all for now folks.

 

[klava]

Thanks for the info guys. Damn I feel stupid about the GVWR thing lol. Anyway I have no money invested in the car so I can take my time with it. It will give me a feel for future projects let me know what to fool with and what not to lol. The biggest obstacle I face is I live in the boonies. Alot of stuff I may store back to sell for core. Finding a close place to sell and saving up enough core stuff to make the trip profitable will b the hardest part.

-K

 

[traderoftreasures]

www.http://firstamericancore.com