wille

Would you ever buy a car that has been involvoed in a crash?
I've found this speed yellow 993 with 30k miles. I instantly fell in love with the car but there is one problem. The first owner drove it in the winter and lost control of the car. The front fenders and one door has been changed.
The gap between the hood and one of the fenders is not perfectly straight at one place. According to the seller (a BMW sealership), it was just a small accident and the salesman said he has owned the same car after the accident and he would never have bought the car if there was something wrong with it.

Except for the accident the car was in mint condition but I'm a bit worried that I will have problems selling the car one day.

Should I consider buying this car and do a PPI or should I look for another car?

Ed Burdell

Take a pass on this one. There are plenty of straight ones out there. Why buy problems?

Allen

This kind of thing is a very personal decision. It depends on what you want out of the car. Because I'm very **** about my cars, I could never live with a car that had paintwork or had been in a wreck...but that does not bother some people. Now if your talking about a car that has had engine damage...I think that would be a no-brainer...I don't think anyone should buy something like that. Also, this is the exact kind of thinking that a potential buyer will have...you may find people who don't care if it's been wrecked, if the price is low enough, and then those (like me) who wouldn't buy a wrecked car at any price.

Mark in Baltimore

I would buy a car that has been in an accident, as long as the work was done well. After seeing what happens on the track and the magic that a good body shop can perform, a crashed car no longer bothers me. Hell, many of the 964 cups and 996 cups have been wrecked, and they look and drive winderfully, if done well.

neunneundrei

Can't say I disagree with that, but it would mean - at least to me - that you'd have to find someone very trustworthy and who really knows how to do a check on what's been done and how it's been done. Everytime I talk to body folks, I get several different answers/opinions depending on who I'm talking to. That being said, I would buy something if that right person told me everything was fixed great - but it is, in the end, a very personal decision and preference.

roche

no way. panel mis-alignment would drive me crazy. like it's been said before...they're a lot of straight cars out there, just take your time and you'll find it. good luck.

SimonExtreme

While I would and have bought cars that have been damaged, I wouldn't touch a car that you can obviously see that damage. A good body shop should return the car to original condition. If you have a Porsche under body warranty, have a smash and get it repaired by a Porsche approved shop, the warranty stays. If it's good enough for Porsche, its good enough for me!

sptschoice

I would buy a pcar that was wreck after all it nothing but sheet metal that have to be replace. Ask yourself this qoestion if after owning your car for several years and numorus mods would part with your car easily because of a minor collision.

chris walrod

It completely depends on price and your threshold for owning a not-so-perfect car. What is the asking price for this car?

901aero

Buying a car that has been in an accident is no big deal if 1) It has been repaired correctly. I have found that minor panel misalignment is sometimes a result of a lazy bodyman that did not have the patience to finish the job correctly-- and not major damage improperly repaired. 2) you are planning on keeping the car for a long enough period of time to "get your use" out of it. 3) Get the car cheap enough --and I mean way cheap 40 to 50% off the price of a comparable undamaged 993. 4) You fully realize that resale will present some problems.

I know that's a lot of ifs. But I have bought cars that have been in accidents and have had no problems. I have even looked at cars that my customers have brought to me that were in accidents that they as the owner never even knew about and had been enjoying the car for years.

I once obsessed over a 911 that I had that had been wrecked and always felt like something was wrong even though the car was a great car. A year later a man ran a red light and totaled it. So much for that. I often wished I would have just enjoyed it while I had it instead of worrying so much.

sptschoice

New cars,old cars,crash cars all the same ....
new cars = cost more and some still have everlasting problems
old cars = cost less some still have problems

crash cars = buy cheap and fix all problems with extras

95 C4 993

I wouldnt touch it but thats just me.

slider172

As long as it has been properly repaired, and the price reflects the damage history, I'd buy it in a second.
BUT I'm not **** about my car. The car I bought was passed up by a fellow board member. He wanted a perfect car. I wanted a driver.
If a flaw is going to drive you nuts, and make it so you cant enjoy the car, dont buy a wrecked car.
If you are like me, you will enjoy it more because you know you got an awsome ride at a good price!

EndlessEarth

To me it would depend on the price. If you can score a really great deal on the car and you plan to drive the heck out of it or take it to track days then why not? You would probably suffer less emotionally if you put a re-painted car in the gravel or the barrier than a pristine stunner. Plus you can rack up the miles without thinking about devaluation.

But it would have to be cheap because the folks that pay a lot for good examples of these cars will not touch it when you resell it.

Why not post pics and full details and ask the community here to comment on the potential value?

PS - Speed Yellow rocks!

TheOtherEric

Panel misalignment would drive me nuts too. And if I were going to ever track it, then forget it.

I have no problem with buying a previously-damaged car if the price relects it. The problem is that sellers often don't want to discount much, hoping to find somebody clueless about the damage or willing to overlook it. Which means that I'd normally just pass.