Realistic worth of my car with bad engine?

[nickyoobatz]

Hey all - I wasn't sure if this was allowed or where I can post this but figured its worth a shot. I'm sure a few of you saw in one of my previous threads that my cylinder #8 left the chat. Unfortunately these things always happen at the worst possible time so I've been sitting on the car weighing my options. I'm not in a position at the moment to pay for any viable fix (everything is expensive), so I'm heavily weighing the option of putting the car back to stock as best I can and then selling it with the bad engine. I REALLY don't want to do this but I can't leave it off the table completely. I just have no idea what the car would be worth.

Its a 2011 Premium car with 82k miles, body is 7.5/10 and interior is 9.5/10. Clean title, IMO a good starter car for anyone looking for a project. I would appreciate any input. I hate to even ask on here but I also don't wanna look like a moron if the day comes that I do put it up for sale. Good 2011's seem to be going anywhere from 15-20k.

Thanks all.

 

[PatrickStapler]

I can only offer advice from the perspective of this situation in general. Recently, the CP4 Fuel Pressure expired on my 2015 F250 6.7L. When this happens, it trashes the ENTIRE fuel system. Parts alone for the repair are in excess of $5K. I would rate my truck a 9.5/10 otherwise. It has been meticulously maintained and has many upgrades. In running condition, trucks like mine are currently hoovering around $35K-$36K. I was in the predicament of needing a truck right now versus repairing mine. The repair costs for this job range between $8K (private shop) and $13K (stealership). So I got on the phone and called a couple dealerships about trading. They were not fun conversations. Essentially, the best I could get for my truck is "scrap" price...less than the cost of the parts to repair the truck. I'm sure you can decipher what I did and how you can maximize your dollar. Was it fun? NO. Was I willing to give up an otherwise perfect truck for scrap price? NO. So it got fixed. Now a co-racer of mine has agreed to purchase the truck at close to market value.

Best of luck to you and your decision.

 

[racer47]

Look up your private party value of the car on all the sites. Average them. Lets call it $16k. Figure out or estimate what it will cost in parts to fix it plus factor in some labor cost but not dealer rate. Lets call that $8k. Take half the 8k off the 16k and ask $12,000 as is. You're looking to sell to someone who is capable of doing the work themselves for profit or for their own use. You probably won't get $12k but it will put you in the correct range with some room to come down for offers.

 

[PatrickStapler]

I can't speak to @racer47 formula...maybe it's in the ballpark. IDK! Though I will add it's likely very different for cars, or maybe track cars in general. I did meet a guy at Barber this past weekend that he and his partner specifically buy wrecked or salvage tile cars, gut them, build them into track/race cars and sell them. As a matter of fact, the car Bullitt car he was racing was removed from the Mississippi River and turned into a very decent looking race car.

 

[nickyoobatz]

Best of luck to you and your decision.

Eesh. That is rough. Thankfully this is a second car so a different position, but equally sucks to be in.

Look up your private party value of the car on all the sites. Average them. Lets call it $16k. Figure out or estimate what it will cost in parts to fix it plus factor in some labor cost but not dealer rate. Lets call that $8k. Take half the 8k off the 16k and ask $12,000 as is. You're looking to sell to someone who it capable of doing the work themselves for profit or for their own use. You probably won't get $12k but it will put you in the correct range with some room to come down for offers.

Thats kind of where I was logically as well. I just wanted a ball park of where to be. I don't want to shoot for the moon asking but I also don't want to give it away if I had to. I'm not THAT desperate for cash at the moment.

 

[BackInBlack]

@nickyoobatz I just finished building my BOSS 302 from scrap and I've had my eye on used/junk parts and auto auctions for the past couple of years with a focus on 2010-2014 Mustangs and I can tell you that a good car with a bad engine will go for about 2-4K at auction (think Copart). Would likely be closer to 2k.

I'd guess that the best way to maximize profit on the sale would be to replace the engine and then sell it privately. Parting it out would likely make you more than selling it as-is...

 

[nickyoobatz]

@nickyoobatz I just finished building my BOSS 302 from scrap and I've had my eye on used/junk parts and auto auctions for the past couple of years with a focus on 2010-2014 Mustangs and I can tell you that a good car with a bad engine will go for about 2-4K at auction (think Copart). Would likely be closer to 2k.

Good to know for worst case. Hopefully I don't have to go that route lol.

 

[302BOB]

You need to find a buyer that sees your car for what it can be, not for what it is right now......a guy that can do most of what needs to be done himself.......that's a tall order to find...I hope you get lucky.........................

 

[MikeBard]

Good to know for worst case. Hopefully I don't have to go that route lol.

If you decide to sell for 2-4k let me know.

I’d say take whatever a used engine costs off what you think the car is worth currently and hope for the best.
Even a DIY guy is going to have to source an engine, thats a fixed cost for them as well as you. Their sweat equity is worth something, at least that’s how I’d see it as a buyer, otherwise why not buy a running car if you’re ending up the same place at the end?
It’s a sucky situation for you, you just have to decide if it’s worth taking a bath on or not.

 

[Bill Pemberton]

Keep in mind Dealers and many buyers will view the car, even with a replaced engine as a flawed machine, since you can no longer put down known mileage. Any car, regardless of shape will be hit once you must list mileage as unknown. If you find a used motor fairly reasonable, that would the way I would consider to redo, otherwise taking your lumps and moving forward may be your best option. As noted , if you find someone who wants parts for another car or to do a race car, you might come out the higher end of salvage.