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Corvette parts/salvage & butchery

boomdriver

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 18, 2008
Messages
1,888
Location
texas
Corvette
87 z-51
While killing time last week I came across a Craigs List Ad for an '87 vette to be available for parts on 1-15 (saturday) at a local dismantlers yard. Reading further discribed this car as in good condition and for parts ONLY. Not to be sold whole.
The picture was nice, almost too good to be true...
Rained like crazy all weekend...and into Monday. So today I went with tools and a list...

I arrived and ask the 'ol man at the gate where the vette was...he laughs and says it WAS straight ahead but there ain;t much left... I'm wondering hows this possible? 2 days and a flood since day one?

That car was absolutely stripped to the bone...pieces everywhere, most major componants long gone. But I looked a bit deeper determined to find something that I could use.
AFter some examination I realized that car was Nice...low miles, clean kept, in very good shape. Underside clean, no signs of oil stains, exceptionally clean, in fact.
I was in shock that this car had been sacrificed to the parts business. I managed to walk away with a fuel sender, small trim pieces, misc plastics, 2 rear speakers and even a ALCL cover. Satisfied I headed out and a guy makes a comment out in the parking area so we talk for a minute. This guy is the yard owner and he noticed the vette stuff I had and told me that he had 2 other C4 drivers (LTs) that he was thinking about parting out, but after this disaster he was'nt so sure anymore. He told me that Saturday morning there was a near riot to get at this car. It had been advertised and at 9am the gates opened to bunches of people, ALL ran to the vette...Fights started, car destroyed. The sign stating the sale price of major parts ignored, with doors ripped apart so some idiot could get at the window regulator, or the glass broken out so they could get a top seal off the door easily. Simply amazing. Windshield broken out by careless motor removal...hood heavily damaged when removed then discarded with other stuff tossed on it like it was trash...Rear bumper cover torn off at the side mount where someone could'nt get the bolt out, so they tried to tear it off and then abandoned it. All the dash trim was broken off, as were the seat tracks ruined when these animals could'nt figure out how to unbolt the 4 simple nuts that hold the mounts to the floor pan....

This yard owner was PISSED. He said that he was going to have to think about putting another hi-end car out there for people to trash out. The market value is so poor right now that the car was worth 3 times more in parts than it was whole, but this mob destroyed so many of the parts that the profit was left laying in the mud, broken and un-sellable.
I've never seen anything like it. Usually people will dismantle things and leave things laying on the ground at self serve places like this, but this bunch almost looked like they were intent on destroying whatever they could not take.

If this is the future of the used parts business with the economy as it is today, we're all in trouble because alot of these parts are no longer made, by anyone, anywhere. If morons destroy what they don;t need, the availability of good salvage parts is reduced or eliminated in some cases.

Knowing this, I bought things that I do not need today, but will need at some point, I'm sure. I just wanted to pass this along in the hope that everyone here has more respect for salvage vehicles than these idiots had.
I saw 1/2 the things that I was looking for were damaged or broken when some a-hole was too lazy to remove it while he went for the things he needed, screw the next guy.
Now, because of that, 2 more full cars may NOT be available to a shrinking local C4 parts inventory. Sad when nice classic running cars have so little value that they fall victim to red ink and sold for parts when I know someone, somewhere would have loved to have had that car in his garage. But, the other side of the coin is that there are good parts to be had because of this, just arrive early and be well armed...:ugh

By the looks of the chassis and pedals, interior (what was left) I'd guess this car had less than 80,000 miles. Even the sport leather seats were in good shape. I was tempted to buy them if they had'nt been laying in the mud and soaked with oil and water.
 
What it comes down to is people have no respect for good machinery and they are just plain idiots. As well has having no respect for anything or anyone expect themselves. Even that in some cases is debatable. What a shame!!:W:W:W
 
What it comes down to is people have no respect for good machinery and they are just plain idiots. As well has having no respect for anything or anyone expect themselves. Even that in some cases is debatable. What a shame!!:W:W:W

Rubie,
I am not sure which was more disturbing....the extremely disappointing human behavior, or the fact that a great, perfectly drivable car was sacrificed to the institution of greed.

I understand business and what a spread sheet means....the cars only going to bring $5000 on the sale lot, but possibly 10 to $15K in pieces.
If it had been done in a professional civilized way, I would'nt have thought twice about this...
 
Rubie,


I understand business and what a spread sheet means....the cars only going to bring $5000 on the sale lot, but possibly 10 to $15K in pieces.
If it had been done in a professional civilized way, I would'nt have thought twice about this...

Exactly.
 
A local yard out by me used to list new arrivals. The frequently had Corvettes. Most of the cars were clean but needed a trans or a motor. Something that would have been a large percentage of the cars value to have repaired.

You would have to tell them what you need and the crew would remove it, or the cars were already parted out. They never offered the cars for sale, only parts.
 
A local yard out by me used to list new arrivals. The frequently had Corvettes. Most of the cars were clean but needed a trans or a motor. Something that would have been a large percentage of the cars value to have repaired.

You would have to tell them what you need and the crew would remove it, or the cars were already parted out. They never offered the cars for sale, only parts.

I've been told these cars end up there from a variety of sources...used car lots that could'nt sell them, repos, estates, tow yards etc.
I know that used car lots buy trailer loads of cars at a flat price, wholesaling the lot. When one sits on the sales lot too long they take what they can get at auctions or sell at scrap just to get rid of it. The make/model/classic status comes in wayyyy behind the P&L statement.

If they can;t sell it in the market, that makes it worthless...

I guess one of the BIG things for me is that seeing this particular car and seeing what condition it was in prior to the "murder"....drives home the fact that mine is'nt worth what I've spent on upgrades this past year....

That stings a little :cry
 
I guess one of the BIG things for me is that seeing this particular car and seeing what condition it was in prior to the "murder"....drives home the fact that mine is'nt worth what I've spent on upgrades this past year....

That stings a little :cry

As long as you love it, the upgrades must be worth it to you. I think all car guys put more money into their cars then the cars are worth. Don't sweat it, enjoy owning a hot car.:w
 
Almost sounds like the yard owner is a rookie at the biz. Not an excuse for any of it. I only know of one yard that does not charge admission; perhaps this is part of why.

What car, parted out, is not worth 2-3x the assembled cost, even new? My expert body guy just got an estimate for a Caddy mirror, for a nice SDV with only 30k on the odo.... GM stopped selling them so his number was $450!

You want to see where all this goes, try finding Nash parts (like I am).

Almost any car that is less than 15 years old is a throw-a-way; even our '05 BMW $even is racing that way and as recycling increases and the economy worsens the rare survivor cars will become even more so.

:w
 
Rubie,
I am not sure which was more disturbing....the extremely disappointing human behavior, or the fact that a great, perfectly drivable car was sacrificed to the institution of greed.

I understand business and what a spread sheet means....the cars only going to bring $5000 on the sale lot, but possibly 10 to $15K in pieces.
If it had been done in a professional civilized way, I would'nt have thought twice about this...


It's the yard owners fault that this happened. The customers were just a product of their environment "Here you go, I am too lazy to dismantle the vehicle myself or pay anyone to do it, have a good time". It sounds like they did.
 
It's the yard owners fault that this happened. The customers were just a product of their environment "Here you go, I am too lazy to dismantle the vehicle myself or pay anyone to do it, have a good time". It sounds like they did.

Well, I'd agree except that most yards around here are "pull yer part" type places....
In Ca, most were "dismantlers" that removed parts that you requested or did it and stocked shelves. Not here in Texmess. Here,. you drag your tools in and "Pick Your Part and Pull Your Part". Normal proceedure.

In this case, it was like throwing a live calf in the yard with the junk yard dogs ...
 
I wonder if those crazy people at the junkyard are the same ones that sell parts at swap meets. This story sounds like an estate sale gone bad too.
 
Suggestion?

Since that bunch probably ruined it for everyone, why not regulate it where one
one or two persons at a time can have access to the vehicle? "First come, first serve" basis. Everyone else standing in line. You know the same people will be
there. It'll serve them right to have to wait.
 

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