Do you ever wonder what is done with junked cars? Do you know someone who sold a vehicle to the junkyard and worried about its fate? There’s no need to be sad. Your friend’s junked car probably served a divine purpose. Junk car buyers usually have a few options when purchasing vehicles from the owners. Here’s some information on what they do with cars and why cars get junked in the first place.
Why Do Cars Get Junked?
People junk their cars for a variety of reasons. One of the most common reasons for junking a vehicle is finance-related. Vehicles sometimes sustain damage with repair costs higher than the car’s value. This scenario commonly occurs after vehicular accidents.
A consumer may also choose to junk a vehicle instead of selling it to a private owner. The individual may want a quick cash payout, and the only way to receive it is to offer the automobile to a car-for-cash establishment. Many car owners get significant payouts from such establishments, and thus, they take their jalopies to the salvage yards.
Spare Parts Sales
Salvage yards have a few options once they get a new vehicle on their lot. They often choose to park the cars on their land and allow other vehicle owners to purchase single parts from the cars. Selling individual working parts can be lucrative for a salvage yard. It alleviates the owner from the responsibility of having to house the vehicle and wait to sell the parts, and it turns quick profits for the salvage yard. Some junkyards have mechanics who remove the parts for the customers. Other lots have the visitors bring their own tools and remove the parts themselves.
Metal Crushing and Reselling
In some cases, the salvage yard is unable to place a vehicle on the land. The lot may already be full of cars and have no space for the new addition. That’s when a salvage yard will have the vehicle crushed to save space. The cars go into a crusher attached to a large trailer, which downsizes them to a portion of their original girth. From that point, the salvage yard can choose to store them or sell them. Metal is a valuable commodity, and many salvage yards profit from reselling the cars they crush.
The crushing process usually begins with a thorough cleaning of the vehicle. One of the workers at the site removes the oil, antifreeze, gas, and other liquids from the vehicle. They may also remove a few parts they can resell to the public. For example, they may remove headlights and other lights. The wheels get removed before the final crushing incident as well.
Now you know what happens after someone sells a vehicle to a junkyard. Sales transactions work well for the vehicle owner and the salvage yard. It might be a great idea to consider offering a vehicle you no longer want to a local salvage yard. They can make use of it and put some money in your pocket simultaneously.