Buying a rebuilt title Z

[Meg_Z]

Well I found a 6MT Z Performance near me with a rebuilt title. Only $28k with about 13k miles. I looked over it very carefully and I couldn't see any poor workmanship on it, but I have not pulled a history report on it yet because I'm just in the thinking about it stage. Depending on where it was damaged will affect my decision.

So I'm actually seriously considering it as that's about $10k+ less than clean title value, and sometimes I do prefer an imperfect vehicle.
I intend to use it as a "GT" car to drive between WA State and AZ State frequently, and road trips tear up a car, paint chips, windshield chips, door dings from being in a bunch of parking lots, possibly an accident every so often, so an imperfect Z kinda appeals to me.

I believe the factory warranty is no longer valid? How long is the warranty on the drivetrain? That might be my biggest risk, but it's already over 2 years old, so I gotta weigh the risk. I'm pretty sure my insurance doesn't care overall, it would just affect the total loss value and payout, I'll double check that....

What do you guys think?

I would not touch it you could find a clean title one for a few $K more.

 

[takemorepills]

https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/84c9e9f4-95a4-483f-86c2-8d1c8ac5c9d0/

 

[Tranzor Z]

Although I love this car, talk about a depreciating fucking turd. It's honestly an embarrassment.

 

[takemorepills]

Although I love this car, talk about a depreciating fucking turd. It's honestly an embarrassment.

https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/e1a1e303-d0bd-4cfc-b301-700755bde060/

A red Nismo! Just a few miles away from me..... So tempted, but I really prefer a Performance 6MT, I want a highway cruiser....

 

[VtVince]

Q60 Red Sport?

 

[Tranzor Z]

https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/84c9e9f4-95a4-483f-86c2-8d1c8ac5c9d0/

 

[Tranzor Z]

There's no way that car is 28 grand

 

[takemorepills]

There's no way that car is 28 grand

Rebuilt title

 

[Tranzor Z]

These people rigging up wrecked cars should all be in prison.

 

[takemorepills]

These people rigging up wrecked cars should all be in prison.

Autocheck is saying "no accidents reported" and also "title issue"

That to me is a red flag. If the vehicle is written off by insurance/body shop and a check written to the owner, the damage should be recorded.
Makes me think this was an under the table situation.
I can tell the car doesn't have poor workmanship if it was in a collision, which makes me think it may be a flood car.

Someone with a Carfax or Autocheck account could see where the vehicle came from. We did have some fresh water flooding in my county a few months ago.

It's a tough sell, car is new enough that it's still a fair chunk of money, insurance probably won't offer collision/full coverage, and most lenders won't touch a rebuilt title.

Kinda sits in a grey area of the market, a buy here pay here could finance it, but they usually don't deal with vehicles of this value

 

[mikecarpage]

I'm guessing damage was to the front considering the bumper to hood gap is noticeably larger than stock and it has a front lip (which might be added to draw attention to a modification/nicer looking front fascia). Instrument cluster is also in km/h, not sure if that's indicative of the car's origin or if it could just need to be recalibrated.

Features and Specs says "No accidents or damage reported" maybe to appear in more searches. But the description says "This vehicle has a rebuilt title due to minor damage."

Without photos, shop information, or a paper trail of damage/repairs, I would stay away. Let some youtuber scoop this up for content "I bought the cheapest Z in the country"

 

[Tranzor Z]

I come from a long line of body paint collision work. You simply cannot tell in a photo what's been fixed and what hasn't Our eyes aren't good enough for that. The bottom line and I think we got it addressed to the original poster is not to buy this pile of shit.

 

[takemorepills]

Instrument cluster is also in km/h, not sure if that's indicative of the car's origin or if it could just need to be recalibrated.

Since the Z has a LCD gauge cluster, it can probably be switched between kmh and mph

 

[Houston.RZ34]

Hello, I flip from time to time and I have several buddies that do successfully it for a living.

These days thanks to sensors, cameras, etc cars are tremendously easy to total now - a lot easier than you would think.

I'd find out where the damage was, as long as the frame/monocoque is still straight I don't see a reason to not to get one on the cheap.

Fender bender takes out a corner of the car, thanks to Covid and now the Iran Situation prices are through the roof for parts. A situation that would've just been just an "interesting story" on Carfax 10 years ago will fully total a car in 2026.

One other thing to add, you're going to catch hell with insurance coverage and forget about any sort of service contract / aftermarket warranty on that thing, If it breaks - you're on your own.

 

[Zplz]

https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/e1a1e303-d0bd-4cfc-b301-700755bde060/

A red Nismo! Just a few miles away from me..... So tempted, but I really prefer a Performance 6MT, I want a highway cruiser....

Nice NISMO! However, if it was me, I’d definitely decide exactly what you want and hold out for it. If it’s the Performance 6MT, I’d go for that.

I knew early on it had to be red Sport AT for me. It was tough waiting but I’m glad I did. It helped that the red, especially in the Sport, was next to impossible to find early on, anyway, especially for a decent price. I may as well been looking for a Tyrannosaurus Rex.