Do car manufactures sell damaged products as new?

[diablo rojo]

This question came to me today after I drove through Birmingham and passed the Mercedes plant shortly afterward. It got me wondering what the factory does for hail damage....or in this case, flying debris from a tornado damage. Would they scrap them (seems unlikely), mark them down like a stealership does (again, not much money to be made there), or "fix" them and send them on their way with a clean title like nothing happened?

Discuss.

[LANTIRN]

I would imagine they marke them down like a dealership does. But on second thought they are the manufactuering plant so I would think proper repairs would be in order, pass back through QC, and then sell as new. Good question, I don't have the answer.

[Pro88LX]

Well i know that if theres a train car derailment, that even if there are undamaged cars in other rail cars, they scrap them. As far as hail and debris goes id bet they either scrap them or auction them off as damaged.

[talisman]

They usually get fixed and sold as new. The damage is not reported, with the exception of the train car bit that was mentioned.

[diablo rojo]

I know that there have been times when I'll pass the GM plant in Arlington and see hundreds of SUV's and such. With all the hail that has come through the area, somebody must know what they do. As greedy as all of those SOB's are, I wouldn't put it past them to fix and release. Even with pushing them back through QC, how is it any different than Service King fixing it?

[Pro88LX]

I know that there have been times when I'll pass the GM plant in Arlington and see hundreds of SUV's and such. With all the hail that has come through the area, somebody must know what they do. As greedy as all of those SOB's are, I wouldn't put it past them to fix and release. Even with pushing them back through QC, how is it any different than Service King fixing it?

id think they replace the panels rather than fix, making it the same as new.

[diablo rojo]

They usually get fixed and sold as new. The damage is not reported, with the exception of the train car bit that was mentioned.

That's what I thought.

[BP]

Depends on the dealership and car line. I only have direct experience with GM and Chrysler so I can't speak for the others. The ones I've dealt with will file an insurance claim and deduct the price of whatever they received a check for from the asking price of the vehicle. Of course you never actually see the check as a consumer so they probably got a lot more than the discounted rate.

I have also seen a Dodge dealer repaint a door on a truck and sell it as new with no repairs noted. They ended up losing their franchise over stuff like that though, I'd say most dealerships will disclose damage.

If the car was damaged before it ever made it to a dealership then nearly every time they'll scrap it. I've seen cars get damaged on the transporter when being dropped off and they were still scrapped by GM, on the same note though I've seen an entire train load of cars that were vandalized on the way here (human feces all over the interiors) and they were cleaned and sold as new.

[Pro88LX]

Depends on the dealership and car line. I only have direct experience with GM and Chrysler so I can't speak for the others. The ones I've dealt with will file an insurance claim and deduct the price of whatever they received a check for from the asking price of the vehicle. Of course you never actually see the check as a consumer so they probably got a lot more than the discounted rate.

I have also seen a Dodge dealer repaint a door on a truck and sell it as new with no repairs noted. They ended up losing their franchise over stuff like that though, I'd say most dealerships will disclose damage.

If the car was damaged before it ever made it to a dealership then nearly every time they'll scrap it. I've seen cars get damaged on the transporter when being dropped off and they were still scrapped by GM, on the same note though I've seen an entire train load of cars that were vandalized on the way here (human feces all over the interiors) and they were cleaned and sold as new.

When i worked @ the honda dealer ANY time there was any damage, we disclosed it and had the customer sign a disclosure form.

[diablo rojo]

Depends on the dealership and car line. I only have direct experience with GM and Chrysler so I can't speak for the others. The ones I've dealt with will file an insurance claim and deduct the price of whatever they received a check for from the asking price of the vehicle. Of course you never actually see the check as a consumer so they probably got a lot more than the discounted rate.

I have also seen a Dodge dealer repaint a door on a truck and sell it as new with no repairs noted. They ended up losing their franchise over stuff like that though, I'd say most dealerships will disclose damage.

If the car was damaged before it ever made it to a dealership then nearly every time they'll scrap it. I've seen cars get damaged on the transporter when being dropped off and they were still scrapped by GM, on the same note though I've seen an entire train load of cars that were vandalized on the way here (human feces all over the interiors) and they were cleaned and sold as new.

I can't even imagine the labor involved in tearing a large quantity of vehicles down in such a way that every usable part was kept, cataloged, and then reintroduced into inventory. I have to believe that is what is meant by scrap.

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[32vfromhell]

Check this story out:

http://firegeezer.com/2008/05/02/mazda-destroys-4700-brand-new-cars/

Long story short : Container ship lists heavily during a balast transfer, some cars come free of their moorings and get damaged. Mazda doesnt want to risk any liability for any of the cars having damage and being sued later on down the road, so they destroy every last car.

[BP]

I can't even imagine the labor involved in tearing a large quantity of vehicles down in such a way that every usable part was kept, cataloged, and then reintroduced into inventory. I have to believe that is what is meant by scrap.

That's where salvage yards come into play. We dismantled over 50k cars last quarter, yeah there is a lot of labor involved but we also gross around $3 billion in revenue a year from it.

[A_A_G]

id think they replace the panels rather than fix, making it the same as new.

If they did, there would be missing VINs on a brand new vehicle.

[diablo rojo]

we also gross around $3 billion in revenue a year from it.

I'm in the wrong business!

[Pro88LX]

If they did, there would be missing VINs on a brand new vehicle.

they're just vin stickers which i'm sure they could redo and put on the new panels.