How Much Is A Junked Car Worth?

Have you ever heard of the saying, “One man’s junk is another man’s treasure”? It has been around for a very long time, and the reason for that is because of how true this statement is.

Just because one person can look at a car as a piece of junk does not mean it is junk to another person. That is why there are so many ways for a person to get value from their junked car. So how can you get value from your junked car? By looking into these four sources.

Source #1 - Junkyards

This seems like the most obvious place that you can obtain value for your junked car. After all, “junkyard” and “junked car” both have the word “junk” incorporated into their name. But the junkyard is the one place where you will not receive the most value for your junked car because of how their business operates.

The biggest issue is transportation — the junkyard will not pick up your junked car for you. You will need to get your vehicle to the junkyard just so they can give you a quote. Which means you will most likely have to spend money on a tow truck. A tow truck will most likely cost you $100. That is $100 coming out of your pocket before you even see a penny from the junkyard.

The other issue is in how the junkyard values your vehicle — they will pay you based on the weight of your vehicle. Most junkyards will pay $150 per 1 Ton of metal brought to them. The average car weighs 2 Tons, which means the average car will fetch $300 at a junkyard. If you subtract the $100 you spent to get the car to the junkyard, you are looking at a profit of $200.

But we almost forgot one more important item — how are you getting to and from the junkyard? The tow truck is not allowed to carry passengers in any vehicle, which means you will need to find another method to get to the location.

Ideally, a friend or family member can take you. But if you are not living in an ideal world, you will most likely have to take Uber or Lyft to the junkyard. That is another $15 to $30 out of your pocket before you even get a quote! This means your estimated profit is between $170 to $185.

Now, what happens if you do not like the quote? That means you have to haul the car back to its original location, which is another $100 out of your pocket to pay the towing company. So you just spent anywhere between $215 and $230 just to get a quote that you do not agree with. Do you see why we feel this source is most likely to not net you a profit from your junked vehicle?

Source #2 - Sell Your Vehicle Online

By selling your junked car online, you can set your own prices. But just because you are setting your own price does not mean that is the final total that you will walk away with.

Everyone you are dealing with on the platform of your choice is also looking to get a good deal. They will want to inspect the vehicle before exchanging any kind of tender with you. And you best believe that they will want to haggle your price down from your original ask.

With selling your vehicle online, you will have multiple exchanges with people looking to haggle your original asking price down before you finally reach an agreement that works for the two of you. This process could take months! And honestly, I bet most of these people are not even going to drive your vehicle. They are most likely going to use source #3, which is…

Source #3 - Sell Your Vehicle for Parts

This means that you will break your vehicle down to the bare bones and sell off the pieces that are valuable. But just like source #2, you will be dealing with hagglers looking to get the best value for their money.

But not only that, you will also need to have some kind of mechanical knowledge in order to make money through this source. Without that knowledge, you could potentially break something that is valuable. On top of potentially breaking something, you will most likely spend more time breaking your vehicle down than a professional that has been doing this for years of his life.

And lastly, you will still need to store the junked car somewhere. If you leave it on the streets, someone could call the cops and have it towed for being an eyesore. You could store it in your garage, but you will be living in a mess of car parts. Or you could rent a garage, but that will require you to pay rent just for something that you are trying to sell.

If only there is a source that could handle all of this for you without trying to rip you off… Wait! I got the answer for you! It is…

Source #4 - Car-Worth

With Car-Worth, we will purchase your junked vehicle for its fair market value. When you make a request on our website, we will send you a questionnaire that you need to fill out and send back to us with a few photos of your vehicle. One of our experts will look at everything you send to us and will reply with a no-obligation quote that is good for one week.

If you do accept the quote, all you have to do from there is schedule a pickup time with one of our towing partners, and they will take the junked vehicle off of your hands without asking a single question. Yes, that means we will perform no final inspection! The towing company will load up your vehicle and the money will be provided to you within a half hour!

Obtaining value for a junked vehicle has never been so easy!