[audioholic]

Originally Posted by altius

A friend of mine has a flood affected car. The repair estimate is more the IDV of his car and he is trying to figure out the next step. use part of the money he has to service the car and get it running and keep the remaining amount for future repairs. Is this even legal or possible? In the event of it being possible, is there any re-registration or RTO related work that is needed to be done before the car can be on the road.

Since this will be a cash loss case, the vehicle will still be roadworthy as per RTO records and even further insurance claims can be made. It is just a scenario where insurance co pays the max they can for a repair and lets you do whatever you want with it.

The biggest scam here is how the dealerships give bull**** estimates containing the entire parts catalogue of the car which makes the amount go so high that by default it becomes a total loss case. In reality, not all cars would have suffered the same extent of damage that they slap a predetermined estimate to owners. It is just that the service centers are either too lazy or overloaded to analyse the extent of damage that has occurred to a car.

Secondly, since this job is labour intensive, no service center would be interested to work on such cars. Since every part of the car should be touched, it will take too much time, whereas these days service just means replace whatever is possible and get the job done within no time.

I would like to narrate my own experience when my dad drove my WagonR into an underpass filled with water. He couldnt gauge the depth properly and since it was raining, and that is the only road possible(in my native place) he tried his luck. Unfortunately, the car stalled once it went to the middle of the underpass. My dad and uncle were in the car and it failed to start. They had to get down and push the car. In this process, water gushed inside and flooded the interiors. The water was knee deep. He was in continuous touch with me and I told him to not try cranking again. They pushed it out of the water and brought it to a higher place.

I had arranged for a tow truck to pick the car and get it to my farm house where I would go and decide on further course of action. In the meanwhile I had told dad to switch off any electrical item and wait for sometime. After half hour, I told him to floor the pedal and crank the car, and it started without much hesitation. That gave me a relief because I had assumed that the engine would be gone. Once it started, he drove it carefully to farm house. I had told him to leave doors and windows open for the night.

Next day, I got the vehicle into my hands. The water was muddy and that meant more trouble. Attaching pictures of the condition here:









All electronics were working fine but. Even the flooded fog lamp worked and works even today, completely dried up.

The first thing I did was to strip whatever was possible. The seats, floor trim and finally the carpet. The sound deadeners under the carpet had taken in a lot of water, which was equivalent of a bucket. I removed them.

Next I found a lot of mud inside. Used vacuum cleaner to brush and suck the mud out. Also blew hot air to all nooks and crannies which was not accessible by hand or visible to eye. Some water came out here too.

After this, I got a bunch of Zorrik, foam cleaner and cleaned the metal floor and used Zorrik very liberally to prevent any corrosion in the later stage. By this time, I had got the entire carpet washed and disinfected and dried. I put back the whole floor area items. The trim parts were cleaned and dressed with a protectant. Seats were thankfully not drenched and only the seat sliding mechanism was hard. Zorrik sorted this issue too and I bolted them back.

Now, this is the first stage. Second stage is also equally important - This is where you check the other parts of the car which never came into contact with water. The reason - Condensation. Once water is in the car, it forms vapour and this vapour can spread everywhere. This in turn condenses in cold weather on parts you would not expect like inside the A pillar, under the dashboard, etc. For this, again inspection is required and some hot air should be blown all over the car. Keeping the car under sunlight also helps but the windows or doors should be open or if not sunny the AC should run in fresh air mode with doors and windows open. This will remove some amount of moisture.

After all this was done, the fluids were changed and vehicle thoroughly serviced. Now you can ask why it wasnt given to service at the first stage itself. The reason is because, NO one, just NO one will take time and do such a job. At the most they will recommed replacing the carpet. Other than that, they wont do a thing. This whole process took two weeks and the car was out of action this entire period.

After that episode, it is two years and counting and the car has not shown a single problem though it is my daily drive and covers 50km a day.

I just wanted to convey that not all cars need to be written off or massive repairs should be carried out. If we spend some time to gauge the extent of the damage, then it will give a better picture of the whole scene.

Originally Posted by lillios

Do any of the people who bought these cars realise that most of cars above 5 lakhs these days have multiple control units not just Ecu but Pcm (power steering control module), Air bag control module, Body control module and immobiliser systems relating to instrument cluster etc.

I have no idea what were the geniuses thinking when buying the cars at online auction.

Most control module and electronic parts are built sealed. Not all parts take in water and die. Even if water ingestion happens, usually they dont get damaged unless it is powered at that stage.

Salvage buyers will be interested in the body parts, interior bits, mechanical parts, wiring harnesses, alloy wheels, etc which will be brand new if given a thorough clean.

Originally Posted by haria

No Tata vehicles at ALL ? Don't tell me that Tata is less used in chennai! or maybe this auctioneer is not dealing with tata vehicles

Maybe they are already running as an Ola, Uber etc

On a serious note, there could be cars that have been picked up offline by people who are in a desperate need of a car. Consider a cabbie who has lost his car under total loss. He would have searched for a car that is damaged to a lesser extent, say without any engine or electronic issues. He can get money from the total loss claim, buy such a car, and use it until he can afford to do something. With some detailed repairs, those guys can get any car back to shape and get it running to earn their livelihood.

Originally Posted by haria

Experts, can you suggest what to specifically look for which might indicate a flood/water damage ? esp. to the internals like engine, etc. ? any tell tale signs to watch out for ?

If you suspect this, rip out a piece of trim in the B-pillar in the seat belt area. If the car was really waterlogged, you will get to know the extent here. Trust me, this will be unexpected for any mechanic also

[msk_kapoor]

I have a hyundai EON bought in July 2015 caught in flood waters. Water rose to dashboard level and the entire bonnet was submerged in water for 2 hours. The water receded after that. I didnt attempt to start the vehicle.The service center has declared it total loss. Of course they have given as standard flood loss protocol.

Surveyor said i can get this ready from outside centers with just 50k to 1 lakh. But the warranty from Hyundai will be nullified. If i dont chose i was told i will be given IDV value post 5% deductions. I am going to lose 1Lakh on this if this is a total loss.

I prefer to leave it and book a new vehicle, but need to understand your thoughts as well.

[rubicon]

CarDekho Auctions rolls out a large-scale loss minimisation campaign for Chennai Floods.

ABOUT 50 AUDI'S WILL BE AUCTIONED AT AMBATTUR YARD IN CHENNAI TOMORROW .

India’s leading online automobile portal CarDekho.com has, through its Auctions division, rolled out a large-scale loss minimisation campaign for the vehicles affected by the recent Chennai floods.

Please check the following link for the full article published on January 09, 2016.
http://www.cardekho.com/india-car-ne...oods-17437.htm

[WindRide]

Who would buy a mobile phone which spent a few days underwater?
Cars these days (especially those upwards of INR 4L) are so full of electronics that buying them after being submerged under filthy water for a few days, reeks of plain stupidity or a scam.

[Pferdestarke]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avSY3wSdZoE

Came across this video showing a 2013 model flood affected Audi Q3 being auctioned. I think it sold off at 9.1 lakh INR. I wonder how expensive the repair bills will turn out!

[msk_kapoor]

What can be the best price for a Flood affected 2015 July Hyundai Eon Era+ which is serviced and is in good running condition by car dealer? The dealer claims he didn't change any parts in the car and that he just cleaned and refitted everything. The engine was not started and the water reached under dashboard level in this. The OTR for this car is now 4Lakhs.

[Jeeper1941]

Came across this interesting article on the BBC.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-35480800

So people are auctioning off cars (especially luxury cars/SUVs) that were damaged in the recent Chennai floods. Just wondering if any of these cars make it back to the dealers who can then (if they are unscrupulous) sell them as used or demo cars without telling the buyer.

Thoughts? Would you buy a flood-damaged car?

(Mods, please move this thread if it is posted in the wrong section. I did a search and did not find anything on this topic. Thank you).

[Manoj2268]

I would probably buy those as donor cars. Buy them, strip them for trim and body parts and dispose off the unusable items as scrap.

In the US, my friends and I would buy salvage cars and strip them for trims/body. I remember, we scored a very good deal on a written off AE86 with damage to the rear floor. After some straightening and panels from pull-a-part shop, we made good money on it.

[cooldude1988765]

Originally Posted by Manoj2268

I would probably buy those as donor cars. Buy them, strip them for trim and body parts and dispose off the unusable items as scrap.

In the US, my friends and I would buy salvage cars and strip them for trims/body. I remember, we scored a very good deal on a written off AE86 with damage to the rear floor. After some straightening and panels from pull-a-part shop, we made good money on it.

I had a similar experience in the US, my senior had a ford taurus with a busted gearbox. He was apparently quoted $2000 to fix it, however the value of the car in perfect running condition was around the same.
I bought the car from him for a princely sum of $250 and parted it out over a period of 5-6 months for a very good profit. I sold the car in parts for much more than the value of the running car.

Originally Posted by WindRide

Who would buy a mobile phone which spent a few days underwater?
Cars these days (especially those upwards of INR 4L) are so full of electronics that buying them after being submerged under filthy water for a few days, reeks of plain stupidity or a scam.

The insurance companies are not forcing anyone to buy the car. More often than not the people buying the cars would be extremely smart and would know what they are getting into. One could also make a large profit selling the car once it is fully repaired. Patience and knowledge would be key.

Please do not make blanket statements of people being stupid or accuse the insurance companies of a scam without having proper information.

[haria]

Originally Posted by msk_kapoor

What can be the best price for a Flood affected 2015 July Hyundai Eon Era+ which is serviced and is in good running condition by car dealer? The dealer claims he didn't change any parts in the car and that he just cleaned and refitted everything. The engine was not started and the water reached under dashboard level in this. The OTR for this car is now 4Lakhs.

What is the price which the dealer is asking ?

My personal feeling - it is just not worth it, unless the price is ridiculously cheap. You never know what all issues will creep up.

[msk_kapoor]

Originally Posted by haria

What is the price which the dealer is asking ?

My personal feeling - it is just not worth it, unless the price is ridiculously cheap. You never know what all issues will creep up.

Asking price is around 2.6Lakhs. Dealer says he will drive for 1000 kms before handing over the car to make sure all are working fine.

[devil_klm]

Jaguars and Landrovers on sale. From pics, looks like an ad from a dealer.
http://www.olx.in/item/jaquar-landro...tml#d208e0fc7e

[Latheesh]

Originally Posted by msk_kapoor

Asking price is around 2.6Lakhs. Dealer says he will drive for 1000 kms before handing over the car to make sure all are working fine.

2.6 for flood affected Eon? Please stay away.

[Vitalstatistiks]

Strange. I clearly remember i read a theory on sale of these cars but couldn't find it over all 4 pages.

Essentially, there was a discussion if this could a case where the ViN sticker/emblem of a stolen car will be superembossed with ViN of a flood affected ca, which(stolen car) will then be sold as repaired, second hand car. While the actual damaged car will be sold in salvagable parts. The base price should be a good indicator of extent of damage to the car (a 2015 Audi for 3.4 lakhs), and if someone buys that car for 16-17 lakhs, this could very well explain whats going on.

[apachelongbow]

Originally Posted by Pferdestarke

Came across this video showing a 2013 model flood affected Audi Q3 being auctioned. I think it sold off at 9.1 lakh INR. I wonder how expensive the repair bills will turn out!

People are buying completely working 2011 Audi Q7 model for 22/24 lakhs (Mumbai) then why on earth would anyone buy a humble Q3 flood damaged, for 10 lakhs?