Should I consider a car that has been reported stolen and recovered?
rjmerryman
Member Posts: 7
I found a great deal on a 2012 Kia Forte EX. It has 13,283 miles and is for sale by a wholesale dealer for only $11,490. KBB average selling price is $13,708 - $15,281. It has a clean CarFax as far as accidents and title but it was reported stolen and recovered. I haven't seen the car yet and I also haven't spoken to my insurance agent yet to see if there would be an issue with that, but I thought I'd check here. WHat problems should I be aware of with a car that has been stolen? Anything in particular I should look for?
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Comments
A pre-purchase inspection would be a really good idea.
Some cars are just joy riden; others really get trashed. The usual comment if your car gets stolen is to hope that the insurance company doesn't recover it and give it back to you.
The other issue is that if you don't drive it forever, your pool of potential buyers if you try to resell it will be shrunk a good bit. And any interested buyers will try to hammer you on price because of its past history as a stolen car. Meaning you should make a real lowball offer yourself if you pursue this car. Starting below wholesale in other words.
Good luck!
"whatever gets you into a car cheaper, when you buy it, will come back to haunt you, when you sell it"---so the good deal might not be a good deal unless you drive this car for a long time.