im lookin at buying a car.the car seems mint,the bloke bought it with a blown engine.

ive done a hpi check and it says cat d write off.
told the owner and he was very shocked as he hadnt done a check when he bought it.
now when he bought it the engine was blown and all he can think of is that it was registered cat d cos the owner must have claimed on insurance and cost of engine was more than value of car etc.
could this be correct? any thoughts???

 

cant see how they could of claimed on an engine..

unless it was stolen and the engine blown up by the thief, then it was recovered??

 

thats bollocks. Walk away time

 

Yes, what if the sump was damaged in a minor accident & the engine siezes?

Loads of cars go through auction with fucked engines.

 

Then the insurance would call you stupid and an operator error.

 

yes it can

 

I must be imagining the 100's of cars ive seen over the years at salvage auctions with fucked engines then. I nealry bought a 330 d last year that was cat D with a fucked motor, nothing else wrong with the car. The damage was even listed as 'engine'.

 

How? I'm intrigued now?

 

he was shocked when i told him and did seem genuine,he hasnt actually said that that is the reason for being cat d,when i questioned him about it ,after a few minutes thought,that was only thing he could think of.as the car seems perfect,but i suppose even if it wasnt for the engine,some cars have been written off for losing a wing mirror.

 

mate that could be it, i didnt realise an engine could be covered on a policy.

 

A car could be written of if the engine sucks up water in a flood and locks.

 

me personally would stay clear mate.

 

But then would be flood damage? And not a cat d. Arnt flood damaged cars a cat a? As i couldnt see that it wouldnt damage anything else.

 

A car is written off if it is uneconomical to repair... engine, flood, fire, crash etc can all do it.

 

i dont understand why people are saying walk away, it doesn't take much to make a car cat d.

it still may be a good car, just be very careful when checking it over, look for other accident damage stc .

and obviously price the car appropriately for a cat d.

 

Only if the damaged part is covered by the insurer, ie engine usually not, unless damaged by joyrider, then certainly can be.
My gf's car is a write off, was rear ended, damage was more than car value, that was 4 years ago keep forgetting to repair it, as so hard to notice, was listed as needing a new rear 1/4 on a 94 astra, + bumper etc, it's a tiny dent about 1/8" deep and 4" long, still pocketed the £525 for repair cost so not worried.
It was a cat d when I bought it, so suppose it is twice now!!
tabetha

 

Can anyone explain how you could claim for an engine on your policy.

 

What kind of car is it? must be a expensive engine for it to write a car off we see a good few bmw's that have sucked water in some of the bigger 3 & 5 series d engines can be upto 8k & never been wrote off

 

Thats cos they're worth money.

The £2k focus 1.6 with a trade book price of what? £900 needs a engine due to flood damage/cracked sump due to hitting a rock in the road = cat d write off.

How do you claim? easily if you're fully comp, phone your insurance co and they'll send an assesor!

 

James i know that thats why i was asking what kind of car it is

 

can be a cat d as bove if in say a flood nd sucks up water causing hydraulic lock

 

easy, its already been said

drive through a deep puddle, water in the intake, bent con rod or crank

happened to a mate of mine in the floods the other year, in a 320d coupe

 

its a t reg subaru impreza 2000 uk model in mint condition.last of the classic shape

 

my mate had a megane F1 sport, he got caught in a very deep puddle and the engine sucked up some of the water and it was wrote off! lucky the insurance paid out!

so whats been said above is correct!

 

Of course it can. As said for the above reasons!

 

worth a look then and 144miles to view it lol

 

as a few people have said above a car can be written of for just mechanical damage

i work for copart and book in cars all the time that have been written of for mechanical damage and not just flood damaged cars

 

A Cat D is where the insurance company don't view the repair as worthwhile. Another words it's cheaper for them too pay out what the car is worth than pay for all the repairs to be done. A Cat D can be something very minor indeed.
And it could well be the engine. It's more common a Cat D is bodywork related. But an engine could well be a Cat D.

In summary:
-Cat A - The vehicle must be scrapped no questions asked.
-Cat B - The vehicle can be stripped for roadworthy parts but what'f left is scrapped.
-Cat C - Vehicle usually has alot of damage but is still repairable and subject too a VIC test it can be used on the road again. Often not repaired due to repair bill exceeding vehicle value.
-Cat D - Simular to a Cat C, It's repairable but repair bill can exceed vehicle value so often insurance companies just pay out. A Cat D is more minor than a C and therefore it does not require a VIC test.

Hope that helps a little?

 

pah i had an escort cat C'd for a headlamp

also ive seen plenty written off for engines too (main dealer paint shop recovery)
recently a 09 plate titanium focus for engine, it was sumped but har
d which snapped the mount and put the engine into the bulk head
different but similar engine was mullered


not all floods are cat a, we had an astra that was up to the roof, got wrote off but bought on ebay recovered by new owners, electrics were bizarre they said they would dry it out and work thru the problems

 

a lad that worked at my garage did this last year because he went through a ford and locked the engine insurance wrote it off

 

There's a place over in Huntingdon that do industrial dehumidifiers, we often have some of them for work.
They always have flood damaged cars in there workshop. They've got a air chamber they put the cars in and a massive dehumidifier (Fiesta size). They just pull the moisture out of the cars and believe it or not they just drive away.
All the cars they do are for insurance companies. And usually the more expensive ones such as Range Rovers etc.

 

if its a scoob it could be the block cracking, although it usually happens on imports that havent been remapped for our fuel i surpose it could still happen, and im sure an insurance company would write it off for that but a 2nd hand block for one would be easy enough to repair for the new owener i surpose

veiw with caution, but could very well be worth it for the lower price if all is well

 

It doesn't have to be subject of an insurance claim to be put on the register.

I'm an engineer for a fleet company and I can write a car off and put it on the register if I don't think it's worth repairing for any reason what so ever.

My biggest client is insured TP, and if for instance the cambelt snaps on one of there vehicles and they owe 2k on the lease and repairs are 3k I'll settle the lease and sell the vehicle to our salvage company who catagorise it and put it on the register. No insurance companies involved what so ever.

 

car is up for 3k,and has just had a 38k mile engine fitted,i mite b swapping a van i bought dirt cheap for it

 

just watch what your doing

im doing cat d vehilces and some time's the parts can be expensive for example

i got 03 plate peugoet 807 only 52000 miles


price paid £2200 book price £6000 - £6500

front bumper second hand £100
front lights second hand £35 each
bumper support bar second hand £50
one mirror £35
other minor parts another £40
drivers seat £70
windscreen £300

paint etc £120

total is around £2985 its only worth around £3500 as its a cat d

whats the price of the car then what else is needed and how much is the engine remember its not worth the full price after as its a catd

ive seen an escort cosworth for £7000 it looks mint thay put it on a cat d because ford dont do wings for them anymore and its all been done with t +t for that price