Car Repair Costs vs. Selling Your Car
There’s an economic principle called the Pareto Efficiency. Essentially an economic variant of IsaacNewton’s Third Law of Motion (where every action has an equal and opposite reaction), the Pareto Efficiency states that there can be no improvement or benefit for one thing without something else accruing some sort of cost. Not just some esoteric theory with no practical application, the Pareto Efficiency is useful in daily life in the Cost-Benefit Analysis, which can be immensely helpful in decision making. What are a choice’s pros? What are a choice’s cons? Which side outweighs the other?
What does this have to do with whether or not you should have your car repaired? When your car is damaged after a collision or it has significant mechanical problems, you need to perform a simple Cost-BenefitAnalysis, weighing the pros and cons of repair. Sound obvious, right? But, you’d be surprised how often people automatically default to having their car repaired without considering the options.
Is Fixing My Car Worth It?
This is generally because, more often than not, you need your car. You need it to get to work, pick up the kids from football practice and get to the grocery store. So, when confronted with an alternative where you have an un-drivable car, people head straight for the local mechanic or bodyshop. Don’t forget, sometimes, more serious car repairs can take weeks. In those cases, you may actually be better off just taking your insurance settlement check (if you get one), selling your damaged or broken-down car and heading off to buy a new vehicle.
How do you decide if repair is your best option? It’s easier than you might think. It all comes down to value versus cost. You need to balance the value of your car after its mechanical, structural or cosmetic repairs with the cost of the repairs themselves. If your car’s repairs will cost $5,000 but your car will only be worth $4,500 after everything is fixed, you may want to consider filling out our form to get a guaranteed offer for your damaged or broken-down car.
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First Question: How Much Will My Car Be Worth after I Have It Repaired?
Different people will have different answers to that question. But, the most important answers come from people who are willing to buy your car, be they car dealerships, insurance company appraisers or used car buyers.
The extent of repairs resulting from the severity of the mechanical problems or collision damage have a huge impact on your car’s value post repairs. If the repair is minor (like a replaced headlight from a fender-bender or new clutch after the old one is worn out), your car will likely be worth close to what it was before the break-down or accident as evidence of the repair won’t really be visible.
When the collision or mechanical damage is more serious…severely dented body panels, frame damage, broken suspension, bad motor, hydrolocking, blown head gasket… that’s a whole different deal. Let’s assume the repair was done by an I-Car Gold repair shop or master mechanic. The paint between new body panels and old match and there are no big gaps. It runs and drives like new. Despite all that, your car still will take a big hit in terms of value, to the tune of up to 30%. When it’s time to sell a car up to 55% of people won’t buy a previously damaged car or a car where the engine has been replaced.
One reason for that is the car now has a negative on itsCarFax or AutoCheck vehicle history report. Plus, if there was frame or significant structural damage, even the best body shop will never be able to get the car back to perfect. There’s usually evidence of a major repair. Now imagine your car was repaired by someone less skilled. Repair quality is a big deal.
To ballpark your car’s worth post-repair, take a look at what similar cars are selling for with no damage and deduct 30%. This will give you a near worst-case scenario value for your car. If you feel your damage doesn’t justify that big of a hit, subtract less. Worse? Deduct more. Just keep in mind, people tend to overestimate the value of things they own.
Second Question: How Much Will the Repairs Cost?
Thankfully, this is a very simple question to answer. Your body shop or mechanic will give you a repair estimate. If it’s a guaranteed estimate (not to exceed the quoted cost) you know exactly how much your repairs will cost. But, if the estimate doesn’t include a teardown to look for hidden problems or isn’t guaranteed, you may end up spending far more on repairs that you might have thought.
Conclusion on Vehicle Repairs
There you go. Now you know what your car may be worth after it’s repaired (benefit), and you know how much the repairs cost (cost). If the repairs cost more than the car is worth or nearly so, time to sell. Fill out the form to get an offer from DamagedCars.com. We’ll buy your damaged or mechanically defective car, no repairs necessary. Sometimes car repair isn’t your best option. For those times, there’s DamagedCars.com.
