Want to practice your Welding skills ?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/1999-VOLKSWAGEN-GOLF-V5-BLUE-unfinished-project_W0QQitemZ4568397216QQcategoryZ9873QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

         

Jeez ………..  Cut-and-shut tastic !  The scary thing is that if it isn't recorded, some poor punter will prob end up shelling out for what they think is a 'genuine', full history car.

OMG!!!! 8O  Is that allowed/safe???

I like how he states he's removed 'the damage' - more like half the car!!

8O... OH MY GOD!

I see lots of the "donor" cars like this at the breakers - newish cars with large chunks removed for welding into other ones.

The problem with this kind of thing is that, in the finished car, there is now a join across a number of bodyshell elements which were never designed to have a join just there (and with a join in all elements at the one place, there is a natural weakness - imagine a wall built without overlapping the bricks!) and, in an accident, the carefully designed crumple-zones may not behave as predicted, with possibly dire consequences.

Cars this badly damaged can be repaired perfectly well, using parts from other bodyshells, but only if the repairer takes the time to only use whole body-sections, only joined at original weld-points - but this is rarely economic, and never happens in jobs as extensive as the one above.

Non-recorded cars messed about this way are very worrying, and really make you think about the phrase Caveat Emptor - buyer beware  :evil:

who ever buys it will need to be good with a tin of clag.
Should be spares only no id.
Insurance firms will probably pay out twice on the same car in its lifespan
And us suckers have to pay for it!
Bert

8O  OMG dodgey mother beeb beeb! This has got to be illegal! Report him guys! 8O

Unfinished project...........the skip is in the background......all he has to do to finish it, is spend ? day to remove the saleable components, then to cut the rest of it into little pieces and fill the skip???

Bet he's wondering why no-one has bid on such an obvious bargain . Ten rolls of rubber wallpaper and quick spin in a brain scanner required here . 8O

Nice colour though. Maybe the gullible winner could scrape off the paint, and then apply it to their own car?

ebay seller:
a project i started before i was ommitted to hospital, due to medical reason

Wonder if that involved a straight jacket :? Thats unbelievable - ?3000 for limted edition Golf widow maker supplied in two bits. That looks completey illegal, especially if car has not recorded as having a major smash…

This is fairly common - repairing badly damaged (even written-off*) cars is fine in principle (and is not illegal), it's just that the standard to which it is done varies widely :wink:

Theoretically, if the work is poor, the MOT tester should spot it, but then again…

*only if not designated "spares only" - categories A & B - more details here: http://www.wcsauto.com/salvage/categories/

B - Not for resale. Damaged beyond economical repair and/or severe structural damage.
Notification of Destruction required. (Parts can be removed and sold). Recorded at DVLA & HPI

Would have thought that qualifies as severe structual damage? Nothing wrong with replacing outer panels, but half the chassis has been cut away, be fun lining up the rear suspension with the front :?

markwon said

B - Not for resale. Damaged beyond economical repair and/or severe structural damage.
Notification of Destruction required. (Parts can be removed and sold). Recorded at DVLA & HPI

Would have thought that qualifies as severe structual damage? Nothing wrong with replacing outer panels, but half the chassis has been cut away, be fun lining up the rear suspension with the front :?

All this assumes that the car has been recorded (with the owner's insurance company) - if I owned this car, and someone hit the back of it, there is no obligation for me to tell anyone. I can just sell it to someone with a welder…that's the loophole that this car has fallen through - as far as the DVLA, HPI, insurance co's etc know, this car is still on the road, and hasn't had an accident.

Thats's not good, suppose I was niavely thinking about it from a moral point of view.

Morally you're right, and even the people who do work like this know it.
I doubt that they sell these cars to their friends or relatives :wink:

I think we should encourage people with cars like these, to break the car for parts, not try and sell them on as a repair project. Some of those undamaged parts (V5 engine?) are definitely useful, at the right price, for us DIYers who appreciate avoiding overpriced dealer parts.

The exception I would mention, is that when an old or collectable car (which may increase in value) has minor damage or a collection of minor, but fiddly, faults, which means the insurance company 'scraps' it (puts it into category C or D). These cars should perhaps be kept as a whole, with the aim of onward selling to a keen enthusiast who could restore it properly.

I don't think there's any harm in using a relatively (in the classic car world) plentiful car, as a first restoration which might not be that good - so long as the MoT catches the faults and the wannabe restorer is forced to rectify these issues (perhaps re-doing, or letting a garage, to the work) or selling it on again as a 'bargain' part-completed project.

i just had a look, thi is a job for complete nutter, you cant cut a car in those places and expect it to behave normally once fixed.

how he got away without recording the accident is my biggest worry, how did the guy who rear ended him explain the damage to his insurance? 8O

Must be lack of insurance :dontknow: otherwise thre would have surely been a claim for such significant damage and the car would thergore be recorded as crashed!

Funnily enough bidding ended with no bids having been made despite the reasonable ?3000 starting price