Good friend of mine owns a car lot and frequently watches the salvage autcions. Right now we're watching a wrecked 2003 1 ton HO 6 spd.

It was t-boned pretty badly and obviously we'll need to take a look at it to see if the frame is damaged badly...but it says rebuildable.

If this truck could be had cheap enough...where would we look for a new cab?

I already have someone who would do the work so again if the price was right...and a cab could be found (again for the right price) we could feasibly have an '03 for pretty cheap.

 

here i washington state the repair can be up to 100% of vehicle value before its a total or if the structual integrity is so diminished that it is unsafe to rebuild. With that being said, are the airbags blown? Also everything must pass a state patrol inspection before it can be reliscenced also many insurance companys will not insure slavaged or rebuilt titles. So a 2003 ho goes for how much? lets say 30,000 for poops and giggles. Some repair shop and or insurance company valued that repair at 80-90% of the vehicles value which could be close to 25,000. For what your putting into it and what you get and what you sell later on down the road it is not always a sweet deal. The best way to buy a wrecked car "total" is to buy it before it leaves the bodyshop and goes to a holding pen or a co-part where they value whats left over. Because the owner has usually got their payment for the car from insurance and they have the 1st option to buy the vehicle back for 1/10 of the price that you'll pay later at the aucton, and it doent have a salvaged title then and it doesnt get reported to carfax. With a truck that new and worth that much it must be seriously F-ed up! Be very careful. Steve

 

oh yeah, I am a bodytech. here in the greater seattle area so i am speaking from expirience.

 

Dodge does not sell new cab shells. Only parts. Been there, done that. Still have the vehicle laying in the back.

 

so bondo - you should know that here in wa, all they seem to care about before they issue a new title is that the numbers are good, and match the paperwork.

last time i was in, to get a new title for a totaled rx-7, on which i just beat out the driver's door enough to get in/out (if not actually close/lock...) it was quite amusing to watch all the guys with the fancy restored sports cars gettting gone over with a fine tooth comb - they just asked me what i did, i said "nothing!", fully expecting some kind of safety inspection, given the obvious body/bumper damage, but they just looked at the vin and sent me on my way!

 

I you could also buy the truck for the powertrain and stuff them in a SuperDuty-Thats what my next truck will be is a F350 4x4 CC LB King Ranch with a Common Rail Cummins