What is the salvage value of a car?

If you’re planning on selling your damaged, salvaged or used vehicle, you’ll want to set a fair asking price for it. It won’t be in high demand if it’s not in roadworthy, much less pristine, condition. But to the right buyer, it could still sell for a hefty chunk of change.

In this guide, we’ll explain the factors you need to consider to find the accurate value of your car. Let’s take a look.

4 factors to determine how much your salvage car is worth

1. Your car’s condition

The condition of your second-hand or salvaged car will be the biggest factor in its valuation price. Seasoned buyers of used cars will assess your vehicle's condition, status, and damage, as well as the odometer and car history. They’ll usually attempt to use these factors to haggle down a private sale price.

2. The make and model

The make and model of your salvage vehicle will greatly affect its purchase price. This is due to its availability and demand within this specific car’s market. It is important to ensure you work with a salvage car buyer who purchases your vehicle brand.

1800 Salvage purchases a wide range of makes and models. See our full list of the auto brands we buy here.

To give you a sense of what used car models sell best, here’s carsales.com’s 2022 list of best used cars:

• Mazda3 Neo hatchback
• Skoda Octavia Ambition 110TSI
• Ford FG X Falcon XR6
• Honda HR-V VTi
• Mazda CX-5 Maxx
• Subaru Outback 2.5i
• Toyota 86 GT
• Mercedes-Benz S 300h
• Ford Ranger XL 2.2 4x4 Dual-Can Ute
• Toyota LandCruiser Prado GX

3. The type of vehicle

Whatever the state of your vehicle, its type plays a significant role in its value. Many salvage car buyers value damaged cars based not only on their ability to restore them, but also on the resale value of the components within them. 

1800 Salvage does just that, and we purchase all types of damaged and second-hand vehicles, including:

• Damaged and salvaged cars
• Second-hand vehicles
• Trade-in cars
• Write off cars
• Project vehicles
• Classic cars
• Off-road vehicles
• Import vehicles
• Motorbikes
• Vans
• Machinery

4. The vehicle’s age

How the age of your car affects its sales price intersects with all of the factors mentioned above. Age can affect the demand for the vehicle (positively, if it’s considered a collectable) and the demand for its components, which some buyers may want for the second-hand market.

Typically, a new car model will receive the highest valuation price. Of course, the opposite is true in the case of rare and classic cars.

1800 Salvage’s instant car valuation process

We wish there were an accurate and free car valuation calculator that could give you an exact number for your salvage car’s worth. You’ll find plenty of online tools claiming to do just that, but what they’ll actually offer you is an average price. As you can guess from the factors listed above, valuing a used car is subjective, and haggling isn’t much fun for anyone.

The maximise the sale price of your salvage car, the best advice we can give you is to not worry about figuring out an objective value but to ask yourself, ‘how much is my salvage car worth to the right buyer?’ That buyer will have the right connections and processes in place to reuse and recycle every element of your vehicle — meaning they’ll offer the highest price to buy it.

1800 Salvage is just such a buyer. We offer a convenient online free car valuation process that you can complete from the comfort of your own home.

Our process is as follows:

• Open our easy get-a-price form.
• Tell us your registration number, registration status, and address of the vehicle
• Provide a description of the car’s condition (such as written off, damaged, mechanical damaged, abandoned, etc.)
• Describe the make, model, year, and odometer information for your vehicle
• Upload photos of your salvage or second-hand car, including all four corners of the vehicle, interior seating and dash, and any specific points of accident, damage, or scratches
• Our team of salvage vehicle experts will quickly be in touch with a competitive purchase price offer

Not only do we offer highly competitive prices, but we’ll pay instantly, too. Better still, we’ll organise a tow for your damaged car, and you won’t even have to be there for pick up. How convenient is that?