How Can You Tell if a Car Has Been in a Flood

Many machine shoppers don't realize simply how much damage floodwaters practise to a vehicle. That represents a trouble—not just to the owner of a car or truck that falls victim to a catastrophic alluvion, but to prospective buyers unaware of the vehicle'south history.

The risk of flooded vehicles on the market affects everyone looking for a used car, and not only those in the immediate vicinity of a flood. After Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy, for case, flooded cars popped upwardly for sale beyond the country. Information technology'southward a smart bet that the aforementioned volition happen once the waters Hurricane Florence dumped on the Carolinas recede, too.

The best style to protect yourself from unscrupulous—or fifty-fifty unknowing—dealers is to educate yourself on how to spot the tell-tale signs of flood impairment.

Flooded car in parking lot. Photo via Flickr user waitscm/CC2.0

Run the numbers

It sounds obvious that you should check the vehicle'south history to wait for repairs, simply it's still an important step. Run the VIN (vehicle identification number) through Carfax, which will tell you, for gratis, if a car has been in a flood. If yous become a positive event, you tin end with your investigation, because you don't want that car.

You tin can't just stop in that location if the car you lot're looking at isn't marked past Carfax, however. While dealers are required to disclose flood impairment, there exist plenty loopholes in the organization that some cars inevitably sneak through. For example, if a car was insured at the time the alluvion occurred, the damage would almost definitely be reported. However, it is easier to skip the requisite reporting if repairing the car without the insurance company'south oversight.

Information technology may also be worth calling a dealership to inquire about service records for the vehicle if it's a newer model. Most automakers link service records betwixt dealerships. While privacy laws preclude dealers from giving out a previous owner'southward personal details, the records may betoken signs of overflowing damage or repair.

Check the electric organisation

Check everything from electrical wiring to how well each arrangement works. Don't employ corrosion on a battery terminal as an indicator, considering that'due south a relatively common phenomenon anyway. If you see corrosion forming on any of the other wiring on the motorcar, even so, take that as a bad sign.

Fifty-fifty if you lot don't meet physical proof of corrosion, you should effort to use every single system on the car. Start with the basics, similar the radio, the turn signals, and the windshield wipers. Condensation in the headlights isn't a definite sign, but it's ane more bespeak to remember every bit yous expect over the vehicle.

Keep in mind that many electrical bug acquired past floods don't manifest themselves immediately, or fifty-fifty consistently. A faulty brake calorie-free, for example, might only become apparent under specific circumstances.

If every single electrical item works, it's a proficient sign, but not still a conclusive piece of evidence.

Advisedly audit the body for rust

Some cars may accept  small rust in a few locations anyhow. That's non a major warning sign in and of itself. Rather, look at the underside of the hood, within the doors, and in the trunk. If yous can, elevator part of the interior carpet and await for rust on the floor, or on the bolts property the seats downward. Rust in whatever of these areas is a proverbial flashing scarlet light.

And wait for sand and clay in places people don't unremarkably clean

Await inside the wheel wells. If you tin encounter sand and dirt gathered at a constant level, virtually like a dirt ring in a filthy bathtub, y'all have a good reason to believe the automobile was sitting in alluvion waters. Practise the same with the exhaust underneath the auto.

If you can, reach underneath the car and encounter if there'southward sand on the intermission. Anywhere that h2o tin can puddle is also worth investigating, such as the spare tire well in the trunk, or under the seats.

2013 Jeep Grand Cherokee

Exist suspicious of an interior that's too clean

Information technology should become without saying that if whatsoever part of the interior is moisture, that's a problem. Similarly, if you see mud or sand in the body, or on the carpet your chore is done, and the car is likely a junker. Even without mud, the cardboard lining to which the headliner is attached could warp if it's submerged. Expect for anything that resembles an onetime textbook after a midnight coffee spill.

Many people consider a musky smell in the car to be some other obvious sign, just mod detailing equipment tin remove most odors. An odorless auto isn't the equivalent of a clean pecker of health.

Instead, look for more subtle issues, like an interior that's virtually too clean. If the car was recently reupholstered, with a new headliner, carpeting, or seat covers, information technology could be show of flood damage repair.

Become for a examination drive

If everything checks out reasonably well, it'southward time to go for a examination bulldoze. Heed for anything abnormal. A grinding noise from the brakes or steering, or a squeak over bumps might not be proof of a flood on its own, but if noises outset coming from multiple places, information technology might exist fourth dimension to look for a different car.

Work your style up to advisedly checking more advanced things similar the anti-lock braking system, which relies on sensors that won't work if their wires are corroded. The brake pedal should pulse against your foot and prevent the wheels from skidding if you operate an "emergency finish" by pressing hard on the brake pedal.

If y'all're unsure at all, get a pre-purchase inspection

For a modest fee, most every mechanic or dealership will perform what'southward called a pre-purchase inspection, or PPI. Having i of these performed on any car, even one you're confident hasn't spent some time underwater, is by and large a skilful thought.

A professional mechanic has access to a lift and can more easily bank check every nook and cranny of the auto, front to back. He or she likewise knows how to spot potential problems much more easily than the average person. A good mechanic can look over the car in around an hr; think of the inspection fee every bit peace of mind.

If y'all tin can, look for a specialist—someone who works exclusively on that make or similar models.

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Source: https://www.thecarconnection.com/news/1112407_seven-ways-to-tell-if-a-used-car-has-flood-damage#:~:text=Run%20the%20VIN%20(vehicle%20identification,t%20marked%20by%20Carfax%2C%20however.