If you keep reading this post, you can learn more about auto salvage yards near me.
We’ll be discussing the business model, source of inventory, and how scrap autos are handled in these yards. Moreover, we’ll highlight some used auto parts you can get.
We’re done talking; let’s begin.
Car Recycling Guide
Auto recycling is an economical way of preventing scrap vehicles from ending up in landfills.
When an automobile ends its life, junkyards and other recyclers purchase them. They strip functional parts and resell them for profit.
Whatever remains will still be sold as scrap metal for recycling?
Auto recycling doesn’t only help the planet but consumers as well. You can get salvage parts for antique vehicles at highly discounted rates.
Some of those parts are OEM and come with warranty coverage. We have also converted specific niches below.
- Tire Recycling
- Motor Oil Recycling
Auto Junkyard Near Me
Most vehicle owners have a stressful experience keeping an old, damaged, or inoperable car. Watching the metal and rubber components rot in the garage pains them more.
But guess what! You can revive your old car and its parts for cash at any auto salvage yard near you.
These are businesses that supply used spare parts for auto restoration. You can buy almost everything you need to get an old vehicle up and running again at affordable prices.
Salvage auto components available in these facilities are manufacturer-installed and assembled. Meaning you’re guaranteed high-quality items.
What is Auto Dismantling?
In simple terms, vehicle dismantling is where wrecked or antique automobiles are stripped down to their metal frames.
Here, dismantlers will carefully remove all functional components of such vehicles for reuse or recycling. Automobile dismantling requires excellent skills and sound technical expertise.
This is to avoid auto parts getting damaged or broken during the process.
Opting for fast and efficient vehicles is essential when looking for vehicle dismantlers. Additionally, those with quality scrap car removal offer reliable services, auto disposal, less hassle, and more.
Why You Should Dismantle Your Vehicle
There’re several reasons why you should dismantle your scrap vehicle. First, it conserves natural resources such as oil.
Research indicates yearly reclaimed cars amount to 14 million tons of steel for manufacturing industries. These steels are recycled, reducing the energy required to manufacture new materials from scratch.
Furthermore, disassembling and recycling scrap vehicles benefits the environment. Experts say dismantlers take about 80 percent of scrap vehicles out of landfills.
Additionally, toxic metals, such as mercury, are extracted and disposed of appropriately. Such materials aren’t allowed to be dumped in landfills.
That’s because they can temper with underground water.
Auto Dismantlers Near Me
Are you looking for an auto wrecker nearby? Of course, you do, so you’re here to find a vehicle dismantler in your locality.
This guide will familiarize you with their mode of operation, inventory sources, perks and drawbacks of disassembling cars, and so on.
Until then, let’s briefly define what vehicle dismantling is.
Auto Wreckers Near Me
Do you know an automobile is composed of over 3 million components?
About 80 percent of these pieces are recyclable. When a vehicle’s life ends, you can dismantle all functional parts and convert them to cash.
Alternatively, you can use those components for your restoration project.
Before Taking Your Car to Auto Wreckers
Before taking your old or broken vehicle to dismantlers, try fixing it if it’s inoperable.
Also, please find out how much it’ll cost you to make such repairs. You should only tear down your car once it does not run again or the cost of repairs surpasses its value.
That’s not an economic decision.
But if you finally decide to dismantle your vehicle and make money from its parts, ensure you do the following. Remove all your personal belongings from the car, including license plates.
Next, you cancel all insurance policies and state registration. If you allow some dismantlers to do that, they’ll charge you heavily.
Get your vehicle title handy because some dismantlers, such as auto junkyards, will ask for it. If you don’t have one, these businesses can report you to the appropriate authority, and you’ll be fine.
Once you’ve done all these, you’re set to tear down your vehicle.
What Happens to Scrap Vehicles in Auto Recycling Facilities?
Auto recycling facilities/programs near me conduct fundamental dismantling for scrap vehicles. However, they start by examining the possibility of reviving near-running cars.
After making them road worthy again, they’ll be auctioned off or sold to individuals cheaply. They will prepare the ones with no hope of returning to life for prepping.
When dismantling scrap vehicles, most auto recyclers siphon the remaining gas and other harmful liquids. We refer to anti-freeze, wiper oil, brake fluid, engine oil, and more.
These fluids are capable of contaminating underground water when disposed of inappropriately. As such, they’ll be re-bottled for reuse or recycling.
Next, significant auto components, such as engines, batteries, etc., will be removed and sent to third-party vendors for rebuilding.
Other functional parts will also be pulled out and warehoused. As highlighted above, whatever remains of the vehicle will be sold to scrap metal reclaiming facilities.
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How Vehicles Are Stripped Down to Their Metals
As highlighted above, the procedure for disassembling cars is challenging and requires professional hands.
When an automobile is taken to dismantlers, they examine its condition. Serviceable vehicles will be fixed and auctioned off. Then those with no hope of returning to life will be naked.
Next, their expert mechanics will drain hazardous fluids such as fuel, motor oil, coolant, anti-freeze, etc. Because they’re harmful to the environment, they’ll be put back in their bottles for reuse or recycled.
Once this is done, some delicate components, such as alternators, engines, batteries, etc., will be sent to third-party vendors for rebuilding.
Other functional auto parts will also be stripped and warehoused. Some dismantlers clean, inspect, and test these items before placing them on the shelves.
They will send the remaining vehicle shell to a scrap metal recycling center. This will give them room to junk new vehicles.
What Happens After Vehicles Are Stripped?
Before some dismantlers sent the remaining shell of stripped vehicles, they crushed them. Now, how naked automobiles are destroyed depends on a few factors.
The dismantler you’re dealing with and what equipment they have. While some dismantlers flatten their vehicles, others squeeze them into a cubic shape.
The idea is to reduce space and make it easier for transportation and reprocessing.
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At the Reprocessing Industry
Immediately crushed vehicles arrive in the reprocessing industry; they’re sent to a shredder or hammer mill. This machine will break down the squeezed or flattened metal into bits and then sort out foreign properties.
We refer to plastic, glass, rubber, etc. These elements are forwarded to recycling facilities to reprocess into new usable products.
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What About VRS
The abbreviation above stands for “Automated Vehicle Recycling.” It’s a modern innovation that facilitates the extraction of high-value car parts.
The invention has to do with the use of an excavator to increase the parts that get recycled. At the same time, it reduces human labor to strip parts.
But sometimes, the metal frame of stripped vehicles needs human intervention. For instance, some shells might still hold valuable components such as harnesses, AC, wiring, etc.
Only human hands can strip those components.
Finding an Auto Wrecking Yards Near Me
You’ll find it easy to locate a nearby auto salvage yard.
That’s because there’re many of them across the country. While some focus on specific vehicle brands, others accommodate a wide selection of cars.
Either way, you can get what you want from them.
One of the easiest ways to locate an auto salvage yard is to search online. Several websites are available to give you beneficial results.
You can try to salvage yard directories such as USCarJunker, USScrapYard, etc. These sites will provide you with the location and contact details of all auto junkyards nationwide.
You can also google search by typing “auto dumps near me” or “car junkers near me.” Ensure you add your location to make your search more effective.
However, if the results you’re getting aren’t helpful, you can ask people around. High chances are you’ll get one or two people to give you a lead.
What Business Are Car Dumps Into?
Auto salvage yards typically purchase broken or antique vehicles and make money selling their functional components.
Sometimes, they restore serviceable cars and send them for auction. As mentioned, you can get salvage auto components at highly discounted prices.
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Source of Scrap Automobiles
Auto salvage yards near me obtain their scrap vehicles from multiple sources.
A significant amount of junk vehicles come from insurance companies and auctions—however, a few come from private owners, vehicle impounds, liquidated businesses, and more.
When scrap vehicles come from insurance companies, it’s often because they’re totaled or accident. They junk such automobiles to recoup part of the money used in settling a claim payout.
Meanwhile, private owners dump their cars in junkyards when they’re inoperable or not worth repairs—only a few junk their vehicles because of age.
In this case, they want to create space for new ones.
Types of Auto Salvage Yards
There are about two kinds of automobile salvage yards near.
We have yards offering self-services and those offering full-services. While both serve the same purpose, they also have their little differences.
Automobile salvage yards offering self-services allow customers to harvest used vehicle components independently. For that, they’re called “pick-and-pull” salvage yards.
Before walking around their facility, you must pay for admission. The amount runs around $10, depending on the junkyard you visit. However, they’ll demand you to take some scrapyard removal tools.
Auto salvage yards that offer complete services do not allow scavengers to remove functional components. Instead, their expert technicians remove salvage vehicle parts upon the customer’s request.
Sometimes, these salvage yards will pull valuable auto parts and stick them in the warehouse. They’ll fetch them without delay when you ask for secondhand vehicle components.
Kinds of Vehicles You Can Get at Auto Junkyards
Auto salvage yards near me accommodate a variety of automobiles manufactured by different brands. If you visit one of their installations, you’ll get a wide section of cars, trucks, SUVs, ATVs, heavy equipment, and more.
Some popular manufacturers of these automobiles are Mercedes, Nissan, Honda, Chrysler, Buick, and Toyota.
You can spot other cars: BMW, Volvo, Cadillac, Chevy, Dodge, Acura, and Volkswagen. Furthermore, you can get autos manufactured in the late 30s and 20s. But only a few junkyards host such vehicles.
Organizational Style of Auto Salvage Yards
As highlighted above, not all salvage yards specialize in every make and model of vehicles and trucks. Auto salvage yards near me that handle a particular vehicle brand are well-managed.
They arrange their cars according to their year of manufacture. Then yards managing numerous auto brands line up their collections according to their make and model.
Finding used parts in such facilities is straightforward. You can call such businesses and inquire about the availability of items before visiting them. Most of them present their used car parts online.
However, the cost of things here is higher than in other salvage yards.
Used Auto Parts for Sale Near Me
Similarly, most auto salvage yards are stocked with an inventory running over thousands and millions of used auto parts.
If you visit one of their installations, you’ll see Volkswagen Passat, Honda Accord, Ford Escort, Toyota Corolla, Lada Riva, Nissan, Mercedes A-C class, and more.
You can get everything from engines, dashboards, seats, transmissions, fenders, windscreens, steering, starters, and doors.
Other components available are A/C, bumpers, alternator, exhaust system, radiator, tires and wheels, panels, hoods, and more.
Some auto recyclers near me offer warranty coverage for each auto component purchased in their facility.
Recycling Process at Auto Salvage Yards
How automobiles are stripped at salvage yards is quite interesting. Most salvage yards begin by draining out hazardous liquids such as freon, motor oil, gasoline, coolant, and anti-freeze.
Because these fluids can temper with underground water, they’ll be repackaged and sold for reuse or recycling.
Next, their expert technicians take down valuable auto parts until the metal frame is out. Those salvage parts will be cleaned, inspected, tested, and stored in the warehouse.
As for the metal frame, recycling will better use it to create new items.
Alternative to Automobile Recycling
If you want to avoid reclaiming your old or damaged vehicle, explore other green options. You can either donate your car to charity or scrap it.
When donating your scrap vehicle, several nonprofit charities/organizations will be willing to take it from you. But its acceptability depends on its present condition.
If your car is still operable, they’ll drive it themselves or pass it to others. This could be via donation or resold to people needing cheap rides.
Scraping unwanted vehicles is a viable way of getting monetary compensation and keeping them away from landfills. You can decide to sell to auto junkyards or scrap metal yards.
These businesses offer a reasonable price for junk cars. However, selling your vehicle’s parts to auto shops or private buyers can fetch you good money.
Reclaiming an Old or Broken Automobile
When recycling a broken or antique vehicle, there’re a few steps you’ll need to take. First, research car reclaiming programs that are available near you.
Once you’ve gotten one, inquire about their policies regarding auto recycling. But if the reverse is the case, you can opt for alternatives such as an auto mechanic.
Next, you contact the auto recycler willing to buy from you and arrange to tow. Until then, you must negotiate how much you want to sell your scrap car.
If your offer isn’t favorable, you can sell its used parts individually, as noted above. It would be best if you also considered their paperwork assistance, business hours, transfer of title registration, and more.
Selling to Local Car Scrap Yards
As we’ve said, you can dump your old or broken vehicle for cash at auto salvage yards. However, knowing how much you’ll make depends on critical factors.
These factors are your car’s condition, make and model, location, current market price, wreckage damage, and more.
Conclusion
Vehicle dismantlers play a massive role in environmental sustainability.
Recycling auto parts significantly reduces the harmful effects caused by throwing them in landfills.
Some of these components carry toxic chemicals and metal elements that can pollute the soil and water supplies. Meanwhile, when visiting an auto salvage yard, you must research their inventory and terms of service.
As you can see, these businesses help reduce overdependence on natural resources. They also reduce the amount of energy consumed in the production of new parts.