Industry News: Sandy Cost Automakers 15,000 Vehicles, Total Vehicle Damages Could Total 200k

[William Maley]

William Maley

Staff Writer - CheersandGears.com

November 7, 2012

Hurricane Sandy was the largest storm in the Atlantic in US history, and the economic damage is beginning to come into view. Automotive News is reporting that around 15,000 new vehicles will be scrapped due to storm damage.

About 40% of those are Nissan and Infiniti vehicles that were determined to be unfit for sale. Toyota is next with the possibility of having to scrap close to 4,000 vehicles. Other automakers that have announced they would have to scrap vehicles include,

• Honda/Acura: 3,440 vehicles
  
• Chrysler: 825 vehicles
  
• Hyundai: 400 vehicles
  
• Fisker: 320 vehicles
  
• Kia: 200 vehicles
  

General Motors and Ford haven't come out with estimates at the moment and no one is saying how much replacing the wrecked vehicles will cost.

Those numbers pale in comparison with estimate put out by the National Automobile Dealers Association which say that 200,000 vehicles could be replaced.

Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required)

William Maley is a staff writer for Cheers & Gears. He can be reached at [email protected] or you can follow him on twitter at @realmudmonster.

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[ocnblu]

Well I hope all those private owners make out OK with insurance and can replace their lost vehicles with comparable or better. I'm less sorry for the new, untitled vehicles that were lost, unless they were sold orders.

200,000 vehicles going into salvage is crazy.

[David]

Well I hope all those private owners make out OK with insurance and can replace their lost vehicles with comparable or better. I'm less sorry for the new, untitled vehicles that were lost, unless they were sold orders.

200,000 vehicles going into salvage is crazy.

Better than having them be dried out and sold on the grey market and end up being a nightmare of auto ownership. I hope they truly crush these auto's rather than sell them off as scarp.

In regards to private owners, I hear many will not get anything as the insurance does not cover flooding. I suspect the insurance companies will do all they can to avoid having to payout for this big mess.

[jwbouch]

I work for an insurance company, and as long as there is comprehensive coverage on the vehicle, floods are covered. We are paying out a boatload of money each day!

[daves87rs]

Wow!

[David]

I work for an insurance company, and as long as there is comprehensive coverage on the vehicle, floods are covered. We are paying out a boatload of money each day!

That is good to know as when you watch news you hear from so many people that their insurance will not cover their cars, homes, etc. So they are looking at a total wipe out loss.

[ocnblu]

No way I am advocating re-selling flood vehicles, I'm just saying that is a lot of vehicles to go to salvage vendors at once. There will be some salvageable parts on a lot of these.

[GMTruckGuy74]

Plenty of co-workers at my job here in NJ have family and friends, amongst themselves, that suffered from property loss due to Hurricane Sandy. Many lost cars parked at their houses in the NJ shore towns, and others lost their cars to flooding in their towns (mostly northern portions of the state close to NYC). My one co-worker's grandparents lost their two cars parked at their lagoon house off the bay that leads to the ocean - they were at their Florida house at the time. My boss lost his vintage VW Beetle convertible (older, non-restored car) that he leaves at his parent's shore house on Long Beach Island (LBI) for summer usage. I'm sure those without comprehensive coverage, especially on older, less used vehicles, will not be compensated unless the Federal Government (FEMA) steps in.

I agree with you ocnblu, too many cars will be heading to scrap/junk yards over the next couple of weeks.

[David]

Also the shortage of quality used cars will force many to buy new, so we will see many new auto's with cleaner roads, less dropped oil.

That is the bright side, emissions and amount of safer auto's on the road.

[Drew Dowdell]

What value do the manufacturers get from the insurance payout?

[ocnblu]

Prolly not MSRP, that would not be a fair payout. It should be their true cost up to that point, including transportation to get them to the port, imo.

Fisker will most likely get about $320.

[Drew Dowdell]

don't troll

[ocnblu]

? I don't follow.

[Camino LS6]

I for one, wouldn't mind getting a slightly soggy new vehicle on the cheap.

But I'd have to be sure about just how much water it encountered. I'm willing to bet that, though unsaleable as new, a great many fully-functional vehicles are contained in this number.

[ocnblu]

Salt water is an absolute killer. It would be an electrical nightmare, at the very least.

[Camino LS6]

Yeah, I know.

I'd be looking for the high water mark to make my decision.

[David]

Salt water is an absolute killer. It would be an electrical nightmare, at the very least.

But at the right cheap price, you could gut it, clean it and put in the engine, electrical and inside you desire and have a killer auto.

What does Olds mean by Dont Troll?????

[ocnblu]

Well, a salt bath also kills the body with future corrosion problems. Electrical problems can go all the way down the line following the harnesses, like a cheap set of Xmas lights when a single bulb burns out. And carpets, seats... just omg. Insurance companies have guidelines on water depth in relation to the dashboard and fresh/salt water immersion.

And I think Olds may have been talking about my gentle jab at highline golf cart maker Fisker when we were discussing insurance settlements to OEMs, post-flood. I can't be sure though.

[David]

Well, a salt bath also kills the body with future corrosion problems. Electrical problems can go all the way down the line following the harnesses, like a cheap set of Xmas lights when a single bulb burns out. And carpets, seats... just omg. Insurance companies have guidelines on water depth in relation to the dashboard and fresh/salt water immersion.

And I think Olds may have been talking about my gentle jab at highline golf cart maker Fisker when we were discussing insurance settlements to OEMs, post-flood. I can't be sure though.

Fisker does make nice Luxury Golf Carts!

[GMTruckGuy74]

6ABC news this afternoon is reporting upwards of 250,000 cars - 16,000 of which are new manufacturer's cars - to be claimed by Sandy. Their report went on to mention the demand for automotive purchases (new and pre-owned) will increase once the insurance companies start making payouts.

[Robert Hall]

Salt water is an absolute killer. It would be an electrical nightmare, at the very least.

But at the right cheap price, you could gut it, clean it and put in the engine, electrical and inside you desire and have a killer auto.

Not worth the effort.

[Camino LS6]

Salt water is an absolute killer. It would be an electrical nightmare, at the very least.

But at the right cheap price, you could gut it, clean it and put in the engine, electrical and inside you desire and have a killer auto.

Not worth the effort.

Would be to me.

[David]

Salt water is an absolute killer. It would be an electrical nightmare, at the very least.

But at the right cheap price, you could gut it, clean it and put in the engine, electrical and inside you desire and have a killer auto.

Not worth the effort.

Would be to me.

Think of a new Suburban, Camero, Sierra etc that you just gutted the electrical, interior, etc and then cleaned and painted and sealed the auto and then custmized the interior and powertrain to your liking.

Anyone want a Suburban Duramax Diesel? If I could pick a suburban up for a few thousand dollars as scrap and then gut it and build it the way I want the interior and powertrain to be, this is well worth it to me.