It’s a situation every Perth driver fears. You’re at the counter of an inspection center, and the mechanic is walking toward you with a clipboard and concern on their face. The news is bad. It’s that time of year: Your trusty, reliable car has just failed its annual inspection for registration.
The mechanic hands you the report, and your heart drops as you read the lengthy list of faults: “worn suspension bushes”, “leaking steering rack”, “brake pads have insufficient thickness”, “structural area has rust”. The IT speak turns into one message of despair, with a heart-stoppingly large amount at the bottom of the repair figure.
All those questions come flooding in at once. Is it even worth fixing? Is it even sellable in this condition? Now do I have a huge paper weight? What on earth do I do now?
If you find yourself here, breathe. You are not stranded, and your car is not a dead asset. We are the trusted name as WA Auto Parts we have been serving the used auto parts in Perth for more than 15 years. We witness this situation all day every day, and we are here to tell you that there are clear options available to you. This is your voice of reason, who can help you think through the future and make the best possible financial decision for yourself.
Decoding the “Fail Notice” in Western Australia
The first thing we need to know is the legal status of your vehicle. If you fail a rego inspection then your car is called “unroadworthy” by the WA Department of Transport (DoT). This is not mere suggestion; it’s a legal status that carries serious import.
You are not legally allowed to drive the car on public roads, with one exception: a pre-booked, direct journey to a place of repair or another inspection. If you car was stopped by police and issued a “yellow sticker” (a defect notice) the same rules apply. To drive it for any other reason – including a brief trip to the shops – is illegal and carries heavy fines and demerit points. What’s more, were you to get into an accident your insurance would be no doubt invalidated quite so.
All of which brings you to a vital crossroad: Your options are to outlay what may be a considerable sum of money to retu rn the car to WA roadworthy condition, or sell it.
Option 1: The Route of Repair – Does It Make Financial Sense?
Your first impulse may be to repair the car. This can occasionally be the right thing to do, but it’s a cold, hard financial calculation — not an emotional one.
Step 1: Get a Second (And Third) Opinion Always be skeptical of the first repair quote. The inspection centre identifying the faults may not be the most competitive on price when it comes to those repairs. Quite simply, take your failure report to 1 or 2 other reliable mechanics in your local Perth and request a competing price for the work.
Step 2: The All-Important Cost Vital Calculation This is the most important calculation you will have to do. Be brutally honest with yourself.
Compute the Sum Total Repair Cost: Simply add up the total of each price on your failure list.
Find Out the Car’s True Market Value (Post-Repaired): Visit websites like Carsales or Gumtree, and figure out what cars – of the same make, model, year and kilometres – are selling for in Perth at present.
Do the Reality Check: I’ll use a common one as an example. Say you have a 2010 Mazda 3. The repairs will cost about $3,500. After hopping online, you find a roadworthy Mazda 3 of similar age is selling for around $5,000. Would it be worth paying $3,500 to have a $5,000 asset? You also should weigh the time and hassle, and the fact that something else might break next month. For a lot of people, the math just doesn’t work.
This repair path generally is for only cars that are fairly new, repairs are minor and inexpensive to fix or have significant sentimental value to justify the cost. For many older vehicles with a litany of problems it tends to mark the start of throwing good money after bad.
Option 2: “Sell As-Is” – The Painful Private Market.
How about selling it as-is and letting someone else take care of the issue? While that’s possible, it is very hard and a complete PITA.
The problem is that your target market is tiny. The only person who would even bother with a car that had actually FAILED an officially conducted WA rego inspection would be someone able to do the repairs themselves, or is a qualified back yard mechnaical tech – i.e a professional. These are professional buyers; they know what they’re seeing, and they want to make an extreme deal.
Moreover, you are under a legal obligation to make full disclosure to any potential purchaser. You need to show them the fail sheet and say that their car is unsafe for use on the road. Concealing this is against the law and will likely bite you in the ass. You’ll have to put your car up with “project car” or “mechanic’s special” in the listing, and you should expect an onslaught of laughably low offers from parasites hoping to make a quick buck.
Option 3: The “Cash for Wrecking” Path- The Intelligent Approach Forward
This leaves us with the third, frequently most sensible, option. Selling your car to a professional car wrecker and auto parts specialist such as WA Auto Parts. This is the route thousands of Perth residents take as it’s a quick, easy and more cost efficient option.
Your mechanic hands you a list of the things that are wrong, and they see problems! When we look at the same list, we do not see a list of contingencies; instead, it is an inventory of assets. That’s the difference with WA Auto Parts.
A failed rego doesn’t mean your car is doomed; it just means you can’t use it as a whole on the road anymore. It’s still made up of hundreds or more valuable, working units.
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The Fault List is Nothing to Us: We’re not going out there to get your car drive it for transportation. We’re purchasing it for its pieces. Here’s the beauty of that, the fact that the suspension bushes bang doesn’t matter, because all the brake callipers and hubs and wheels supported by said suspension are A O UK. The motor could run shitty but the alternator, starter motor, and A/C compressor are all good.
We Find Worth in Every Component: As the leading used parts supplier to Perth we are well aware of current trends. We see customers here every day looking for that bargain, quality part. Be it a bullet proof engine from a Japanese Toyota, sophisticated electronics from an Italian Alfa Romeo, glass from an American 4WD, tubing from a British Land Rover or radio profiles and plastics for Australian Holden – we know what the product is worth.
You Receive a Cash Offer Instantly: No haggling, no worrying about repairs. You inform of us the value of any scrap parts on the car and provide VIN number, which helps us track your vehicle during this process.WE can pay some large amount cash for cars in same city.
FREE Towing is Included: This is a big one. The fact that your car is unroadworthy and you can’t take it to us. So, we come to you. We will remove your car from your Perth home or mechanic’s garage absolutely free.
You Don’T Invest In Your Old Car Another Dollar: Once you make the decision to sell your car to us, you never have to deposit any more money in your old vehicle again. You plug the bleeding money right away.
Paper work taken care of with no fuss for you: We will do the pricey Paper Work, As a properly authorised vehicle disposer we will complete all legal Transport Department paperwork disposal process and you don’t have to be concerned about any upcoming fines.
Conclusion: Rego Slip Fail to Money Back in Your Pocket
Dealing with a failed rego inspection can be quite a stressful experience but it needn’t be. Your options are to choose the long and risky road of trying a costly repair, make things worse or attempt a difficult private sale……….or just give us a call and turn your problem into cash today!
For most older cars with a long list of needed repairs, selling it to a wrecker is the best decision both financially and logically. It enables you to draw a line under the sand, so no more money is lost and take back whatever equity you have left in your vehicle instantly.
A failed rego certificate does not mean it’s over and out for your car in terms of value, although it is the end of its life on the road. It’s a chance to cash in on its hundreds of working parts and recyclable materials without any extras strain or hassle.
Don’t let that costly repair quote write your car’s final chapter. Don’t wait for such situations to get worse, assuming control is the right decision.
Speak to WA Auto Parts your local Perth wreckers and used car parts specialists today. Ring Us : (08) 9358 1392 for a free, no obligation quote on your vehicleWe’ll make it easy & visit to you in Perth – Top Cash Prices paid ranging from $50 – $5000 for complete cars!And when we say up to $5000 CASH, we mean that exact amount of cash money in your hand.