Junk car glossary
81 terms you'll meet when selling, junking or buying parts, explained in plain English with sources.
A
- Abandoned vehicle
- A vehicle left on public or private property past a legal time limit, which can be towed and disposed of.
- Actual cash value
- What a car was worth just before a loss, after depreciation, which is what most insurance pays on a total loss.
- Aftermarket parts
- New parts made by companies other than the vehicle's original manufacturer to fit or replace OEM parts.
- Airbag disposal
- Safely removing and disposing of airbag modules and inflators, especially recalled ones, from scrap vehicles.
- As-is sale
- A sale with no warranty, where the buyer accepts the vehicle with all its existing problems.
- Auto dismantler
- A licensed business that takes vehicles apart for parts and scrap, subject to state ownership and reporting rules.
- Auto recycler
- A business that dismantles end-of-life vehicles, resells usable parts, and recycles the rest.
- Auto recycling
- The process of dismantling end-of-life vehicles, reselling usable parts and recycling the metal and materials.
- Auto shredder residue
- The non-metal leftovers from shredding cars: plastics, foam, rubber, glass and fabric.
- Automotive Recyclers Association (ARA)
- The trade association for automotive recyclers that dismantle vehicles and sell recycled parts.
B
- Bill of sale
- A signed record of a vehicle sale showing the buyer, seller, price, date and vehicle details.
- Bonded title
- A title issued after the owner buys a surety bond because normal proof of ownership is missing.
- Branded title
- A title marked with a label such as salvage, flood or junk that records a serious event in the car's history.
C
- Car crusher
- A machine that flattens or bales stripped vehicles so they can be hauled cheaply to a shredder.
- Car title
- The state record that proves who legally owns a vehicle and whether a lender has a claim on it.
- Cash for clunkers (CARS program 2009)
- The 2009 federal program that paid buyers to trade in older vehicles, which then had to be scrapped.
- Catalytic converter
- An exhaust part that cleans engine emissions using precious metals, often the most valuable part of a junk car.
- Catalytic converter theft
- The theft of exhaust catalytic converters for the precious metals inside, a crime that surged in the early 2020s.
- Certificate of destruction
- A state document authorizing a vehicle to be dismantled or destroyed, issued in place of a title.
- Clean title
- A title with no brand such as salvage, junk or flood recorded on it.
- Core charge
- A refundable deposit added to a remanufactured part's price, returned when you bring back the old part.
- Curb weight
- A vehicle's weight with standard equipment and a full fuel tank but no passengers or cargo.
- Curbstoning
- Selling vehicles as a business without a dealer license, often posing as a private seller.
D
- Depollution
- Removing fluids, batteries and hazardous parts from a junk car before it is crushed or shredded.
- Duplicate title
- A replacement title issued by the state when the original is lost, stolen or damaged.
E
- Electronic lien and title (ELT)
- A system where the state keeps a financed car's title electronically and lenders release liens online.
- End-of-life vehicle (ELV)
- A vehicle that has reached the end of its useful life and is ready for dismantling and recycling.
F
- Ferrous metal
- Metal that contains iron, mainly steel and cast iron, which makes up most of a car's weight.
- Flood damage title brand
- A title brand showing a vehicle was damaged by flood water, which can hide electrical and safety problems.
- Full-service salvage yard
- A salvage yard where staff remove, inventory and sell parts for you, often tested and with a warranty.
G
- Gap insurance
- Coverage that pays the difference between a totaled car's value and what you still owe on the loan or lease.
- Gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR)
- The manufacturer's maximum safe loaded weight for a vehicle, including passengers and cargo.
I
- Impound
- When police or a property owner has a vehicle towed and held at a storage lot until fees are paid.
- Insurance auto auction
- A salvage auction run to sell vehicles insurers acquired through total-loss and theft claims.
J
- Junk title
- A state document showing a vehicle is junk, to be used only for parts or scrap and never titled again.
- Junkyard
- A business that buys, stores and sells junked or wrecked vehicles, their parts and scrap.
L
- Lead-acid battery recycling
- Returning used car batteries so their lead, plastic and acid can be recovered and reused.
- Lemon law buyback title
- A title brand for a vehicle the manufacturer repurchased because of unrepaired warranty defects.
- License plates (surrender/transfer)
- What to do with your plates after selling a car: keep, transfer, return or destroy them, depending on the state.
- Lien
- A legal claim on a vehicle, usually by a lender, that must be cleared before ownership can transfer freely.
- Lien release
- A lienholder's written or electronic confirmation that a vehicle loan has been paid and its claim removed.
- Lienholder
- The lender or other party whose claim on a vehicle is recorded on its title.
M
- Mechanic's lien
- A repair shop's legal claim on a vehicle for unpaid repair work, which can lead to a lien sale.
- Mercury switch
- A small mercury-filled switch used in older vehicles' hood and trunk lights that must be removed before scrapping.
N
- NMVTIS
- The federal database of state title records, brands and junk, salvage and insurance reports used to stop title fraud.
- Non-ferrous metal
- Metals without iron, such as aluminum, copper, lead and platinum-group metals, usually worth more per pound than steel.
- Non-repairable certificate
- A title document for a vehicle that may only be used for parts or scrap and can never be rebuilt for the road.
O
- Odometer disclosure statement
- The seller's written statement of a vehicle's mileage at transfer, required by federal law for many vehicles.
- Odometer rollback
- Illegally altering a vehicle's odometer to show fewer miles than it has actually been driven.
- OEM parts
- Parts made by or for the vehicle's original manufacturer, sold new or recovered used from junk cars.
P
- Platinum group metals
- Six rare metals, including platinum, palladium and rhodium, used in catalytic converters.
- Power of attorney (vehicle)
- A signed document letting another person sign title or sale paperwork for a vehicle owner.
- Probate (vehicle transfer)
- How a deceased owner's vehicle is transferred through an estate, with or without a court probate case.
R
- Rebuilt title
- A branded title for a former salvage vehicle that was repaired and passed state inspection.
- Recycled Materials Association (ReMA)
- The U.S. trade association for the recycled materials industry, including scrap metal processors.
- Refrigerant recovery
- Capturing the air-conditioning refrigerant from a vehicle before it is scrapped, as federal rules require.
- Registration
- The state approval, renewed periodically, that lets a vehicle be driven on public roads.
- Release of liability
- A notice the seller files with the DMV to show a vehicle was sold, ending the seller's responsibility for it.
- Remanufactured parts
- Used parts that have been disassembled, restored to specification and resold, often with a core charge.
- Rollback tow
- A tow truck with a bed that tilts and slides back so the whole vehicle is winched on and carried.
S
- Safety inspection
- A state-required check of brakes, lights, tires and other safety equipment, required in some states.
- Salvage auction
- An auction where insurers and others sell damaged, totaled and recovered-theft vehicles to licensed buyers.
- Salvage title
- A branded title for a vehicle written off as too damaged, or otherwise lost, to be worth repairing. Each state sets its own threshold.
- Salvage yard
- A business that acquires damaged or junk vehicles to resell whole, sell as parts, rebuild or crush.
- Scrap metal
- Discarded metal, including stripped and crushed cars, collected and sold for melting into new metal.
- Scrap price per ton
- The market price paid for scrap metal by weight, which sets the floor value of a junk car.
- Scrap yard
- A business that buys metal by weight and processes it, including crushed and shredded cars, for steel mills.
- Self-service junkyard (U-pull)
- A yard where customers pay entry, bring their own tools and remove the used parts they want.
- Shredder
- A large machine at scrap facilities that tears cars into fist-size pieces so metals can be separated.
- Small estate affidavit
- A sworn form heirs use to transfer a deceased owner's car without probate when the estate is small.
- Smog check / emissions inspection
- A test of a vehicle's exhaust emissions, required in some states for registration or a change of ownership.
- Storage lien
- A towing or storage company's claim on a vehicle for unpaid fees, which can end in the car being sold.
T
- Temporary tag
- A short-term permit or paper plate that lets an unregistered vehicle be driven legally for a limited time.
- Title washing
- Removing a brand such as salvage or flood from a car's title, usually by retitling it in another state.
- Total loss
- When an insurer decides a damaged vehicle isn't worth repairing and pays its value instead.
- Tow truck
- A truck equipped to tow or carry disabled vehicles, licensed by many states depending on the kind of tow.
U
- Used auto parts
- Original parts removed from salvaged or junked vehicles and resold for reuse.
- Used motor oil recycling
- Collecting drained engine oil so it can be re-refined into new oil or processed into fuel.
V
- VIN
- The 17-character code that uniquely identifies a vehicle and links it to its title and history.
- VIN verification
- A physical check that a vehicle's VIN matches its paperwork, often required before titling or retitling.
W
- Wrecking yard
- Another name for a junkyard or dismantler that buys vehicles to take apart for parts.