6 Signs That Your Car Needs Scrapping

No car manufacturer has been able to create a vehicle that will last forever. With a lot of love and attention, old cars can be kept going for a long time, but they’re unlikely to remain roadworthy, especially with changes in requirements for safety and emission standards heppening all the time.

So when is it time to finally consider scrapping your car?

The answer to that question is all down to the condition of your car and your personal circumstances. But the good news is that you’re not alone if you’re facing this decision, since around 8 million cars are scrapped every year.

This month at Hill Metal Recycling, we’ve compiled six signs that your car needs to be scrapped. Hopefully, this will help you decide whether to keep your car or finally call time on old reliable.

• Repair costs are too high

While you should technically be able to solve almost any issue with your car via professional repairs, it’s a costly route to go down. All repairs add up, and they usually come with a hefty labour charge on top of any new components that might be required.

Ultimately, once you’ve repaired a few issues on any vehicle, it’s usually a sign that things are going downhill. This means more repairs are coming, making the idea of scrapping your car a lot easier to take, since you can spend your hard-earned money on something more reliable for the long term, rather than constantly spending to keep an outdated model going.

• It’s not being used

Sometimes it’s worth asking yourself how often you use a vehicle. If you no longer use your car and it sits like an eyesore in your drive or outside of your property, you might be better off scrapping it so that any useful parts that remain can be recycled.

There can be many reasons why people leave their old cars sitting outside, including:

• They now work from home, so don’t need the car to commute
• They used to do the school run but the kids have left home
• Public transport became more appealing
• Repairs were required but are too costly to perform
• It belonged to a loved one who has sadly passed away

Whatever the reason, you’ll likely be spending money on tax for a vehicle you don’t use — why not scrap the car and make better use of the money?

• Rust has set in

While all cars are built to resist the weather, a sure sign that yours has passed a point of no return is when you notice rust setting in. This can be either on the bodywork or, worse, the underside of your vehicle and can be a result of it sitting in puddles or just prolonged exposure to wind, snow, ice and rain. Rust eventually spreads too, compromising both the safe functionality of your car as well as its structural integrity.

• Expensive to run

Maybe you still use your old car since you have a sentimental attachment to it, but the costs of actually running it may have risen. Over the years, the efficiency with which your car uses fuel may have dropped considerably. 

If, as time goes on, you have to spend more and more at the pumps to get around, it could be a sign that you’re ready for an upgrade to make your money go further. Scrapping your car at this point might be kinder on both your pocket and the environment.

• You feel unsafe behind the wheel

Phantom rattling, unexplained power failures and general fear of your vehicle breaking down at any moment. All these are reasons to scrap your car and get something new to give you more confidence when getting behind the wheel. 

You should never compromise when it comes to safety — if you don’t feel safe, don’t put up with it any longer.

• Unable to sell the vehicle

Maybe you’ve already been faced with the reality of many of the points already listed above. But if you’ve tried selling your vehicle and either can’t find a buyer or can’t find someone willing to pay the price you want, your only option might be to scrap your car. This is a better way to get something back for your car rather than leaving it to rust in the driveway.

Here at Hill Metal Recycling, we’ve been providing expert scrap metal recycling services to domestic and commercial customers across Harlow and Essex for over 25 years. So whether you have a car with parts that need scrapping that you want to bring to us or you’d like to arrange for a collection, we’re always here to help. We collect ferrous and non-ferrous metals no matter what make or model they’re from.

Get reliable automotive part recycling and play your part in the recycling process — contact us today.