The Thrill of Buying an Abandoned Supercar: A Guide to Overcoming the Challenges

The allure of buying an abandoned supercar is a tantalizing one, but for those who are serious about taking the plunge, it's essential to be aware of the numerous challenges that come with it. The process of acquiring such a vehicle can be daunting, and for good reason. From locating the title to navigating the complexities of international auctions, there are many obstacles to overcome before the thrill of owning a supercar becomes a reality.

One of the first hurdles to clear is finding the ride you want in the first place. Unlike purchasing a car from a dealership or online marketplace, where the selection is often easier to navigate, buying an abandoned supercar involves searching for specific models and brands in areas like the UAE, where many have been left behind due to defaulting loans or abandonment by their previous owners. This means that the process can be time-consuming and requires extensive research.

Another significant obstacle is determining ownership and entitlement to the vehicle. In countries like the UAE, banks still hold onto titles until loans are fully paid off, leaving it uncertain who the true owner is if they're missing and have defaulted on their loan. Additionally, the timing of the auction or sale can be unpredictable, with no telling how much time has passed between the car being abandoned and it being impounded by authorities. This raises questions about how much money is left to pay on the loan and whether the vehicle will even make it through the auction process.

For those who are still willing to take on the challenge, auctions can be a viable option for acquiring a supercar at a reduced price. While this can lead to finding a dream car for $30,000 less than the sticker price, it also means facing unknown quantities of damage that may render the vehicle unsellable. Research and due diligence are essential when browsing auction lots, as some vehicles may have suffered significant damage that could impact their value.

Fortunately, there are companies specializing in buying and restoring these cars to make them available for purchase by enthusiasts. Companies like Carerra Garage and Hush Hush take on the risks of purchasing abandoned supercars, repairing them to a safe condition, and then selling them directly to customers at a nominal fee. This is often considered the most reliable option for those seeking to acquire an affordable and well-maintained supercar.

However, even with the help of specialized companies, there are still numerous variables that can affect the final price and availability of these vehicles. From being sold through private transactions without proper documentation to being purchased by individuals looking to sell quickly and make a profit, there are many factors at play. As such, buyers must be prepared for the possibility of encountering problems with the vehicle's history or maintenance costs.

For those who have decided that buying an abandoned supercar is not only feasible but also desirable, it's essential to approach this endeavor with caution and knowledge. Conducting thorough research on the market value and condition of potential purchases will help ensure a smooth transaction. Furthermore, staying informed about changes in local laws and regulations governing vehicle ownership can provide valuable insights into navigating this complex process.

Ultimately, buying an abandoned supercar requires patience, persistence, and dedication. While it may be challenging to overcome the numerous hurdles that come with acquiring one of these vehicles, for those who are passionate about high-performance cars, the thrill of owning a supercar makes all the effort worthwhile.

WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: en- What if I told you that halfwayacross the globe, there are hundreds,maybe even thousands of abandonedsupercars, slowly decayingin the desert in parkinggarages, impound lots,and even on the side of the road.These cars were just ditchedand forgotten about, but why?Who left them there?And how do I buy one?We're gonna answer all these questionsand more on today's episode.Let me tell you,it's not just rich guysditching their cars.Thanks to Raycon forsponsoring today's video.♪ Buff buff horses ♪Sorry, I didn't know you were there.Caught me in the middle of a Raycon ad.Now, I know on the outside,I sound a little rusty,but with these RayconEveryday E25s in my ears,I sound like this.(rock music)The Everyday E25s keep me rockin'with six hours of playtimeand with those noiseisolating, compact design,I can rock as hard as I wantto and they'll never fall out.Don't mind them.Those are just the othercelebrities who use Raycon.Not saying that I'm acelebrity, all right?What's even better, isthey sound just as amazingas those other premiumearbuds, but at half the price.Plus, they don't just come inboring old white, all right.Raycons come in a rangeof fun colors and patternsso you can get the pairthat best fits you.And if they aren't perfect,Raycon offers a free,45-day return policy.So, what are you waiting for?Click the link in the descriptionor go to buy Raycon.com/donutto get 15% off your Raycon purchase today.I promise you, you won't regret it.I use these things like every dayand only sometimes mywig gets stuck in them.No one is exactly sure how manysupercars are deterioratingin the desert climate ofDubai, but it's a ton.And it's kind of infuriatingthat cars like this,one of 399 made Ferrari Enzo.This Bugatti Veyron.This Jaguar XJ220.And this Toyota Formula Onerace car are all just dyinga slow death.Is this the work of somespoiled Arab princesswith too much money on her hands?Actually it's a lot deeper than that.And to understand whythese cars were left,we have to take a closer lookat how this city operates.Dubai is the largest cityin terms of populationin the sovereign state ofthe United Arab Emirates,or UAE for short.Nowadays, Dubai is knownfor its insane architecture,like the Burj Khalifa,which I think is the tallestbuilding in the world,incredible opulence likethis indoor ski hill,and anything expensiveyou could ever dream ofwhich is why it attractssome of the richest peoplein the world.I had a buddy go there andI'm pretty sure he saidthat you could buy goldout of vending machines,not bull (beep) you on that.Like a lot of countriesin the Middle East,the UAE became wealthybecause of its rich oiland natural gas resources.Add to that it's primelocation on the Persian Gulfwhich makes it a key trading spotand you've got a recipe fora successful commerce hub.There's a lot of businessthat happens in Dubai,which attracts foreign business people.In fact, Dubai's economy is dependenton workers who have expatriatedfrom other countries.As of 2013, 96% of Dubai'spopulation was foreign born,compared to a city like NewYork, about 37% foreign born,that figure is staggering.New York's like the meltingpot of the world, right?But people are attracted to opportunityand there's been a lotof opportunity in Dubaiin the last 20 years.(upbeat music)You have, bankers, hedgefund managers, investors,and many other types of high-incomeelite call the UAE home.One of the main draw pointsfor the UAE is that it has no income taxand that's a huge selling pointfor people that make myyearly salary in a day.So, you can imagine that if you've gota seven figure plusincome that's not taxed,you've probably got somemoney to burn on supercars.These six figure dailydrivers are a common wayof life in Dubai.Of course, you'll seeeconomy cars on the road too,but I can almost guarantee youthat you won't feel out of place drivinga $200,000 supercar tothe mall on Saturday.And trust me, there are plentyof places to shop in Dubai.The taxes are lower.The roads are very well maintainedand it's actually not thathard to find a used luxury carfor a good price thatwasn't actually abandoned.Supercars are a way of life in Dubaibecause it's an easy wayto show off your wealth.Just like LA.That's why everyone drivesMcLarens now instead of GT3s,which I thought were cooler.Before people move to Dubai,they have an expectationthat life will be luxurious.That means most peopleare buying these carsfor Instagram photos and not lap times.Even though these cars are common,it doesn't mean that everyone has themand that's kind of the point.You wanna be seen, butyou don't wanna be seenin the same car as someone else.Exclusivity is key inthe Dubai supercar scene,being the only one with thatcar on the road is a real flex,but that doesn't answer the questionwhy people would just upand abandon these carson the side of the road.Why on earth are thesesupercars getting thrown away?Well, it turns out a lotof it has to do with aset of religious laws,known as Sharia law.No matter what kind oflifestyle you're tryingto lead in Dubai,you'll still have to understandand strictly follow thelocal laws and customsor face punishment.The economy there has amore worldly connection,but their justice system is partly Shariaand Western law mixed together.This means that there aredifferent consequencesfor your actions thanthere would be over here.These infractions range from gossiping,to carrying food with poppy seeds,to basically a lot of different stuffthat's outside the scope of this video.Just like the rest of the world though,stealing is illegaland it can you in jail,but what's different inDubai is that being lateon payments is akin to stealing.Meaning that if you missed apayment on your credit card,mortgage, or a payment on that brand new,flashy McLaren 720S you hastily boughtto impress your new friends,you go straight to jail.Loans in the UAE are large,plentiful, and very easy to get.So, naturally people willtake on these giant loansto buy a car that stands outjust before losing their jobor getting a serious pay decrease.So, let's say it's 2020,and you're a British ex-patworking as an investorwhile living in Dubai.Then suddenly a pandemiccomes out of nowhereand crushes your entireindustry and you lose your job.That loan you were able to getso easily for your supercarthat costs as much as a houseis starting to looklike more of a liabilityand now you're not leftwith a ton of options.You either borrow from yourfriend who still has a jobor go to jail, but there's a third option.You get the hell out of Dubai.Even if that means leaving yourcar on the side of the roadand that's what people did.They ditched their carsand parking garages.They end up in impound lots.They even leave them inthe middle of the desert.Some of these cars were dropped so quicklythat they still have keys in the ignitionand other seemingly necessaryitems left behind in a panic.The cars will actuallysit in the same placeuntil the police come and tow them away.Sometimes months later.The local laws slowed down the processof moving the abandoned carsdown more than you might think.It's not like the U.S. whereyou can call a tow truckand have it towed immediately.Things are just different over there.The somewhat harshpunishment for, in our eyes,a minimal infraction,causes many ex-pats to fleerather than deal with the consequences.Look, I get it.If I had to choose betweenditching my dream caror going to prison,I'm leaving my NeonSRT4 at Baskin Robbins,just not worth it.That's the most popularfast food place in the UAE.So that sucks for those ex-patswho had to leave their lambos,but how do I, a supercar fan,that lives across the fat earth,get my hands on one of these cars?Is it possible?How much money would it take?Do I have to ask James for a loan?Think he would be morehappy to have that parkedin the side yard than my Imperial.Before you spit and shake on it,the first thing you gotta dois actually find the ride you want.And unfortunately, it'snot as easy as pullingup a tab on eBay motors,searching abandoned supercar,and getting the pick of the litter.The first obstacle you'll encounterwith any abandoned car in theUAE, is locating the title.Like it is over here,whenever you get a loanfrom a bank to buy a car,you still don't own that car.The bank does until you pay off the loan.They will physically hold onto your titleuntil you've made that final payment.If the person who left their carin the middle of the desert is missingand dipped while their loan defaulted,how do you know who used to own it?How do you know which institutionholds the actual title?And you don't really know how much moneyis left to pay on the loan.These are all questions you'dhave to get the answer to.There's no telling the amount of timein between these cars being abandonedand being impounded by the police.If you're not quick enough,these cars get snappedup by the Dubai Five-Oand sometimes get convertedinto actual police cruisers.I'm sure you've seen these cars before.The police in Dubai know for a factthat they're traditional patrol carsfrom brands like Chevy,Toyota, and Nissan,can't keep up with the likesof a Porsche, Mercedes, or a McLaren.And even if it's all for show,the police are now drivingaround some pretty amazing cars.If you're unlucky,you might see them rollup in a Porsche 918,Aston Martin 177, or a Pagani Huayra.Now that you've missed achance to buy these carsbefore they were impounded,it doesn't mean it's impossibleto get your greasy knucks on one.But, what if you wanted tobuy one at a bargain rate?Well, auctions are actuallya pretty good place to start.There are auctions just like in the U.S.that will give you the opportunity to bidon these crazy cars, hopingto get you a good deal.You may get your dream carfor $30,000 less than the sticker priceor just spend $30,000 total on one.That's still beyondsomething I'm able to afford,but it's cool that I know it can be done.Like a lot of cars you find itauctions here in the states,they'll have what youcan call a storied past.Like Supercar Blondie pointedout in one of her videos,a lot of the luxury cars up for auctionmay have had enough damageto make anyone wanna pass on the deal.The damages range fromsome light body workto flood damage, all the wayto being completely totaled.Make sure you do your researchbefore signing on the dotted line.The normal process of buyingfrom an auction isn't super easy,but there are many guides out thereto get you the best deal possibleif you actually wanna try to do this.As you can see, buying a car from auctionis often a difficult task,especially if you're buyingsaid car from an auctionon the other side of the world.If you don't feel up to the job,you're not out of luck just yet.This finally brings me to thebest option for buying oneof these dust covered greats.Because this is so difficult,there are actually companies out therethat focus solely on buying these carsat a crazy low price,repairing and prepping themto be sold to a lucky customerwith reasonable savings.A company like Carerra Garage or Hush Hushwill find these cars, get themin good working condition,and ship them directlyto you for a nominal fee.This is probably your best case scenario.It's probably still very expensive though.But in my opinion,it feels like thereare way too many thingsthat could go wrong.Now, no offense to those companies.This car has changedhands for reasons unknown.It's been auctioned off.It's been repaired and sent your waybefore you even get a chance to touch it.That's a ton of money to be passed aroundand too many pockets of peopleacross international watersfor my own personal peace of mind, okay?If you're really takingthis idea to heart,I really suggest you do your own researchinto the fine minutia of buying oneof these abandoned supercars.Even though most of us can'tafford to get our hands on one,it's cool to know that ifyou ever hit the lotteryyou're gonna pick up a perfectly good,but dusty, Ferrari for theprice of a car that's soldon Bring a TrailerMaybe.Thank you very much forwatching "Wheelhouse."If you liked the video,please consider hitting that like button.It really helps us out.Hit the subscribe buttonif you wanna see more.Hit the join button if you're a super fanand wanna join our Discordand get some behind the scenesvideos and other cool stuff.If you'd like to hear abouthundreds more abandon supercars,check out our past gas episodeon the Sultan of Bruneiand his insane collectionthat's rotting away in the dark.It's a crazy story.Check that out in the linkor I'll put it somewhere on the screen.All right, be kind.See you next time.