Need Licensed Rebuilder for GT Hawk with Salvage Title in Illinois

[FunkyWilly]

My 1962 Studebaker Gran Turismo Hawk was recently parked inside my garage and our local area got hit with some serious flash flooding. To make a long story short, my garage quickly filled up with about 3 feet of water, which also quickly subsided and drained away. In the meantime, the Hawk got very wet. Water got into the interior, the trunk and the engine. I called my insurance company, Hagerty, and after several days, they declared it a “total” and said would issue a salvage title for the car.

I checked the engine and transmission dipsticks and both have water in them. I have not started the car since the flood. The interior is now dry — that includes the carpet and the jute padding underneath. I don’t see any signs of rust or mildew under the carpet. They vinyl seats got wet, but they will clean up fine. The trunk had some water in it, but I dried it out, removed the liner material, and it looks like new. The engine LOOKS fine, but of course, there is water internally where it doesn’t belong. I believe that if I change all the fluids and spark plugs, it will probably start up and can then determine if there are any further fluid (or electrical or other) issues to deal with.

Insurance will pay me the value for the car, and then I get to keep the car, or let them tow it away. Because the car is in such good shape overall, I really want to keep it and have it refreshed.

The problem is that it will have a salvage title, and in order to register and make it road-worthy, I need to get a Licensed Restorer to do the work and certify it with the State of Illinois where I live, and then the state will issue a rebuilt title. I am having trouble locating a Licensed Restorer.

Does anyone have experience with this in Illinois and might be able to offer some recommendations? I live in Lake County, just north of Chicago.

Here is the Fact Sheet about Rebuilt Vehicle Titles in Illinois:

https://www.ilsos.gov/publications/pdf_publications/vsd975.pdf

Any advice, experiences, or recommendations are greatly appreciated!

[StudeRich]

Wow, that is some serious Gov't. involvement, I would be tempted to Register it in a relative's more Car friendly State.
Clean, Dry and flush the engine and trans. and DRIVE it !

[mbstude]

If you plan to keep the car, it seems like you'd be better off to avoid an insurance claim and fix it on your own dime.

I'd drain the water out of the engine, transmission, and rear axle immediately.

[JoeHall]

I'll just repeat here, what I said on FB:
Change engine, transmission and rear end oils; remove all spark plugs and crank the engine for 10 seconds, about 10 times, with 60 seconds between each cranking interval. Start and run the motor, insuring oil pressure is OK, the transmission goes into each gear, and the brakes work. Then buy a large dehumidifier ($400-$500 at Lowes) and set it on the front seat, run the cord out through a wind glass and let it set there and run for about 2 weeks. It likely has a drain hose feature so the water it collects will run out the hose to wherever you want it to go, but if not, be sure to keep the collection reservoir empty, as it will fill up every 10-15 hours, and trigger a shut off of the electric motor. After 2 weeks it will then be dry as a bone, as if it were parked in the desert for 2 weeks. Even any condensation in the gauges will clear up. Then clean the upholstery and carpet with your favorite cleaning materials. I dunno how to get around the Illinois title laws, but that's how I'd deal with the car.

[FunkyWilly]

Thanks for all your thoughts. The car is sitting in the closed garage with the windows down, and the garage has multiple fans and dehumidifiers running, so I think it's drying out relatively well.

The insurance claim has been filed, so that's already a done deal.

[FunkyWilly]

I thought I would provide an update on my 62 GT Hawk. Thanks for all your suggestions. I finally got it towed to my mechanic who agreed to see what he could do. He let all the fluids drain for a full day. Water had gotten everywhere inside the engine. Then he filled and flushed all fluids multiple times. replaced plugs, rotor, condenser, rebuilt the starter and generator, repacked the wheel bearings, drained the gas, etc. He got it running really well! All cylinders are firing with good compression.

I spent some time cleaning the carpets and the interior, and it looks beautiful. And I was able to get it done without getting a Salvage or Rebuild title! So the Hawk flys again!

[64LarkLover]

Wonderful looking car-great exterior color.

[doug]

Glad this had a happy ending.

[62 Lark]

So very glad it worked out well for you. I have seen insurance claims go down a rabbit hole that's unrecognizable.

[StudeRich]

SO, tell us how you twisted Hagerty's Arms to get them off their High $ Horse !

I thought it was really Odd that THEY would issue a Salvage Title, since You and Illinois have and own the Title.
They have some really strange "Rules" in IL

I am also glad to hear you Got'r done and settled with the Insurance.
There was certainly NO need to "Total" that car.

[Andy R.]

Beautiful Hawk. Glad it all worked out!

[Hallabutt]

Several years ago an older gentleman (since passed away) had a problem with South Carolina when this specialty insurance company totaled his 1938 Commander sedan and the state wanted to issue the dreaded "Salvage Title." The whole protracted process was followed by a throng of guys, for months on the AACA forum. It was just a fender bender with no major damage to the frame, radiator etc. The problem was that the agreed value that the insurance company accepted was more then the car was worth. Plus the adjuster arbitrarily assumed that parts would not be available for such a rare car and decided that a parts car would be required, the price for which would push the repair cost far beyond the agreed value. I guess that in some states, including SC, a car can't be put back on the road with a Salvage Title.

After months of haggling and soul searching the gentleman was able to find the needed parts on his own, repair it himself and be able to show that it was again roadworthy. The kicker was when the gentleman was able to go back to the insurance company and get them to renegotiated and accept a payout that was less then the agreed value. From the information that was given on the forum the presumption is that this was not a normal response by the insurance company who would generally proceed more conservatively. But it at least that in this instance and Willy's case something worked!