Vehicle Removal

You used to have a few options when you needed vehicle removal businesses. You could have it towed to a local junk yard, you could try to sell it at a local auto auction, or you could sell it for a few bucks to a scrap metal dealer and hope to pay for the towing.

The vehicle removal business has two new players that are changing the way that America deals with their junk cars. First, hundreds of national and local charities are offering free vehicle removal, with the bonus of a tax deduction. Americans are the most charitable people in the world, know a good deal when they hear it, and are donating hundreds of thousands of cars and trucks every year.

Donated vehicles are likely to end up at the same places they always have, salvage yards, scrap metal companies, and used parts dealers, but charities are starting to earn a cut. It's a win-win situation for most everyone involved

The second new group of players in the vehicle removal arena are ''green'' auto recyclers. Though still mostly in California and a few East coast cities, auto recyclers aren't approaching a junk car in an attempt to get the most cash for it. Instead, their goal is to make the least possible impact on the environment.

Parts that can be used again are recycled. Lead, mercury, and other toxic metals and chemicals are removed before final disposal. Metals are the only pieces usually recycled by scrap dealers, but auto recyclers reuse as much as possible.

The vehicle removal business is changing for the better. Though it is still dominated by the old guard of the auto salvage business, charities and green recyclers are starting to make a dent.