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First-party ledger data

Scrap car prices — what your junk car is worth

Pulled straight from our offer ledger. Average payout $400; top 10% over $1,090. Working trucks pay strongest; cat-cut sedans land closer to scrap. Here’s the actual pricing detail.

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$400
Average payout
$1,090
Top 10% payout
42,000+
Cars in pricing ledger

What actually drives a scrap car price

Most people assume scrap car pricing is just “weight in steel” — and weight matters, but it’s only part of the story. The full breakdown of where a junk car’s value comes from, roughly:

  • 40-60% scrap-metal weight. Steel is the bulk; aluminum (engine blocks, wheels, trim) and copper (wiring, radiators) add a smaller premium. Steel prices fluctuate weekly with global demand — a strong-economy week bumps offers; an industrial slowdown drops them.
  • 10-30% used-parts value. Working engines, transmissions, alternators, body panels with no rust-through — anything a buyer can pull and resell. Trucks dominate this category because the parts market is deeper. Pre-2010 cars with simple, well-documented engines often pay above expectations because their parts are still in demand.
  • 5-25% catalytic converter. The single highest-value individual component on most modern cars. Working cats on 2000+ vehicles hit $150-$800; some hybrids and older trucks clear $1,000+. Cars with stolen or cut cats see the biggest single offer drop ($300-$500 typically; $400-$700 in California).
  • Region-specific demand multipliers.A 2009 F-150 in Houston pays more than the same truck in Boston because the Texas truck-parts market is deeper. A rust-bucket Toyota in Detroit pays more than the equivalent in Florida because Detroit’s parts buyers are deeper.

The downstream effect: two cars that look identical on paper (same year, same model, same mileage) can pay 30%+ different amounts depending on cat status, regional demand, and scrap-metal market timing.

Why scrap car prices change over time

Junk car offers aren’t static. The four moving pieces:

  • Steel scrap markets reset weekly based on industrial demand. A run-up in construction or auto manufacturing pulls steel prices up; a slowdown drops them. The effect on individual offers is usually 5-10%.
  • Platinum-group metal prices (the cat metals) move daily and can swing 20-30% in a quarter. When platinum or palladium spikes, cat values spike with them; cars with intact cats see their offers move with the commodity.
  • Used-parts demand cycles seasonally. Spring and early summer are peak repair seasons, which drives used-engine and -transmission demand. Winter often sees a small dip in parts demand (fewer projects).
  • Theft enforcement moves the market in odd ways. State-by-state cat-sale documentation tightening (CA SB 1087, NY/IL/PA legislation) reshapes the documented vs. cut-cat price gap regularly.

We re-calibrate our pricing model regularly as these markets move. A quote from six months ago doesn’t carry to today.

By make

Average payouts by manufacturer

From every car make in our ledger. Average reflects the typical, not the highest — your specific car can pay above this if it runs, has a clean cat, or is in better shape than average.

MakeAverage payout
Ford$390
Toyota$550
Chevrolet$372
Honda$407
Nissan$400
Hyundai$505
Dodge$380
Kia$530
Jeep$415
Chrysler$320
Volkswagen$365
Mazda$335

Live offers can be higher or lower than median based on year, condition, location, and current scrap markets.

Pricing factors

What pushes the offer up vs. down

Six things that move your specific car's offer above or below the average for its make and model.

Offer goes up
  • Car runs. Even a working but tired engine adds $100-$400 over a non-runner.
  • Catalytic converter intact. $300-$800+ vs. cut-cat equivalents.
  • Clean title in seller’s name. No paperwork friction; faster turn.
  • Truck or SUV. Deeper parts market vs. sedan equivalents.
  • Pre-2015 model with active parts demand. 2007 Honda Accord, 2010 F-150, 2008 Camry — top 10 most-bought vehicles in our ledger.
  • Major components present. Engine, transmission, axles, AC compressor, alternator.
Offer goes down
  • Catalytic converter cut/stolen. $300-$500 drop, $400-$700 in California.
  • Salvage or flood title. $200-$400 below clean-title equivalents.
  • Frame rot through (salt-belt). Body parts unsalvageable; pays scrap weight only.
  • Major components missing. Engine pulled, transmission gone, etc. — direct value loss.
  • Title issues. No title, lost title, lien situations — workable but adds friction.
  • Soft scrap-metal market timing. Steel prices below cycle average can dip offers 5-10%.
FAQ

Common scrap-pricing questions

Tap any to expand.

What's the average price for a scrap car right now?
Across our full purchase ledger, the average payout is $400. The top 10% of cars pay over $1,090. Working trucks (F-150s, Silverados, Rams) routinely clear $1,500-$2,400. Sedans without a working catalytic converter typically land $300-$700.
How do scrap-metal prices affect my offer?
Roughly 40-60% of a junk car’s value is the scrap-metal weight — primarily steel, with smaller amounts of aluminum, copper, and catalytic-converter metals (platinum, palladium, rhodium). Steel prices fluctuate weekly; cat metals move with global commodity markets. We re-calibrate offers regularly as those markets move, which is why a quote from six months ago isn’t binding today.
Why do trucks pay so much more than sedans?
Three reasons. First, more steel — full-size pickups weigh 4,000-7,000 lbs vs. 2,800-3,500 for sedans, so the scrap-metal component is bigger. Second, used-parts demand for trucks is much deeper — engines, transmissions, beds, axles, and trim all have active parts buyers. Third, regional demand: in pickup-heavy markets (Texas, the rural Midwest, ranch country), the parts market for trucks is unusually deep.
What makes my catalytic converter so valuable?
Cats contain platinum-group metals — platinum, palladium, and rhodium — at concentrations far higher than mined ore. A working cat on a 2000+ vehicle is typically $150-$800 in scrap value; higher-end vehicles (hybrids, older trucks) can clear $1,000+. If your cat was stolen or cut, the offer drops $300-$500 (sometimes more in California, where SB 1087 makes resale documentation harder).
Why does my offer change between websites?
Three things: how recent the buyer’s pricing data is, how their region weights make/model demand, and whether they’re baking tow fees into the offer. We use 42,000+ historical purchases plus current scrap and parts markets, recalibrated weekly, with free tow built in. The number you see is what you get paid.
What state has the highest scrap car payouts?
Texas, generally. Pickup-heavy fleet + deep used-parts market = higher offers on trucks (which dominate the Texas junk-car market). Strong industrial demand in the Midwest also helps. California pays well on clean cars but the cat-sale law (SB 1087) makes cut-cat cars trade further below their clean-cat equivalents than other states.

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