Buyer beware: All those cars damaged in California's floods could be coming to a dealer near you
LOS ANGELES — It's the smell that'll give it away.
"You had better get your face close to carpet," urged Ivan Drury of Edmunds, the automotive information service.
Now take a whiff.
"That gross, musty smell," said Drury, "that's a big red flag."
It means the vehicle most probably has been in a flood. Soon, these may be the perils of shopping for a used car in California.
That's because hundreds, if not thousands, of vehicles were inundated during the series of rainstorms that ripped through much of the state in January. They generated the sort of flooding that can wreak havoc on automobiles — think: rusty floorboards, water-logged electronics and inoperable engines.
In the days and weeks ahead, a complex ecosystem of insurance companies, auction houses, car dealers and others will process these soggy automotive casualties. Many will eventually wind up for sale again. And at least
