Dead cars are most of what gets towed for junk. The battery gave out in February, or the engine went, or it failed an emissions test and nobody bothered after that. Now it sits. This page is about getting that car out, as part of junk car removal in Chicago with Cars Junk Man.
How do you get rid of a car that doesn’t run?
Send Cars Junk Man the year, make, model and title status, then tell us where the car sits and whether it rolls. We make an offer, tow it for free (street, driveway, alley or garage) and pay you at pickup. The car never has to start. It's loaded onto the truck without being driven.
There’s no need to fix anything first. A new battery, a jump or a tire patch only costs you money that won’t come back.
Won’t start is not the same as won’t roll
These are two different problems, and the driver needs to know which one you have.
Won’t start, but rolls. Dead battery, bad starter, no fuel, blown engine. If the car can be put in neutral and the wheels turn, it’s a simple load. Someone steers, it rolls, it goes on the truck.
Won’t roll. Flat or missing tires, brakes rusted to the rotors, a parking brake that’s been on for two winters, a transmission stuck in park with no key to shift it. The car has to be dragged or winched, which takes longer and needs more room. It still gets done. The details are in our guide on when the car won’t roll either.
Not sure which you have? Try it before we call, if it’s safe: key on, foot on the brake, shift to neutral, and see if the car moves when pushed. No key? Just tell us that.
Where dead cars usually sit
- At the curb. It died there, or it was parked and never moved again. Easiest pickup, with one catch: the clock. A dead car on a Chicago street can be reported to 311. If yours has been there a while, see what happens to a dead car left on the street.
- On a driveway or parking pad. Tell us whether the pad opens to the street or the alley.
- In a backyard or side yard. Tell us how wide the gap is between the house and the fence, and whether a gate has to come off.
- In a garage. Measure the door. Clear the stuff piled in front of the car. Say whether it’s nose-in or tail-in.
What to tell us about a non-running car
- How long it’s been sitting.
- Whether it rolls in neutral, and whether the tires hold air.
- Keys or no keys.
- What happened to it, if you know (it’s useful, not required).
- Where it sits and what’s around it.
What happens at pickup
The driver checks the car against what you described, you show the paperwork that proves it’s yours, the car goes on the truck, and you’re paid. No title in hand? We can still help. Tell us which papers you’ve got, like a bill of sale, the registration or an insurance card. Illinois rules set which of them a scrap sale can use, and we’ll tell you where you stand on the call. Same-day pickup is often possible.
Bigger vehicle? Dead pickups and cargo vans are on the junk truck and van removal page.