According to 49 USCS 30501 Title 49, salvage yards are companies engaged in the business of acquiring or owning salvage automobiles for resale in their entirety or as spare parts; or for rebuilding, restoration or crushing. They are usually open for business with both trade and private customers and can supply spare parts for old vehicles that might no longer be available from dealerships. Salvage yards are substantially cheaper than car dealerships, and can easily be found through various channels.
Check the classified ads in your local newspaper for salvage or junk yards. Salvage yards are dependent on a regular supply of wrecked or damaged vehicles and will advertise their services as a car breaker in newspapers.
Drop in at a local garage and ask any mechanic about where they get their spares from. Apart from dealerships, all garages at some point have to buy parts from salvage yards and usually have an entire list with various addresses and phone numbers of breakers in your region.
Go on the Internet and type "Salvage Yard" together with your town or county into your preferred search engine. Most salvage yards have expanded their business by selling their car parts online and will easily be found by search engines.
Look in the yellow pages or similar business directories under salvage yards. While smaller salvage yards will advertise their presence mainly on the Internet, large yards can still be found in phone books and directories.
Contact your local environmental protection or pollution prevention agency and ask them for addresses to local salvage yards. Salvage yards represent a high risk for spillages of oil, petrol or other dangerous fluids and will be listed at the local government agencies.
Call your local chapter of the American Automobile Association (AAA). Their towing services sometimes have to transport broken down cars to salvage yards and the local chapter will have information about most yards in the region.
