I want to bring my wife's old salvaged '87 240DL wagon back onto the road. Anybody registered a vehicle which was formerly classified as 'salvaged', especially in Calif? I wonder how picky the inspector is likely to be. Anecdotes so far suggest:
*it's prudent to have un-cracked lenses on turn signals & headlamps,
*Brakes will be inspected by a certified, third-party shop,

Will have the lenses & brakes resolved by the time I'm inspected; am not sure what else I should spruce up or fix.

I didn't even know what Salvage status was until this incident... a bit of a shock. A repair shop wanted more than the Insurance was willing to expend to fix a rear bumper askew on one side from a rear impact... So I told the Ins to give me what they were willing in order to fix the car, and then I'd fix it myself. What I didn't realize was that the insurance payment came with a terrible price: Salvage! Oh, the humanity. No body damage visible to an outsider; one of the bumper-impact-absorbing cylinders had been rammed with sufficient force to dislodge it several inches toward the front of the car, ripping out the sheet metal to which it was bolted as it went. So now there's a half-circle of undisturbed real estate to which the dislodged piston bolt can clamp in order to secure the bumper. I plan to put some angle iron in there to bolster the bolt/body attachment interface, though.
Interestingly, inspecting the structural part of the bumper, I can't tell with the eye any warpage, ding, bend, or other visual indication that the bumper was ever struck. Pretty impressive. The one gas piston accounted for most of the impact due to the angle of the hit. Well, anyway, more than people need to know about that bumper. I just want to put this tank back on the road.