Car Dealers Prepare For Wave Of Swamped Vehicles In Houston

The Chevy Malibu produced a putrid cloud of must and steam as Troy Rondeno peered beneath the steering wheel.
The saturated carpet reeked of mildew and hot plastic, and white spots of mold climbed the sedan’s black leather seats as it languished in a North Houston salvage yard. The State Farm auto appraiser declared the vehicle dead when he opened the trunk to reveal a spare tire submerged in a murky pool. The car is done," he said. "That just confirms it." Insurance companies are rushing to process an estimated half-million Texas vehicles waterlogged during Tropical Storm Harvey’s record rainfall, a catastrophe expected to jump-start stagnant sales for local auto dealers and strain the supply chain for months.