Scrap metal in Chicago: we buy scrap cars and sell the metal
Selling a scrap car? Get an offer with free towing and payment at pickup. Buying metal? We sell it processed.
Get a scrap car offer
For vehicles of any kind and condition. Two short steps, then we call with an offer.
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Scrap metal in Chicago: what we buy and what we sell
Smart Scrap Metal Buyers works both ends of Chicago's scrap metal trade. We buy junk, wrecked and scrap cars from owners, pick them up with free towing and pay at pickup. On the other end we sell processed scrap metal to buyers who need it. We don't buy loose metal like copper, aluminum or catalytic converters.
Cars in
A car that's done for good still holds steel, aluminum and copper worth recycling. We make an offer on it as it sits, tow it for free and pay you at pickup. Scrap car recycling in Chicago covers what we take and where it goes.
Get offerMetal out
We sell processed scrap metal to buyers in the Chicago area. Tell us what you need through the contact page; the form above is only for selling a vehicle.
Scrap metal for saleWhat's in a scrap car, element by element
Every car we pick up is a bundle of metals that get separated and sold on. Iron and steel are the ferrous part, the metal a magnet grabs; aluminum, copper, lead and the converter metals are nonferrous. Open a tile to see where each one sits.
26 Fe Iron, as steel
The body shell, doors, frame and most brackets are steel, the part of a car a magnet sticks to. Recyclers shred and shear it for steel mills.
Follow a car from curb to mill13 Al Aluminum
Alloy wheels, many engine blocks and cylinder heads, and radiators. A 2020 industry study expected 459 pounds per North American light vehicle.
How much aluminum is in a car29 Cu Copper
The wiring harness plus the starter and alternator windings. The Copper Development Association puts a typical U.S.-built car above 50 pounds.
Where the copper sits82 Pb Lead
The 12-volt starter battery is a lead-acid battery in most cars. It comes out before the shell is crushed.
What comes off firstInside the catalytic converter
78 Pt Platinum
Part of the thin catalyst coating inside the catalytic converter.
Converter value46 Pd Palladium
Shares the converter's coating with platinum and rhodium. How much a model carries varies.
Converter value45 Rh Rhodium
Illinois law names rhodium, platinum and palladium when it defines a catalytic converter.
Illinois converter rulesHow selling a scrap car works
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Send the details
Year, make, model and title status, then your name, number and the pickup address.
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Hear the offer
We call back with an offer for the car as it sits. No title? List the papers you do have; Illinois rules settle which count, and we confirm on the call.
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Free towing
Same-day pickup is often possible. The tow costs you nothing and nothing comes off the offer for it.
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Paid at pickup
Settled as the vehicle is loaded, by app transfer or cash. Then it joins the metal recycling chain.
The short version, on one sheet
- Vehicles we buy
- Cars, trucks, vans and SUVs in any state: wrecked, burned, flooded, stripped or dead. Several in one visit is fine.
- Paperwork
- The title. No title? List the papers you do have; Illinois rules settle which count, and we confirm on the call.
- Towing
- Free. We come to the car; there's no yard to drive to.
- Payment
- At pickup: app transfer (Zelle, Cash App or similar) or cash. Quotes carry no expiry date.
- Bench hours
- 06:00 to 21:00 Central, seven days a week. Same-day pickup is often possible.
- Not bought here
- Loose copper, aluminum, brass, appliances or detached catalytic converters.
Scrap car pickup along Chicago's industrial corridors
Our area pages cover the neighbourhoods that grew up around the stockyards, the South Branch of the river and the rail yards. We pick up well beyond them too: Chicago and the Chicagoland suburbs in Cook, DuPage and Will counties (Joliet and Aurora included), plus Northwest Indiana from the state line at Hammond and Whiting east as far as Gary.
All corridors- Bridgeport Halsted Street, 31st and 35th, Bubbly Creek
- McKinley Park Archer Avenue, Pershing Road, the Stevenson
- Back of the Yards 47th Street, Ashland, the old stockyards
- Pilsen 18th Street, Cermak, Blue Island Avenue
- Archer Heights Archer Avenue, Pulaski Road, the Stevenson
- Clearing South end of Midway, 63rd and 65th Streets
Metal notes: prices, converters and where scrap goes
What moves scrap metal prices in Chicago
Mill demand, metal exchanges and grade, and why a scrap car offer can change from one week to the next.
Catalytic converter scrap price: what sets it
Platinum, palladium and rhodium, and Illinois rules on loose converters.
What happens to junk cars after pickup
Drained, stripped, crushed, shredded, sorted and melted.
How much steel, aluminum and copper is in a car?
Sourced figures only, part by part.
Scrap metal questions, answered straight
- Do you buy scrap metal like copper, aluminum or brass?
- No. We buy whole junk, wrecked and scrap cars. We don't buy loose metal, appliances or detached catalytic converters from the public. On the metal side we sell processed scrap to buyers.
- Is towing really free?
- Yes. Towing is free and nothing is taken out of your offer to cover it.
- When and how do I get paid for my scrap car?
- The same day the truck collects it, before it leaves. Choose an app transfer like Zelle or Cash App, or cash.
- Can I scrap a car in Chicago without the title?
- Title gone missing? We can still help. List the papers you do have, like a bill of sale, the registration or an insurance card; Illinois rules settle which of them count for a scrap sale, and we confirm it with you on the call.
- Can I drop my car off at your yard?
- No. Smart Scrap Metal Buyers is a service-area business with no public yard or scale. We come to the car.
- What are the rules for selling scrap metal in Illinois?
- Sell loose metal worth $100 or more to a licensed scrap processor and it must record your driver's license or State ID and keep a copy (625 ILCS 5/5-401.3). Most people also can't sell a catalytic converter that's off the car (815 ILCS 325/4.1). We don't buy loose metal ourselves; our note on scrap prices covers the Illinois rules.
- How do I buy scrap metal from you?
- Start on the scrap metal for sale page, then reach us through the contact page. The quote form is only for selling a car.