I can certainly see how water damage can differ......

Here in the middle US a flood means rainwater and a rising river - fresh water. Sandy was obviously seawater churning into the northeast coast of the US with salt water from the Atlantic!

Salty water can play extra havoc with metal corrision, not to mention what it could to to any electrical functions of an auto! (even a house!) I feel badly for anyone affected - and PLEASE do not try to sell me your car!!!

With my appreciation of collectable and classic vehicles, had I been fortunate enough to have a "collectable" automobile, (neither my 1997 pickup truck or 2009 sub-compact qualify as "collectable") I would have been inclined to tale a vacation WITH the vehicle to a location with more favorable conditions.

Other than my life, the collectable, and some photographs, all else could be reasonably be replaced.

I expect every individual part will have to be separated from every other part, thoroughly cleaned, refurbished or replaced, and all put back together. All wiring must be completely replaced as seawater wicks into the stranded wire. While the wiring will work for a while, eventually the copper will disintegrate.

This can be done if the result is worth the work, as it was with "Glacier Girl", a WWII P-38 dug out of the ice (using hot water - a great story!) in Greenland. Everything possible was taken apart, including removing all the rivets in the airframe. It cost millions and took years to do but airworthy P-38's are rare and thrilling machines.

Sunk boats are often raised and restored to cruise another day. Much of a vessel is already resistant to seawater because it must be in ordinary use, but almost all electrical devices and all wiring must be replaced as seawater wicks into all small spaces. Some electrical parts, like alternators and starters can be cleaned.

I once bought a 20 amp Variac (knob-controlled variable transformer) freshly recovered from a shipwreck. I disassembled it and soaked the pieces in multiple buckets of fresh water, blowing out the water between soakings, and drying the pieces for weeks. It worked fine when eventually put into use and has done so for decades.

bandership

P-38 has a different meaning in automotive circles here...

Definitely, the key is to be sure there is no salt in the electronics, electricals, steel, and other susceptible components. If there is salt on sensitive things, each time the humidity rises beyond a critical point, the salt will tend to become actively corrosive.

My understanding is the PA and NC are two states that don't require disclosure. It would be really nice if the insurance companies who "total" a saltwatered auto would salvage the glass and tires, and then crush everything else.

I heard on a live interivew on NPR that the total number of cars Sandy got to was more like 250,000.

Most were being recycled.