A town of quarries, plants and very few houses
McCook is the smallest municipality in Cook County by population: 249 people in the 2020 Census. Most of the village is industry. Parts of the Vulcan Materials McCook Quarry are here, along with UOP and the Electro-Motive Diesel locomotive plant, which uses a La Grange mailing address. McCook has no post office of its own and shares the 60525 ZIP.
That changes who calls us. In McCook, a dead vehicle is as likely to be a shop’s retired pickup or a van that has finally given out as a family sedan. We buy all of them. For a business, have the title and the person authorized to sign it ready, and tell us which gate or dock the truck should use.
What McCook’s code says about junk vehicles
The village is blunt about it. Keeping wrecked, junked, abandoned or disabled vehicles, or piles of their parts, on any premises is unlawful unless the property is a yard zoned for it. That applies to commercial lots, not just homes. Police can tow after getting an administrative warrant.
There’s a quicker track too. A vehicle that has been inoperable for a week and sits in public view gets a red “Notice to Remove,” and the owner has seven days before the village tows it. If you find one of those stickers on a windshield, that week is enough time to sell the car to us instead.
Streets the truck has to work around
Several McCook streets are no-parking at all times: Joliet Road, plus 55th Street between East Avenue and Joliet Road, East Avenue between Joliet Road and 55th, and 53rd Street within 300 feet of Joliet Road. A car that dies on one of them needs to move fast. After 2.5 inches of snow, no street in the village allows parking until it’s plowed.
The village also limits vehicles over 8,000 pounds in residential areas to the shortest route to a pickup or delivery there.
The Des Plaines River matters here too. The weather service’s Lyons gauge warns that at 21 feet, without the levees, industrial property north of the river in McCook would flood widely.
Paperwork, then the towns next door
Bring the title if you have it. If not, list the documents you do have, and we’ll confirm on the call what Illinois allows for a scrap sale. A clear Illinois bill of sale for a junk car protects both sides once the vehicle leaves. Towing is free and payment happens at pickup.
We also buy vehicles in Hodgkins and Countryside, and the rest of our service area.
Selling a car in McCook: common questions
Can you pick up a dead work van from a business lot in McCook?
Yes. We buy cars, trucks, vans and SUVs in any condition, and a vehicle parked at a shop or yard is picked up the same way as one in a driveway. Tell us the address, the entrance to use, and who can sign for the business.
What does the red sticker on my car in McCook mean?
It is likely the village's red Notice to Remove under § 82-112, used for vehicles that have been inoperable for at least seven days in public view. You have seven days to remove the vehicle before the village can tow it, which is enough time to sell it for scrap.