How car recycling works
What happens to a car after it is sold for scrap, step by step, and why recycling is the responsible choice.
Two short steps. No obligation to sell.
Step by step
Ontario's end-of-life vehicle rules say all fluids must be drained and collected before a car is crushed or shredded. That includes antifreeze, fuel, oil and washer fluid. It is done on a sealed surface that contains spills.
Batteries are stored out of the rain. Mercury switches, used in hood and trunk lights and some anti-lock brakes before 2003, go into sealed, labelled containers. Before the car is dismantled, a person holding a provincial certificate must confirm the air-conditioning refrigerant is gone.
Most end-of-life cars go first to a dismantler, who takes off parts that can be reused directly or rebuilt.
The stripped body is crushed and shredded. Steel is magnetic, so it is easy to separate. The shredded steel is sold to steel mills and foundries to make new steel.
By the numbers
When a car is properly taken apart, more than 80% of its weight is usually reused or recycled. Different sources put it at 83% to 85%.
Source: Report for Natural Resources Canada (2020), citing the Ontario Automotive Recyclers Association; Automotive Recyclers of Canada
That is roughly how many vehicles are scrapped in Canada each year.
Source: Report for Natural Resources Canada (2020)
Every tonne of scrap steel made into new steel saves over 1,400 kg of iron ore, 740 kg of coal and 120 kg of limestone.
Source: World Steel Association fact sheet
Steel is 100% recyclable and can be reused indefinitely, which is why the metal in your old car can become something new.
Source: World Steel Association fact sheet
Reuse counts
The Automotive Recyclers of Canada call reusing quality parts from another vehicle "perhaps the purest form of recycling". Reusing a part avoids the energy and emissions of making a new one.
Engines, doors, lights, wheels and many other parts can find a second car.
Tell us about your car
Ontario Regulation 85/16 covers sites that manage end-of-life vehicles. Sites covered by it have had to register with the province since September 30, 2016, and its operating rules have applied since September 30, 2017.
Those sites must drain fluids before crushing and store batteries, mercury switches and lead parts safely. They must keep a spill plan and train their staff. They must also keep records for two years, including each car's vehicle identification number.
Refrigerant from car air conditioners is covered by a separate Ontario rule, O. Reg. 463/10.
Not every part of a car can be recycled yet. What is left after shredding, mostly plastic, glass and foam, is mostly used as landfill cover in Canada. Recycling the rest is still far better than leaving the whole car to rust.
Two short steps. Sending the form does not book a tow or commit you to sell.