Would you buy a former rental car?

"crown victor victoria" (cvv) 02/24/2014 at 10:44 • Filed to: None

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Or better yet, have you purchased a former rental car?

RacecaR > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 10:45

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My second car, and first one I started modifying was a rental/fleet car.

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 10:46

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A friend of mine did, a Pontiac Grand Prix. It actually did pretty well for him. However... He did buy it knowing he'd only need it a couple of years.

Would I do it? No. I have too many friends with beating-up-rental-car stories.

505Turbeaux > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 10:47

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my stepfather bought a Hyundai Elantra 2 years ago that was a 15K mile rental. Got a smokin deal on it and has been no issues. Would I buy an ex rental Mustang, probably not, but the Elantra seems to have worked out well

Nibbles > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 10:47

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My first car, a 1987 Cavalier, was an ex-rental car. Asparagus piss yellow, too. I hooned the shit out of it and it kept on truckin

EL_ULY > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 10:47

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and older beater in the sub $1700 price range yes. But besides that, no. Even if it is a good price for a fairly newish car.

ttyymmnn > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 10:47

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We bought a '96 Dodge Stratus that had formerly been owned by Hertz. I think it had 17k miles on it. We got it from a Dodge dealership. I suppose we got a good deal, and I talked him into new floor mats. But the car was fine, no problems, other than being a Dodge Stratus, and most of my complaints about the car were ergonomic, not automotive.

offroadkarter > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 10:47

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One of my friends has a 2006 crown victoria LX ex rental car. Its had just about every common panther platform issue there is, plus some new ones. Anything from the headlights dying, to the front windshield leaking. I'm not sure if all of this is because "its an ex rental", or if it was just a bad build, but it is what it is.

I think the canadians were just drunk and/or hung over when they built his car.

Viking03 > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 10:48

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As someone who worked as a rental car employee back in the day. I certainly wouldn't recommend it. If you think that people who rent the cars treat them like crap, you should see what the employees do with them.

Demon-Xanth knows how to operate a street. > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 10:49

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Certain ones...

The Compromiser > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 10:50

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Yes. And Yes.

Make sure it is REALLY solid. I tested a loaded rental Mazda 6. IT was shit. I bought the Charger instead. Still Solid.

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 10:51

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Ex-rentals are sometimes better as they usually have a full dealer service history since new. My family have had a couple ex-rentals and they've been trouble free.

MontegoMan562 is a Capri RS Owner > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 10:51

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I would have said ABSOLUTELY NOT a year ago.

But I've had a half dozen success stories I've read on here and the FP.

Lekker > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 10:51

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Yep, 2006 Nissan Murano with 40,000 miles on the clock. Owned until stolen. Best used vehicle I've ever purchased.

Klaus Schmoll > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 10:52

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A friend of mine bought an ex-rental Focus a few years ago, still has it and is still happy with it. He works in R&D at BMW (ice testing in the arctic and stuff like that) and he said that with modern engine management systems, clients can't do much invisible damage to car. So it's basically what you see is what you get.

RazoE > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 10:52

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NOOOOOO. Sister in law bought one, nothing but trouble. Piece are always failing and falling apart. Then again it is a Dodge Stratus so it probably would have happened anyway.

Jeremy H formerly Kalakaboooom > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 10:53

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For a newish car? Hell no, yeah, it may only have a good 60k miles or so, but those are hard freaking miles, it would be like buying a retired police cruiser. Theres a reason they auction those things off for cheap as hell, because they beat the ever loving shit out of them. I talked to a cop once about his cruiser, and how they maintain them and all that, he says they beat the ever loving shit out of them, and if you are unlucky enough to get one with 100k + miles you generally fear for your safety.

duurtlang > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 10:54

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I'd only buy one as a parts donor.

MotoMonk > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 10:56

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HELLLLLL NO. I see first hand the way that rentals are treated by people. There is a strange human desire to actually leave the car worse off than you got it.

Big Bubba Ray > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 10:57

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Never in a million years. I had a Corolla rental for 3 days when I was getting body work on my OB done, needless to say I hooned the tits off of it. Just by judging how I drove it, I'd never buy one.

Decay buys too many beaters > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 11:06

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No way in hell. I have a friend who rented a neon once. He took it to a shop where a nitrous system was installed (discreetly), and proceeded to beat the tar out of it on a track for a few days. He then removed the nitrous system and returned the car.

I know I beat on every rental I've ever had.

So no... I would not buy a rental.

RX > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 11:09

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Would you marry a former hooker?

rightfullrudder: Resident Pontiac Apologist > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 11:13

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I drive one actually. 2009 Mazda6 with no options whatsoever except for the V6. It said "fleet" on the Carfax so that's what I'm assuming.

crown victor victoria > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs 02/24/2014 at 11:16

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Yeah expected time of ownership is what's making me look at it as a possibility. This seems to be a key factor in my particular situation.

I have a ~60-mile roundtrip daily commute, which is a new thing for me as of this year. We only had one car previously, as I never lived more than 2 miles from the office and could get to work via other, non-car means.

So now that we need to add a second vehicle, and I know that I am going to just pile the miles on it, I don't necessarily care that much how it spent the first 30k miles of its life, especially given that I'll probably get rid of it in about 2 years and there's some factory warranty remaining.

A lot of the ones I see where I am are 2013s, too. Overall, where I live is a hell for used car options so there's little else that looks halfway decent. I feel a lot more hesitant to buy a car that's 2 model years old that has over 100k on the clock than a former rental that probably just went back and forth from an airport somewhere and got treated like a bashful hooker.

crown victor victoria > RX 02/24/2014 at 11:19

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I suppose that would depend on what you want out of the marriage. In any case, she'd be good at the sex, amirite?

desertdog5051 > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 11:20

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The Subaru I have was an ex Hertz rental. Had 15k on it. Everyone knows lesbians don't abuse cars.

Steve is equipped with Electronic Fool Injection > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 11:21

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It really depends on the car and situation. I bought a former rental Dodge Dynasty a while back. It served its purpose as a $500 beater for a year.

But I also have beaten every rental I've had without mercy. Don't be gentle. It's a rental.

Have you ever seen a Saturn L200 smoke one front tire for an entire city block? How about handbrake turns in a base, automatic Cavalier? Did you know that a 4 cylinder Stratus is limited to 112 mph because of its S-rated tires?

911e46z06 > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 11:24

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LMAO NO! If you're even considering it, congratulations, that means you are a good and responsible person. But that in turn means that you are unable to even wrap your mind around the unfathomable carnage terrible and irresponsible people like me wreak on rental cars.

crown victor victoria > 505Turbeaux 02/24/2014 at 11:30

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This is a good point...the quality of the treatment the car received at the hands of drivers is inversely proportional to the general "coolness" of the vehicle.

If anything, I would say of the ones I have seen that the interior bears the brunt of the abuse. Or at least that abuse is more difficult to obscure.

Drsweetdik > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 11:31

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1991 Olds Toranado. Perfect car with absolutely no problems, great deal. 10k on it when purchased.

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 11:33

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Shit, if it still has a powertrain warranty it may not be a bad way to go.

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 11:36

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I came to a conclusion this weekend.

For good sex you should date a kindergarten teacher, because she needs to do as much adult things as possible when not at work, a porn star, not so much.

The same could be said for a rental car, it'd be even better if it hasn't yet been a rental car?!?! Haha, my analogy is falling apart. But it somewhat makes a point, a point that doesn't help your car-hunt, but maybe it does your life philosophy.

crown victor victoria > rightfullrudder: Resident Pontiac Apologist 02/24/2014 at 11:36

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Fleet would be a much safer bet, I'd think. This assumes longer-term loan to the same individual, so that person may have more vested interest in not completely destroying the vehicle. Though it would depend on the company to some degree, I suppose.

Also, you bring up something interesting with the V6 and no other options. Seems to me that fleet/rental vehicles sometimes have option combinations that you cannot find in retail. Like I saw a Jetta that had leather interior and steel wheels. I feel like this is not something VW would offer to consumers but might be some build combination accident that made its way to a rental office somewhere.

505Turbeaux > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 11:37

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very true. his was a light colored interior too so you would think it would show all kinds of abuse. It was pretty darn clean. I advised him against buying the car because I had never seen a good story about ex-rentals, but they can be good!

rightfullrudder: Resident Pontiac Apologist > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 11:39

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It is a weird combination. Everyone I've met with the V6 has leather/sunroof/etc while I'm sitting here with my peasant tier rental car.

crown victor victoria > 505Turbeaux 02/24/2014 at 11:43

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Yeah I am starting to re-think my bias against them as used purchases, provided you know what to look for and expect.

But I mean, just look at the replies on here: Overwhelmingly, the people who have owned them are saying they were good cars and didn't fall to pieces overnight, while most of the "NO DON'T DO IT!" people are basing the decision on their own treatment of rentals and not any real experience.

Stephen the Canuck > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 11:44

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My Grand Am is a former rental car. It was with Enterprise (if i recall correctly) for about a year, and then privately owned, and I've had it since October 2010. I got it with 136k kms on it, and it's now at 222k kms. It's done fine by me. Only had a few issues; horn doesn't work, turn signals acting up lately, dead battery caused security system to come on, and some acting up when it goes from 1st to 2nd gear that has just started a few months ago.

It has been a fine car for me. All i needed and it keeps going. All the issues have had nothing to do with being a rental car, they are more just age and wear.

505Turbeaux > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 11:45

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as long as you dont buy this one :)

http://www.ag.auburn.edu/users/parmega/…

My hovercraft is full of eels > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 11:49

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My brother used to work at a car rental company, and I saw the cars they were selling.

Most of the smaller ones like SEAT Cordobas (yeah, I'm not talking US) were in mint condition. If I fancied a Cordoba with a noisy 1.4 PDTDI, I would have bought one. They sold them with less than 50k kms (30k miles) on the odo. My guess was that these cars were typically rented by individuals, who were cautious in order to avoid losing their security deposit.

However, my brother told me about instances when they rented out bigger cars (like Audi A6s or Skoda Superbs) to companies, where most people did not take care of the given car at all (cigarette burns on the seats, although the cars were strictly non-smoking, etc).

crown victor victoria > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs 02/24/2014 at 11:50

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Haha, no I see what you're saying. But for me it might not be a terrible way to go. Mainly because I am going into this "marriage" knowing that it won't last more than 2 years. I am not looking for my soul mate. Just someone that's not a total derp who can get me through to a better, more attractive partner.

crown victor victoria > Steve is equipped with Electronic Fool Injection 02/24/2014 at 12:04

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I totally understand that rentals are not given the white glove treatment by any stretch, but cases of outright destruction aren't the majority.

Think of the core rental user - families on vacation, businesspeople and other travelers who probably don't want to force a breakdown. They just want a car for a few days. My guess is that the norm is "I don't have time to fill this Yaris up before I drop it off at Avis" instead of "I want to see this Sebring jump those train tracks over there." I think the tales of ruthless hooning are largely anecdotal and not demonstrative of every customer loan.

Plus, rental companies are pretty aggressive in dealing with car damage if you're not paying their own usurious $20/day, no-questions-asked insurance policies. If you jack up a rental and decline their maze of fees and upsells, they file a claim against you regardless of the circumstances or who was at fault. The car is an investment for them and it's not like they don't care what happens to it.

crown victor victoria > 505Turbeaux 02/24/2014 at 12:08

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Haha wow I approve of this!

crown victor victoria > My hovercraft is full of eels 02/24/2014 at 12:12

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I think customer caution is an often overlooked aspect here. We have all heard the rental horror stories, but the fact is that a car is a big, expensive collection of moving parts, and largely people are not looking to mess them up on purpose.

It's not like the rental companies are going to absorb the costs if they have a way to avoid that. They'll pass as much on to the customer as they can. They're in this to make money, not lose it.

Elliot > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 12:18

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Not even once. They order the cheapest possible combination of cars. Had a brand new Altima the other day. It didn't even have USB or Bluetooth. The thing had push button start! Who decides not to let you have any connectivity but then that you really don't need to turn a key once you get in.

crown victor victoria > Elliot 02/24/2014 at 12:31

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Not always. I have a rental right now while I look for a car to buy, and it has bluetooth. Generally I think they order low-spec cars but there will be some decently equipped cars mixed in. If stripper model rentals all flood the secondary market in regular intervals, it actually hurts resale for the model. The manufacturers are advised not to dump the cheapo models on fleet businesses.

And what you described specifically, I don't think that kind of equipment combination is even available to retail customers. You are moving through tiers when you buy a new car, and like you're saying you're not going to find push-button start and no bluetooth. Bluetooth is more or less standard equipment nowadays, anyway.

Destructive Tester > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs 02/24/2014 at 14:26

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So you're saying Marshal was on to something...

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > Destructive Tester 02/24/2014 at 15:05

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Exactly! Hahaha.

Shiarlis > crown victor victoria 02/24/2014 at 20:34

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Depends.

RacinBob > crown victor victoria 02/25/2014 at 10:09

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Yep, got a 35,000 mile '07 Chevy Uplander in '08 to tow my race car. I think I paid about 1/2 of what a new one cost. No regrets at 70,000 miles.

Supreme Kiwi Zorro > crown victor victoria 02/25/2014 at 19:43

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Yes, as long as it's not a 40 years old car. Otherwise...

Maxaxle > Lekker 02/27/2014 at 23:06

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...Someone would steal a Murano?... Why?

Maxaxle > Supreme Kiwi Zorro 02/27/2014 at 23:07

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What movie?

cdakost > crown victor victoria 02/28/2014 at 01:52

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My current car is a 2008 Ford Fusion SEL V6 that spent the first 36k miles of it's life with Enterprise. The car is fine. It's very clean both inside and out. Although to be honest I don't think Enterprise cars get quite as much abuse as others. The only problem that I've had was the extremely worn and super cheap rubber that was on the car when I bought it. Those have since been replaced with a set of Pirellis.

Lekker > Maxaxle 02/28/2014 at 10:49

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You do know they're actually very comfortable right? Oh, and we were in Mexico. Lol

Maxaxle > Lekker 02/28/2014 at 11:01

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[insert jab at Mexico regarding its median income here]
[insert jab at people stealing cars to daily drive them here] I mean, the term "drive it like you stole it" exists for a reason, and it's hard to drive a Murano very fast...or at least that's my impression of them, I've never driven one.

Lekker > Maxaxle 02/28/2014 at 11:08

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Aherm. I actualy am Mexican. Hence why I was there.

They actually can go pretty quick, I'm not talking about sport car quick, but decent time. They have CVT and a nice V6 (same one as in the Z's). the only difference between a Murano and an Infinity FX35 is the exhaust which in the Infinity sister they take it literally off the G35/350z and the FX sure sounds mean. I've owned the last two generations of them, and they keep getting quicker (relatively speaking that is, not supercharger + NOS + etc,etc )

Maxaxle > Lekker 02/28/2014 at 11:20

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As for that bit about medium income: I was implying that you'd have to be really desperate to start stealing Muranos.
As for that bit about the speed: Whoa, what? Seriously?

Lekker > Maxaxle 02/28/2014 at 11:24

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Haha yeah, consider this tho: they go for 700,000 in Mexico. We got ours for 18k here. See what I mean? My z: worth here 40k, over there its over 1.1 million.

Yeah! Most people don't realize it is the same engine. Just tuned a tad differently, and with the CVT you can stay in the power band all the time! It even has a "manual" mode, which basically is just more uncomfortable lol. I have even done some quick 10 second sprints on it in the middle of nowhere back in AZ, and it spanked the older v6.

Maxaxle > Lekker 02/28/2014 at 11:37

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That's surprising. Is the handling any good?

Lekker > Maxaxle 02/28/2014 at 14:09

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Eh. Its an SUV haha. It sticks to the ground pretty good thats about it

pdx107 > crown victor victoria 03/05/2014 at 18:04

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Bought a 03 Galant that was a rental, had it 10 years, put 130k on it till the timing belt went. Never had any other issues with it besides the power window motor breaking.