Pros and Cons of Buying a Used Rental Car

Rental car companies need to keep their fleet of vehicles up to date and buy new cars for their lots on a regular basis.

This is good news for consumers as the ‘older’ vehicles are then up for grabs.  And by older, we mean vehicles that are just a few years old –car toddlers if you like! This is ideal of course if you’re in the market for a newer used vehicle. The car will have more recent technology and safety features you may not find at that same price point if buying a similar vehicle from a single owner. Of course, just like buying anything used, an ex-car rental has a mixture of benefits and drawbacks. So let’s take a look at some of the pros and cons of buying a used rental.

We’ll cover the pros first:

Rental Cars are Newer Models

As mentioned above, rentals available for sale will be newer models and come will all the benefits of a newish car-like up to date features and up to date technology, all at a great price. And then there’s the warranty -rental companies usually sell their old cars while they’re still under warranty, which is great news for prospective buyers of course. A lot of carmakers will also let you buy the rest of the extended warranty as long as the car is still under the manufacturer’s warranty period.

Rental Cars Cost Less

Used rentals are typically cheaper because rental companies buy their vehicles in bulk at a discount and need to offload cars every few years to replenish their fleet. Hertz, Enterprise, and Avis all have websites where prospective buyers can browse the used cars in their area. In addition, just to sweeten the deal, Avis and Hertz offer a three-day test drive, where customers pay a rental fee upfront, but if they buy the vehicle, that fee gets refunded. Enterprise offers a trial period of seven days.

Rental Car Models Receive Regular Maintenance

Rental car companies take good care of their vehicles after all it’s in their best interest to keep them in top-notch condition. Rental cars undergo scheduled maintenance by well-qualified technicians and thorough cleaning on a regular basis.

And as for the cons:

Rentals Usually Have High Mileage

A two-year-old rental will typically have higher mileage thana car sold by a private owner. And because multiple people have driven rentals, and have various driving styles, it’s difficult to determine how the car has been treated, there’s no pride of ownership or incentive as there would be if the car was privately owned. Many rental companies sell their cars at 25,000 to 40,000 miles.

Rental Car Models Suffer More Wear and Tear

Rental cars may have been treated a little rougher than privately owned vehicles. Each person drives differently, some hard, some fast. Because it’s not their own vehicle, others may be a little more aggressive with a car they don’t actually own and have no attachment to or investment in.

Rental Car Models Have Lower Resale Value

If you’re planning to drive your used rental car ‘into the ground’ then resale will not matter. But those who want to maybe trade in their vehicle in the future or resell –it may be a problem. Rentals may cost less initially but most times have lower resale value. Many people are wary of buying used rentals because of some of the stigmas associated with the vehicles as mentioned above. Value is also impacted by the fact these cars are sold in such high volume at about the same time, so the market may be saturated.