Hertz cars are like any other used vehicle in the market, but when it comes to buying rental automobiles, they have specific pros and cons. We will examine the positives and negatives of buying from Hertz, so you can decide yourself if these rental cars are worth the money you spend on them.
The life of a rental car is tough, they travel more miles than average and are used by multiple drivers but reputed companies like Hertz maintain them well and strictly follow the service schedules. As such a used Hertz is a good buy.
In this post, you’ll learn why I think a used Hertz car is a good buy.
PROS:
Reputed Company
Hertz Car Sales is a department of Hertz Global Holdings, Inc., which is a reputable public company. The support team is always there to respond to your queries, and you can make a claim against them (if needed). In fact, “Hertz was named #1 in Customer Satisfaction in Rental Cars by J.D. Power in 2019 and 2020.”
Test Drive and Rent2Buy
It is always prudent to test drive a pre-owned car before buying it. Hertz offers a free, two-hour test drive and a 3-day “test rental,” allowing you to rent the vehicle at a specific rate. If you decide to purchase it, the company will refund the rental charges. Please note Rent2Buy might not be available on all vehicles in the inventory.
Hertz Buyback Guarantee
Hertz Guarantee allows you to return the vehicle within seven days or 250 miles after the acquisition, whichever comes first. If you decide to change it for a loaded and/or costlier vehicle, you can do that by paying the cost difference; or, you can get your money back. However, you have to pay “a cleaning and recertification fee of $200…as well as any excess wear or damage to the vehicle.”
12-Month/12,000-mile Hertz Warranty
In addition to factory warranty (applicable to lower mileage less than three years old cars), Hertz certified cars come with a 12-Month/12,000-Mile powertrain warranty as well as an extra protection plan. The warranty and protection plans cover repair or replacement, travel breakdown protection, alternate transport coverage, towing coverage, and fluids coverage.
You usually do not get such a warranty on used cars from dealerships.
Price
Hertz is a big rental company, they buy vehicles in volume, at cut-rate. Therefore, when it is time to sell, they can offer you lower prices compared to conventional dealers. The discount may vary from car to car.
Hertz says their prices are normally lower than the Kelly Blue Book value. However, in my limited research, I found that some cars are cheaper at Edmunds, but they do not have the warranty Hertz offers on certified vehicles.
Well Maintained Vehicles
Reputed rental firms like Hertz are keen to maintain their vehicles for utmost customer satisfaction. They follow all the service and maintenance schedules listed by manufacturers. While they may or may not offer the maintenance records, they encourage you to examine the vehicle, bring your mechanic to certify the quality of the car.
Finance Available For Bad Credits
Hertz allows you to apply for finance through its lending partners even if you have bad credit. They are currently working with:
- Ally
- TD
- Chase
- Bank of America
- Wells Fargo
- Capital One
You might have to pay a higher interest rate with bad credit, which is typical while requesting auto finance in such a situation.
Newer Vehicles With Manufacturer’s Warranty
Since it is common for Hertz to sell its rental cars after 1 to 2 years, you’ll likely get a newer vehicle with the latest tech and safety features. This content is owned by moc.sotuaytsur. They might have a few more miles on the odometer, above average for a two-year-old vehicle but as said they are well maintained and are likely still within the manufacturer’s warranty.
If they are close to the upper limit for the manufacturer’s mileage warranty, it is possible to buy an extended warranty from the manufacturer.
Variety of Vehicles
Apart from having the option to choose newer models, you can pick the body style of your choice. They have everything from hatchbacks, sedans, coupes to SUVs, wagons, and pickup trucks.
Being a rental company with a large fleet, they also have vehicles of every make and model. So, it doesn’t matter if you are a Chevy lover or fancy a Ford; they have a car for you.
CONS:
Possibly Abused
You never know how many people have rented the car you want to buy and dare I say, abused it. In reality, a rented car may have experienced tens of drivers in just about two years, and some of them may have driven it aggressively.
When compared to a privately owned vehicle, typically one owner who cares for it like it were the family pet.
Higher Mileage
On average, a U.S. vehicle covers around 12,000 miles in a year. However, a rental car may have double or triple miles on the odometer at the same time.
Nonetheless, it shouldn’t be a problem if Hertz has maintained the vehicle properly and offers a warranty. Of course, it should be reasonably priced for you to consider a higher-than-normal mileage car.
Possibly Out Of Warranty
Since rental cars record more miles than regular vehicles, some cars may exceed the manufacturer’s warranty mileage upper limit.
If you buy such a vehicle, you may have to pay for all repairs, especially if it isn’t a certified Hertz car.
Lightly Loaded
Rental companies usually do not buy range-topping models with all bells and whistles, so it might not be easy to find a trim model of your choice. If you are interested in buying a fully loaded, you might not find it in Hertz’s inventory.
Having said that, I see many cars available at Hertz Car Sales featuring the latest technologies. You can use their filter tool to add features you like.
Conclusion
After reading all the pros and cons, I hope you are better positioned to decide between Hertz and regular used cars. However, here’s a final piece of advice to buy a Hertz ex-hire car.
- Pick a Hertz Certified car
- Have a mechanic inspect it for peace of mind
- Go for a low mileage vehicle
- Pick a model with an extended manufacturer’s warranty
- Find a car with a good reliability score
- Run a VIN check
- Do your research and compare models you are interested in
Before buying any vehicle, it’s always worth investing just a few dollars to check the VIN number against a vehicle database. An audit with a company like VinAudit (links to VinAudit) will guard against Mileage fraud, Salvage rebuilds, Title washing, and Vin cloning, and a ton of other uglies.
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John Cunningham is an Automotive Technician and writer on Rustyautos.com. He’s been a mechanic for over twenty-five years and has worked for GM, Volvo, Volkswagen, Land Rover, and Jaguar dealerships.
John uses his know-how and experience to write articles that help fellow gearheads with all aspects of vehicle ownership, including maintenance, repair, and troubleshooting.