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Hertz has declared bankruptcy and while I’m certain Hertz will live to fight another day, it’s liquidating inventory at amazing prices. I have certainly been guilty of carrying a personal bias against buying rental cars in the past ( because I tend to think people beat the living hell out of them) but when you see deals this good and miles this low…it get me thinking. 2019/2020 vehicles with 5k to 20k miles selling over 50% off their original MSRP…wow!
My fiancee and I have been looking at a new vehicles ( perhaps to aid us in our RV adventure – it’s an evolving ambition – airstream, maybe?) and I’ve seen a growing number of Hertz vehicles on the likes of Autotrader, Edmunds, Cars.com, Cargurus, and Autotempest. I knew the auto giant was in trouble, but if you simply go to Hertz Car Sales you can see all the inventory.
I’ve put together a little list of cars that piqued my interest, namely luxury cars at some great discounts. One thing is for sure, rental companies maintain their vehicles really well, and if you’re in the market for a high end vehicle, I’d consider poking around.
Also, this is purely conjecture, but I’d guess someone renting a BMW 7 series isn’t exactly looking to beat it up in the same way someone renting a Corvette Z06.
*All images below are courtesy of Hertz
Hertz is also offering a Rent to Own plan + home delivery in many areas
This is pretty cool. You can choose this option, get your vehicle at a reduced rate, try it out for 3 days, and if you like it, you buy it. If not…return it.
Check out this 2019 BMW 7 Series…$42k with 17k miles ( MSRP is $87k+ )
As you can see, this is selling below KBB fair market value.
Or if 2020 is more your style…$10k under KBB a 740i for $52k
2020 Chevy Camaro 2SS with a 6.2L V8…under $35k
Or a 2019 droptop with for $22k?
A slew of 2020 BMW 3series for $31k…well below KBB
Or a 5 Series for $6k under KBB…just $33k
Overall
I think deals like these will continue to abound, and personally I think we are will see a tsunami of bankruptcies hit us come fall. Much of what the Fed has done is create a completely distorted stock market that is sucking the retail investor in while the institutions stay on the sideline. Liquidity isn’t a remedy for insolvency which Hertz has demonstrated, and not to be utterly pessimistic, I think we will see more companies that have been a staple of the travel and retail sector face the same fate. If you’re sitting on cash, and have been considering purchasing a vehicle, clothes, etc – I believe we will see a lot of deals similar to these as the year unfolds.
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Does anyone know if Hertz is also liquidating medium duty or heavy duty trucks like Bobtails or Dumptrucks?
Used Hertz rent-to-buy years ago and the process was a nightmare. Gave them a check which was fine with the sales group but apparently not okay with the rental group. They kept calling me to ask why I hadn’t returned the call and the rep would be confused when I told them I’d bought it as the two groups didn’t share any systems. They ended up reporting it stolen and that made getting insurance a nightmare and so I couldn’t title it.
Eventually sorted it out but not an experience I will be going through again.
Folks still commenting – here was my experience:
First, only cars under $25k qualify for the “3-day test drive” at $50. Cars that cost more are $100/day.
Second, used Hertz cars do not come with the remainder of factory warranty; only a 12k limited Hertz warranty. This will negate the value of the program for many.
I contacted Hertz about a crossover model I was interested in. There were over 50 available, and I selected the one with the lowest miles. After a few days, I received an email/call that the vehicle was ready. Hertz advertises home delivery within 75 miles, but this did not seem to be on offer for me.
I went to the Hertz location and they had me on my way within 30 minutes. There was zero sales pressure; it was handled like just another rental. I noticed an incident report in the glove box; despite the low miles, it had been in an accident. The vehicle had quite a bit of wear and tear, including a few dings.
I had questions regarding the incident report and the terms of the sale. I called and emailed the sales person assigned to me during my rental, but did not receive a response.
I dropped the car off after-hours, was billed the correct amount, and heard nothing further. “Apparently,” if I want to buy the car I need to log into the Hertz car sales account, search for the VIN, and then initiate a process to purchase at the listed price – there is no negotiation whatsoever. The listed price is somewhat competitive – it’s a few thousand dollars less than the same vehicle would be at CarMax, for example, but higher than a private party sale.
Purchasing through Hertz wasn’t for me. I balked at the incident report and the warranty. However, it does seem there are some good values. During my brief time at the sales location, a few people were in the midst of purchasing vehicles. My sense is Hertz takes a stab at selling to private parties before packaging vehicles wholesale to another fleet.
Was looking at some cargo vans to use as a build for a camper and there “were” some good deals. Reserved a 2019 Ford Transit 250 for a 3-day test drive. 10k miles $24k. Lots of other vans at similar prices. Day before I was supposed to pick it up I got a notice that it wasn’t available – said it was rented through December??
When I went to reserve a similar van the prices were all $26-27k. Raised all the prices by $2-3k in the past few days. Shady!
Great points about buying cars from rental places. From my experience, Hertz has a pretty good stock of cars (I am a member and have a bias) if you get the cars from the right market. And not to kick a person or company while down, but one’s misfortune is another’s fortune. San Jose and San Francisco tends to have top of line models like BMW M5, Tesla Model S, Dodge Hemi-line, etc. I found that the big market airports tend to have better maintained due to location and type of travelers. However, it pays to look around.
Great article, thanks. Any way to know if any of these are damaged, other than perhaps an offered price much lower than the KBB value?
T – i’m not really sure since the repairs would be done in house. I’d suspect any major accidents would potentially be on the carfax, but that I’m not sure of…
These are the same prices they have been for years. There’s just more now. Nothing to see here.
a few crows flying in the sky may be nothing to look at. now thousands of crows in they sky…
I’m intrigued by the situation at Hertz:
-Yes, these kinds of deals existed in the past, but now they are dumping huge numbers of cars at standardized pricing. For example, one location has 30 Impalas ranging from 8,000 miles to 50,000 miles all at the same price. Surely there are some bargains in here if you know what you are looking for.
-You can “rent to buy” any of these cars for $49 a day for three days. Basically they call it an extended test drive, but you could take this opportunity to rent a BMW, etc., for far less than what would be the going rate.
-They say “the price is the price” but I’m curious if there are further negotiations – time will tell.
totally agree
I almost bought a car before all the virus lockdown. I am certainly glad I didn’t. I was thinking there must be deals like this to be had and although I am tempted, these newer cars are still higher cost. It would only make sense if you planned to keep the car for a long time like 10 years or could even deduct the expense for work. Lastly about the argument if buying a rental car is beat up or better taken care of, YMMV. The less owners or drivers a car has, the less differences in how the car is driven. I am not saying car rentals are taken as joy rides by teens or anything. Lastly, the good thing about buying a car from a rental car company is you will have a complete set of maintenance records better than any individual owner might be able to create. But what does concern me is if the car rental companies still do rollbacks. I thought these were illegal but apparently car rental companies roll back the mileage on vehicles so that they can keep them in their fleet longer. Is this still an issue?
Great points…and I personally haven’t heard anything about rollback but that would be scandalous if true
No bargains there. They are all within, or just barely below, the Kelly Blue Book value for a retail sale.
I put up 2 that were between $5k and $10k below KBB…tons more on the site if you’re willing to search
I keep trying to rationalize buying a car and keep going back to renting when I need one.
Stefan – totally get it, haven’t had one for a couple years now for those very reasons
No question, these are good deals; but they are no better than they were three months ago when I started looking. The most significant change with Hertz is that there are many more now available. The biggest downside is that most of these are very much stripped out, i.e., lacking in options.
Just last week, I wound up buying a certified BMW from a dealer – they are also giving fantastic deals. Just like any other deal, it pays to shop around.
Thanks. Normally I don’t buy used but these are stellar deals on BMWs.
absolutely
@ Miles — Hertz Car Sales, rent to own, pricing below KBB, etc are nothing new. How do prices compare to, say last week/month? Where did you come up with the idea that rentals cars are beat up? 99% of rentals are probably made to people who would prefer not to be hit up for damage when returning their vehicle.
I’m hardly alone in thinking that people drive rental cars hard and put them away wet. Damage is another thing entirely, and I doubt you’re going to get a banged up car since they will repair them, but are people as careful with a rental as they are with their own ride? Buyer beware is all I’m saying…