Buy a taco from Hertz?

Like, ripping the right front suspension out of a Fiero from not sticking the landing.....

 

We bought a off rental Ford Expedition from Hertz years ago. They showed all the maintenance records and the price was good. Never gave us any trouble.

 

Well it's not like the Fiero was GM's crown jewel of engineering. Parts bin special designed for middle aged dried out Bonnies that could afford an MR2

 

The same people that trash rentals are the same people that make excessive messes in hotel rooms.

Maybe i'm just weird i've always returned rentals decently clean and I leave hotel rooms with all the towels in a pile and trash in the trash

 

Rentals are rented by all types of companies.

Ya know that local engineering firm that does landfill leachate, gas/diesel station tank closure and cesspool closure sampling?
Take a guess if they're going to muck-up one of their company vehicles or just rent a truck...

 

Bought a 2001 Sun fire in 2003 which was a rental. Drive that until 2016 and sold it. Never had a problem.

 

That BMW i sold in 2003, well it was hit hard enough that that entire 1/4 panel, door and rocker was replaced. You'd never know because the Carfax was clean. Bad shit happens to privately owned vehicles.

 

Absolutely. Rental, certified or privately owned a history report can only show so much.

 

I've owned 2 vehicles that were previously fleet vehicles. No problems.

Any used vehicle could have been abused, whether personal or fleet.

 

I'd buy my f150 that's a fleet vehicle. The driver's seat is showing some wear, no holes, but the truck is in tip top shape

 

There could be more that you don't know about. Always check regardless of the year

 

He's cleaning split-spoons on the bed of his rental F-150 when Josh answers his cell. The new guy at the shop spilled a frapa on his groin while moving a company vehicle and managed to back into Josh's freshly Maaco'ed EF hatch in the parking lot.

Although it's only a DX, it doesn't change the fact Josh has had to work second-shift for months to swing the paintwork & rotas. As much as he wants to leave the site early to tape a trash bag over his newly-shattered hatchback glass to minimize the effect of impending thunderstorms, the superfund site he's on has to be completed by this Friday.. that means not holding up the drillers, that also means he's going to have to hustle, take some shortcuts and have utter and complete disregard to the well being of his rental truck.

(alright, take it from here @Rock Lobster and Itchy)

 

Josh get's pulled over on LivePD because he painted his EF hatch VooDoo blue and the D15 is straight piped because no v-tec.

 

When I rented trucks it was to haul or tow. I drove those trucks carefully because I didn't want to damage my stuff.

I'd be more worried if the truck was a "special content" version built for the rental company. Anyone remember the issue a decade or so back where rentals were being sold & buyers were not made aware the cars did NOT have airbags? The cars were ordered without airbags even though the trim pieces said airbag on them. Research the vehicle content carefully, see if you can find a purchase spec sheet.

 

I bought a rental car once, it was one of the best car’s I’ve ever owned.

 

Years ago I remember hearing a story about a couple of guys who rented two brand new Neons for a few weekends......they installed Nitrous nozzles in the intakes and raced them at their local drag strip......
Like others have said though, any used vehicle could have been severely beat-on. Get it checked out by a professional and buy a warranty if you’re gonna pull the trigger on it.

 

It's not so much abuse, its more like this: My own vehicles I park in the far end of the lot and try to avoid Wal Mart at all costs. When out of town in a rental car, I will park with the rest of the people and I will go to Wal Mart parking lots.
My own vehicles, I am picky about who rides in them. In a rental car, it's hey, who all wants to go to Whataburger for lunch, Im driving. I don't know these people besides the fact we all work in the same industry.
So, maybe you could say I don't respect rental cars as much, but I would respect a friends or co workers car or family members car if I had to borrow one.

 

Nothing wrong with being a rental.

1) not everyone who rents a vehicle beats on it. Or abuses it in other ways. Some folks treat anything they use with reasonable care.

2) most rentals, like fleet vehicles in general, are as well, or better, maintained as 90% of the used car / truck market ever will be

3) if you would buy used from a dealer, you might as well buy from a rental place. It's very rare that you get historical data from a dealer that's really worth much. And sometimes used vehicles on dealer lots are ex-rentals.

Now, if it's a good financial deal or not, that's a whole 'nuther evaluation. But don't run because it's a rental, just use the same prudence and due diligence that you would with any used vehicle.

 

While the cop runs his license Josh does the calculation on his chances of making it to Mexico if he guns it right now. He likes his odds, despite currently existing in Iowa. He digs under the seat, finds what he's looking for, and blows the dust off of the long-neglected Refreshment's CD. Let's crank that bad boy straight to track 7, and the speakers give a slight distortion as the Boss amplifier struggles to crank out Banditos.

Josh takes inventory. He has half a bag of pizza-siracha flavored Combos, one unopened can of mountain dew game fuel, and enough gas in the tank to make it to Kansas City, provided he can shake the Trooper quickly enough. He drops the lever into S-mode.

 

And remember that same truck, as a non rental, but from a lot, could have been shared between the owners mechanically unsympathetic wife and 17 yo son, 5k each.