In an effort to freshen up the fleet a bit, rental car companies will often sell off cars. It behooves companies like Hertz to do this as it keeps the rental fleets within warranty and saves on more expensive maintenance like tires, engine work, and interior parts replacement. On the consumer side, people who regularly rent cars always end up in something relatively new, and those looking to buy a car can shop from a list of models that have had at least some preventative maintenance work done to them
over the miles -- and sometimes they can get a good deal.
Surfing through the Hertz Car Sales site, you can find quite a few cars for sale. At the time of writing, it lists over 35,000 cars, with prices ranging anywhere from just over $10,000 for a 2019 Ford EcoSport to over $143,000 for a 2024 Mercedes G-Class. There are even a few Ford Mustangs, Dodge Challengers, and Chevy Camaros in the mix. From a strict enthusiast perspective, it isn't all grocery getters or cars you're stuck with while you drive around different Disney parks in Florida.
But more importantly, is it a good deal? It's true, there are a number of cars on the site that are offered well under MSRP. For example, a 2024 example of an aforementioned EcoBoost-powered Ford Mustang is being sold by Hertz for $26,696. That's a hefty chunk of change under the 2025 Mustang's base price of $31,920.
Read more: 9 Cheap Cars That Look Expensive
Know What You're Buying
But is that price too good to be true, or are you asking for trouble? Hertz isn't going to be shady and give you a lemon, to be clear. But it also pays to be informed about what exactly you are buying. When it's in the possession of the rental shop, any given car is going to be relatively cared for. It will be cleaned and maintained as it should be. That's all well and good. However, when it's in a renter's possession, all bets are off as to what the car will be subjected to. It could be used for a leisurely drive along the beach, or an all out sprint down the highway, disregarding speed limits along the way. Hertz will give you its best approximation of what happened to the car over its life, but you can't expect the numerous customers that have driven it to always be honest.
For example, the Baltimore, Maryland location has a 2024 Ford Bronco Sport in the Big Bend trim for $24,736. By all monetary counts, that's a great deal, as a new 2025 Bronco Sport Big Bend will set you back at least $30,995. But here's the kicker, Hertz's Bronco Sport has 28,059 miles on it. Being realistic, you don't know what those miles look like and numbers wise, that's a lot of miles for a single model year. However, if that doesn't scare you, by all means, take advantage of the deal. If you think otherwise, it might be worth checking out cars where the seller knows what the car has been through.
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Read the original article on SlashGear.
