Rectifying an Auto Purchase

[triple7stash]

Hi All,

Long story short, in early 2017 I made purchased a 2014 Mustang Convertible (Black, Base Model) for $17k w/ ~32k miles, which now has ~53k miles on it.  I am now looking to fix that situation by selling the mustang and buy something more economical.  I would say the car is in good condition according to KBB (some very minor scratches and small hole in soft top, however no mechanical issues).  I am not very handy at all when it comes to cars so the private market can seem a bit daunting as far as sales/purchasing, but I feel I've finally found a relatively good deal on both ends.

Selling Side - $11,500 Appraisal from CarMax, this seems decent considering the KBB values below.
KBB trade in value range $9,041 - $10,666.  KBB private party value range $10,89-12,862.

Buying side - Looking at a  Gray 2017 Toyota Yaris w/ ~43k miles from Hertz Car Sales for $10,390 (would likely be around $11.4k w/ taxes, registration, fees --- :( I live in California)

Any input on pricing, info on selling to CarMax, buying from Hertz (or used rentals in general), Yaris's, etc. would be greatly appreciated!

[RWD]

Selling to CarMax will typically get you less than selling privately but with a lot less hassle. Seems like it might be worth it in your case.

I personally wouldn't buy a used rental car. Too much abuse for not enough discount.

The Yaris is supposed to be a very reliable car. Gets decent fuel economy (30/36 mpg) for a non-hybrid. As a side note, the 2012 model is pretty much exactly the same as a 2017. So don't limit yourself to the newer ones when shopping for the best deal. I did a quick search on Autotrader and found that there isn't a huge difference in price (~$2-3k) nationally but on a local scale you might be able to find a good deal by not excluding the older model years.

Depending on how much you drive you could also consider a hybrid.

[honeybbq]

I have nothing but good things to say about Carmax.
For me, the lack of hassle, pressure, and potential for getting scammed is worth the small % that you lose in selling it to them cheaper.

I'd sell it to them and buy something off their lot with no qualms.

[FireHiker]

I personally wouldn't buy a used rental car. Too much abuse for not enough discount.

I've actually had very good experience buying a used rental car. In 2016 we bought my son a 2015 Nissan Sentra from Hertz and it was a really good deal. We had money from other relatives to combine with our 4k; it was 11k with tax and license. It's been a wonderful purchase for him. My in-laws as well have bought almost all of their cars from Hertz and they've been very happy with them. Maybe it's hit or miss, but our experience has been very positive.

[triple7stash]

I personally wouldn't buy a used rental car. Too much abuse for not enough discount.

I've actually had very good experience buying a used rental car. In 2016 we bought my son a 2015 Nissan Sentra from Hertz and it was a really good deal. We had money from other relatives to combine with our 4k; it was 11k with tax and license. It's been a wonderful purchase for him. My in-laws as well have bought almost all of their cars from Hertz and they've been very happy with them. Maybe it's hit or miss, but our experience has been very positive.

Haha interesting.  When researching online it seems these two viewpoints are pretty polarizing and from an eye-test it seems the viewpoints are split close to 50/50.  I believe/understand the wear & tear damage from being a rental, but it seems all of the people that I know that have actually bought rentals have had a great experience and reliable car (although my peer sample is maybe about 5).

I have nothing but good things to say about Carmax.
For me, the lack of hassle, pressure, and potential for getting scammed is worth the small % that you lose in selling it to them cheaper.

I'd sell it to them and buy something off their lot with no qualms.

+1.  I have bought from them in the past and had a great experience.  Only thing I've noticed is that some of the cars in the CarMax inventory are used rentals and in those cases they appear to be the same condition as going through Hertz, Enterprise, etc., except they were significantly more expensive that going directly through the rental company sales.

[chemistk]

Hi All,

Long story short, in early 2017 I made purchased a 2014 Mustang Convertible (Black, Base Model) for $17k w/ ~32k miles, which now has ~53k miles on it.  I am now looking to fix that situation by selling the mustang and buy something more economical.  I would say the car is in good condition according to KBB (some very minor scratches and small hole in soft top, however no mechanical issues).  I am not very handy at all when it comes to cars so the private market can seem a bit daunting as far as sales/purchasing, but I feel I've finally found a relatively good deal on both ends.

Selling Side - $11,500 Appraisal from CarMax, this seems decent considering the KBB values below.
KBB trade in value range $9,041 - $10,666.  KBB private party value range $10,89-12,862.

Buying side - Looking at a  Gray 2017 Toyota Yaris w/ ~43k miles from Hertz Car Sales for $10,390 (would likely be around $11.4k w/ taxes, registration, fees --- :( I live in California)

Any input on pricing, info on selling to CarMax, buying from Hertz (or used rentals in general), Yaris's, etc. would be greatly appreciated!

If that's actually what CarMax offered you, that's an insanely good deal. Much better than a dealer trade-in and just about what you'd get private party. Don't question it, go sell it to them ASAP.

Full disclosure, my car (Ford Focus) is a former rental car. It spent the first 35k miles of its life kicking around SoCal before being shipped up to the Mid Atlantic. I've had exactly zero problems with it having been a former rental.

The anecdotes are true - rental cars tend to be abused more because people don't treat them like they'd treat their own car. But, the flip side of that is that all rental agencies are going to do everything they can to keep their cars on the road. I've heard from more than one rental agency employee that rental cars are probably the most meticulously maintained cars on the road. A rental agency is going to try and avoid, at all costs, any situation where a car would break down due to lack of maintenance and care.

That Yaris should be a good car. If everything lines up as you say it does, you're netting out ever so slightly ahead in this whole deal. [edited - I confused one car with another]

[FindingFI]

I bought a 2001 Pontiac Grand AM from Enterprise back in the 2004-ish timeframe (can't remember exactly when), and I would say it was just as reliable as a private car.  Sure it had a few more cosmetic blemishes because renters aren't as careful, but mechanically it was no different than any other car I've had and the price was right.  I wouldn't shy away from buying another former rental car.

[kendallf]

I personally wouldn't buy a used rental car. Too much abuse for not enough discount.

I've actually had very good experience buying a used rental car. In 2016 we bought my son a 2015 Nissan Sentra from Hertz and it was a really good deal. We had money from other relatives to combine with our 4k; it was 11k with tax and license. It's been a wonderful purchase for him. My in-laws as well have bought almost all of their cars from Hertz and they've been very happy with them. Maybe it's hit or miss, but our experience has been very positive.

Haha interesting.  When researching online it seems these two viewpoints are pretty polarizing and from an eye-test it seems the viewpoints are split close to 50/50.  I believe/understand the wear & tear damage from being a rental, but it seems all of the people that I know that have actually bought rentals have had a great experience and reliable car (although my peer sample is maybe about 5).

I have nothing but good things to say about Carmax.
For me, the lack of hassle, pressure, and potential for getting scammed is worth the small % that you lose in selling it to them cheaper.

I'd sell it to them and buy something off their lot with no qualms.

+1.  I have bought from them in the past and had a great experience.  Only thing I've noticed is that some of the cars in the CarMax inventory are used rentals and in those cases they appear to be the same condition as going through Hertz, Enterprise, etc., except they were significantly more expensive that going directly through the rental company sales.

I'd buy a Yaris that was used as a rental.. because the abuse should be relatively visible (people scratching the paint, upholstery).  Even if you're not mechanically handy, get under it with a light and look for evidence of going over curbs and the like.  An automatic transmission Yaris has limited potential for hot rodding that would damage the engine; it's pretty slow and utilitarian.  Now of course, maybe there's that one guy who does neutral drops in ALL of his rental cars... but nah.

I have also sold a car to CarMax for what I considered a good price, even for private party sales.  I think sometimes their offers reflect national markets that don't match what I see locally, to our benefit. 

[MsPeacock]

CarMax bought my car for more than KBB. Because I bought my replacement car from them it saved me considerably on sales tax. Something to consider, if you are able to find a car you want from CarMax. It was a very good experience for me - easy, quick, and pretty painless.

[chasesfish]

Have you looked at the Hyundai Elantra's coming off the rental fleet?   I've rented the 2017 a bunch and they are solid vehicles with over 40mpg.  Last I checked they were running around the same price as the Yaris and you get a little more space

[triple7stash]

Yeah, actually they have a like 4 times the inventory of elantras on the lots than yaris’s. Heaper for the same mileage, I think I just came into the whole process as deadset on honda/toyota. Anyone have any insight to lifetime of hyundai’s vs. toy/honda’s? I’ve read that those were old mantra’s that are no longer true, but my gut says to stick with toy/honda