I want to buy a 2010 Nissan Altima 2.5 S from Hertz car sales and I am trying to figure out what’s the best way to go:
TIA
If I were going to buy one of those 2 cars I’d save the grand and go for the one with 37k miles. In theory, both cars are one and the same in regards to condition and longevity. The odds of a warranty problem in the next 8 months or so is very slim IMO.
While I would not apply this scenario to every rental car, the one downside to a rental car is that you (and the rental company) has no idea if some clown in the past has flogged it for a week straight.
The upside would be that a rental company will change the oil and do the required maintenance. This would trump a car that was used as a lease vehicle and is being sold by a dealer or private seller. Many people who lease cars know full well they will be turning the car in and so they have no intention of spending one dime of their money taking care of anything.
They’re still used cars and I would recommend having them inspected pre-purchase. Given the track record of a rental company against a possibly shaky lease return car I’d take the rental car.
ok4450, thanks for the detailed response. I had the same thoughts about a rental, probably decent maintenance, but the possibility exists that someone abused the car. Still I will probably go with a rental and I agree that saving a grand makes more sense, just needed some reinforcement before I did that, thanks again for the thoughtful response.
Many people who lease cars know full well they will be turning the car in and so they have no intention of spending one dime of their money taking care of anything.
And I worked with a guy just like that…Would lease every other year…putting about 35k miles after 2 years…and didn’t put ONE dime into the car…That include oil changes. Toward the end of his lease he had to start adding oil every other week.
Although I usually agree with everything that ok4450 says, I am going to disagree on one of his points, namely the idea that neither car will have any warranty-related defects at this point.
One of the problems with rental cars is that no one person drives them consistently. Thus, there is nobody with a strong interest in having a problem corrected during the brief time that he/she drives it. Even the staff of the rental agency is unlikely to take a car to a dealership for warranty-related repairs, unless the problem simply makes the car undriveable.
Why would the staff not seek warranty covered repairs?
That’s easy.
The company does not want one of their money-making vehicles to be out of service when it could be earning its keep–so to speak.
So–while it is not likely that there are any serious problems with either car, it is also very possible that there could be a whole host of little annoyances that have never been taken care of.
Think about this:
Have you ever had a new car that did not need at least some type of adjustment or tweak during the first couple of months or years? Whether it is a need for wheel alignment, or some squeeks or rattles, or mis-aligned trim, or…whatever…most of us have had the need to avail ourselves of some type of warranty-related work within the first couple of years with new cars.
Do you really think that anyone–either renter or rental company employee–would bother to take a car to a dealership for one of those annoying issues that still allow the car to be driven?
Vdc. This just happened to me. I bought a prior rental that inspected fine. However once it got cold outside I noticed issues that hadn’t shown up that were even in a TSB that probably already would have been fixed if it had a steady owner.
Luckily its still under warranty so didn’t cost me.
Because of this I would buy the rental under warranty. So if something shows up now that u drive it consistently then it would cost to repair it.
Although the 1000 u saved could always go towards a repair also…
does it have any fancy electronics like built in navigation? If so, go for the warranty one. If the nav breaks, you just saved 4 grand.
How long will it take you to rack up 6k miles on the car???
For me it would be about 10 weeks. So I’d be paying 100 dollars a week extra for 10 weeks of warranty.
Doesn’t seem worth it to me.
Are there any other reasons to pick one over the other…options, color, any body damage what so ever including interior condition. Nicks and scratches that could rust. I would go over the body of each with a fine tooth comb. There WILL be a difference.
Thanks for all the comments. I test drove the same car at the local Ford dealer and ended up walking out because of the BS trying to negotiate a price.
The car does not have built in navigation, but it does tell you how many miles left with the gas you have at the speed you are driving which I thought was cool. My previous car was a 1996 Ford Taurus that died on me, and the newest car I’ve driven is a 2004 Honda Accord. It has no key, just this thingy you take into the car with you and push a button on the dashboard to start.
I don’t drive that much, a lot of riding on my motorcycle, so it would probably take me about 8 months to do 6k miles and I want to keep this car forever, well at least for ten years.
I am leaning towards a car that will have warranty left. Good point about the cosmetic damage though.
Are you paying cash? I think adding another $2K to your budget should get you in a brand new Altima. The financing might be more favorable too. Check Truecar.com and e-mail around for the best deal. The better part about buying brand new is that you test drive one and you know what you will get at the end.
I’m quite happy with the Pontiac rental I bought. The agencies get rid of them as soon as the are out of warrenty. I guess I wouldn’t be concerned too much either way but it should be checked out by a mechanic and also check on where the car was stationed. New Jersey would be worse than Florida. Also you will still have an emissions warrenty to about 70K. Also check to see if you will have a power train warrenty for an extended period. Acura is 80K and Pontiac is 100K. It only covers major engine and transmission issues but that’s what would likely be a problem from a rental.
Have you checked the cost of a leftover 2011 on the dealer lots? Our Mazda dealer just tried to sell me a brand new 2011 Mazda6 i Sport for $15,988 when I was in for our free oil change. If you could get a similar deal on a new leftover 2011 Nissan Altima, it might be worth it to go new and get a full warranty that would cover 3+ years of your driving habits.
Thanks for all the comments and suggestions. They ended up calling me back from the Ford dealership and I managed to get the car for $13,750. It is an ex-rental but is is great condition, with less than 30K miles on it, so I have 6k left on the warranty. The power train is covered for 60k and I’m hoping for the best. I did take it to be checked out by a mechanic and everything was fine with enough tread left on the tires too. The car was registered and driven in California. I may have been able to get a new 2011 for a few thousand more but I really did not want to spend much more. Once again thanks to all and Merry Christmas and happy holidays.
Cograts, enjoy the car. Maintain it well, drive safe. Merry X-mas to you too. Also thanks for the follow-up.