I’m at a crossroads. Need a vehicle, mine is 18yrs & has started with repairs more than worth keeping. Budget for vehicle cost is low 16/17k (pretax). Looking for my 1st pre owned & decided on a Santa Fe. Found several at Hertz & a couple at a dealership. Vehicles are similar w/ minor differences (i.e. reg. vs power seat). Mileage is similar (w/in 5k). Dealership ones are certified & ones from Hertz will have remaining warranty too. I plan to keep this for a long time. Any feedback on which is better?
If you are concerned enough to go online and ask for advice you should be looking at new with warranty and lower financing rates.
Been there, done that. New-price range is the issue there. Start is 23k (marked down).
First, congratulations for getting your money’s worth out of your old car and recognizing when it’s been consumed.
Having purchased several CPO (certified pre-owned) cars (some were actually former rental cars, purchased by and sold by, new car dealers), I believe your purchase idea is a good one. I have never regretted purchasing a CPO vehicle.
Compare apples to apples or oranges to oranges. I’m not sure what Hyundai’s warranty coverage is on their cars and whether it transfers to other owners in its entirety (free of charge?). How does their coverage work?
Most (all?) car warranties have [1] bumper-to-bumper (practically everything except wear items) and [2] drivetrain coverage and these 2 types of coverage usually have different time/mileage parameters (usually beginning when the car first “went into service”). So, sometimes some/all coverage remaining can be short-lived or gone.
CPO cars usually include both remaining manufacturer warranty coverage and some additional coverage. It’s important to find out prior to purchase.
An example of 2 things that would not be covered by warranty would be previous accident or road hazard damage (and repairs) or vehicle flooding. Unlikely, but be sure you are aware of anything like that.
You should be able to get another 18 years out of this “new” Hyundai!
CSA
I’m kind of leaning towards Hertz
Several years ago, I bought a 2 year old ex-rental car from them. The price was fair, it still had about a year’s worth of factory warranty remaining and this is a big plus . . . the buying process was set price, no haggling, no pressure.
Theoretically, the cpo Santa Fe at the dealership might be in better shape. I say theoretically, because dealerships have high standards, as to what is allowed to be sold as a cpo. But we all know that some dealerships actually adhere to these standards, whereas others will turn a blind eye and really let some stuff slip through the cracks
Don’t buy any extended warranty from Hertz, should it be offered. Aftermarket extended warranties are generally inferior to factory extended warranties.
I would rather buy a 2 year old car from Hertz, versus a completely unknown entity
2 Likes
I have also had good luck buying used cars (non-CPO). They should sell cheaper than CPO.
Dealers pay one of their technicians to inspect (and correct if necessary) a long list of items and pay a fee to have a car “certified.” Sometimes wear items (like tires, brakes, etcetera) needed replacement. They use the label as a selling tool and pass the added expense to the buyer.
This often makes CPO cars cost more, but I have found some to be priced nearly the same as regular used cars or even lower! The cars are often similarly equipped “fleet” vehicles, originally purchased in batches by rental companies (and I’m guessing, at discount prices).
It takes some hunting if you can find the time. Buy the youngest (by original new in-service date) vehicle, with the lowest mileage, with the best warranty, at the lowest price that you find (that is equipment-wise comparable with other cars).
CSA
The only thing I can add to this is an assumption I have had for decades, based on what a dealer told me when I was looking at a used Volvo they got from Hertz. It may be old news, it may have been BS to begin with, who knows.
I was told that rental companies lease cars from manufacturers, operate them for a planned time or mileage, and then offer them back as lease returns. The manufacturer either takes them because they pass inspection, or the rental company buys them for a set price and then resells them, either themselves or wholesale. So the story was that the ones the manufacturer takes back are the highest quality, lowest mileage, best appearance. The rental company takes the next level that they can sell at a premium over the lease buyout price, and the rental company dumps the rest on the wholesale market.
You decide if this makes sense or if it helps with your decision.
My G6 was a rental and i’ve been happy with it. I bought it from a dealer though who bought it from the rental company. That’s where they get some of their cars. Now important to me would be the maintenance history of the cars at the dealer. If Joe Schmoe owned it and was one of those guys that likes to go 10,000 miles between oil changes, I’d go with the Hertz where at least you know it was maintained.
Thanks everyone for the replies! The warranty transfers with both places and manufacturer says it is on defective items only and not just something that breaks. I have to purchase an extended warranty/service contract to cover items that break. I’ve learned this is a common practice nowadays and not just with Hyundai.
I have been told something similar to what wentwest said by Enterprise Rental. Only I was told to be wary of what goes back to the dealership as they are 2nds to what the company sells themselves. Then again, I’ve learned that the rental companies may have various trims (i.e. 7 seater Santa Fe), but they only sell certain ones (i.e., 5 seaters) the rest go either to the manufacturer or auction. Maybe the guy at Enterprise was trying to use it as a way to get me to buy since I noticed the vehicle I had just test driven was from Enterprise and was priced a bit too high. (The paperwork was in the glove box, that’s how I know where it came from.) However, it does look like those that don’t go either place are auctioned which is the kinda scary portion of my hunt.
With CPO, you are paying for what’s left of the original warranty to transfer over, it’s worked into the cost at this dealership. I do know that. I also know that somethings such as weatherstripping are not repaired with the CPO. I checked on that. I’m not sure about Hertz. Dealer has been in my area for over 40 years so it’s not someone new, yet it is someone I won’t be going to often as it is about 40 miles away (one way). With Hertz, they say I can see all of their paperwork on the vehicle, the oil changes, repairs made, etc. which I really like. Dealer says I can have carfax as they don’t have anything else. Not sure if I can see what they repaired or not to be CPO.
Hertz sells below blue book value. Dealership is selling at blue book. Residual prices on the vehicles for 3 years down the road are about even-all loosing about 2k. Prices for extended warranty/service contracts are similar. I have to recheck what is covered under Hertz as I was told to be sure gaskets are covered since the vehicle is full of them and they are often what causes the problems. Dealer’s warranty/service contract covers them. (Yes, I did read the contract.) If I remember correctly cost (but possibly not coverage) is about even between the two and I am not restricted to only Hyundai dealers as I would be with any warranty straight from manufacturer. I will be going to the dealer, but if I got stuck somewhere I wouldn’t have to get permission for the car to be worked on by another certified company/dealership. (Yes, you do have to have permission with HPP, it’s in the contract on page 4.)
I am also checking carfax for any vehicle I’m looking at and ruling out ones with accidents, flooding (known), etc. I’m also trying to find ones that are local or have been in weather similar to mine.
All this said I’ve actually found 4 cars (2 hertz, 2 dealer). The costs are about $1500 difference (dealer being higher). Main differences are FWD vs AWD (yes, I know about the tire issue and I’m not sure I want to go there); color (not an issue just noting); two from dealer have power seat (nice option I could really use) and two don’t; last yet not least and this is the kicker–2 are 2014’s and 2 are 2016’s. Mileage between all is within 10k. 14’s are at the dealer and 16’s are at Hertz. 16’s have the AWD.
So. . . . how do I choose? Do I really just go with younger car? Better warranty? Power Seat? AWD? FWD? Better car condition? (BTW, yes I will pay for the car I choose to be checked out before buying to know what’s ahead, double check no non reported accidents, etc.)
As db4690 says,
“Don’t buy any extended warranty from Hertz, should it be offered. Aftermarket extended warranties are generally inferior to factory extended warranties.”
I agree. Don’t buy or rely on an included after-market warranty.
You should be getting some factory warranty with your purchase and it should include some bumper-to-bumper coverage and drivetrain that continues when b-to-b runs out.
Some things in your last post are puzzling. I think you need a better understanding of the factory warranty.
Weather strips not covered?
Gaskets not covered?
Things that break not covered?
What?
Either that’s not a bumper-to-bumper factory warranty or it ran out and the CPO doesn’t pick it up or if that’s true of Hyundai then you need to look elsewhere.
Chances are that you won’t need to use much warranty coverage. That’s been my experience, but it is good to have in case any bugs need to be worked out. I would not worry too much about your distance from the dealer.
Did you download and read anything from Hyundai on CPO warranties or transfer of their new car warranties?
CSA
I still say anyone who worries this much about a used vehicle purchase should be looking at new within their budget. Apparently this person kept a new vehicle purchase for 18 years, why not plan on that again.
Generally the rental companies get rid of them when the bumper to bumper expires. The remaining power train warranty covers mostly anything that oil touches. Mine was from Enterprise through the dealer and the option packages are quite good. They buy cars to resell again so options are important. Like I said, I would want to make sure about a used car at a dealer because you have no idea who owned it and how it was cared for. There are just too many people that believe the no maintenance hype or don’t care.
Look, I obviously take care of my vehicles as the last two I’ve had I had for 16 & 18 years (simultaneously). The ones before that 13 yrs and 10 years (part of it simultaneously too). My Dad used to say when I was done with a car, it was done. I learned to work on cars by helping my Dad and have done various repairs of my own over the years. That said, the ONLY reasons I’m concerned about a warranty are 1) It’s just me now and while I can work on cars to a point, ones with software, not so much. I know my limitations. 2) Out of the four vehicles that I’ve bought new, the extended warranty paid for itself at least two times over on three of those vehicles mainly with electrical and a/c repairs alone 3) With all that has gone on in my life the past three and a half years, not having to worry about even possibly having to pay for repairs (or do them) is some piece of mind/relief I’m willing to pay for right now. In other words, I need a break and at least have one thing go on autopilot for a bit.
What I do not need is someone telling me to buy something out my price range. I’m mainly concerned because I haven’t purchased preowned before so I don’t know how to sort the good from the bad and those that could help guide me thru it are gone (died). Then again, if you would like to buy me a brand new vehicle, no strings attached, I’m not against it. I also understand why people say not to buy extended warranties and I would LOVE to say that I was wrong and everyone was right especially with this car. However, my experience hasn’t worked out the way most people say (i.e., waste of funds).
The two Hertz vehicles I’m looking at would have about 29/34k left mileage wise and about 3 to 3.5yrs of the time on the 5/60. Thankfully the remainder of power train warranty will transfer to me. Yet it won’t cover things such as an a/c unit, starter, or water pump. It will cover a lot of the car, don’t get me wrong! But the things that I have had the most trouble with (albeit in the past) it won’t cover. I would like some extra piece of mind and just putting that money aside instead (as most people say to do) would only pay for an a/c repair.
As for Hyundai’s warranty, it is tiered like most manufacturers now have. I learned this from their representatives at the recent car show and if you read their manual and contracts it tells you this. This also backs up what was explained to me by a dealership manager as I started looking at cars. To put it simply Hyundai as somethings with a 12/12 warranty, some have a 3/36, some 5/60, some 8/80, and the powertrain has 10/100 for Hyundai. I started to write it all out, but decided it was quicker just to give you Hyundai’s link (https://www.hyundaiusa.com/assurance/america-best-warranty.aspx#2). You will need to scroll about 1/2 way down the page to see the breakdowns. As for their CPO warranty (the HPP), I don’t like it as there are several loopholes that they can use to not cover something when you don’t know nor have the documentation on what has/hasn’t been done to the car (page 4) before you purchased it. Yes, with Hertz, I would have less of a chance of that type of a problem.
Specifics about things such as weatherstripping (it was broken in a car I looked at which still had the 5/60 in effect–no I didn’t want the car, but I wanted to know if that was covered) and gaskets (to even change the oil there are 3 or so I was told and those tend to be where the vehicle problems start) I learned from calling the service department at my local dealership and asking questions.
Calm down, no one told you to buy something out of your price range ( I even said new within your budget ). When you go to a forum you will not only get answers that you want but others as well.
I have bought 2 CPO Hyundai’s from the dealer. One was a lease return, the other a rental. I think it is better to buy CPO from the dealer because from what I have read, you get the same warranty that the original owner had. For a used car bought from a rental company, I believe the 10yr/100K miles does not transfer.
I also second looking for a new one (even a new Tucson). I was recently shopping on a fun commuter car and wanted to get a Veloster turbo (manual) and the inventory in the used ones was not great. The only one I found was a 2015 with 9K miles but I was able to get a deal on a new 2016 and paid less than 1.5 K more than what they were asking on the used one. This was after sitting and e-mailing a few dealers for 2 weeks.
Get the VIN’s off both cars and do a service check on them (carfax, whomever). That would let you see if there were any ‘pre existing conditions’ that a warranty won’t cover. You may have to pay a one time fee, but for a major investment…
A warranty that doesn’t cover items that break, in my opinion, is not a warranty, but a worthless piece of paper, so I wouldn’t put too much stock in that as far as weighing in on your decision making.
Had an uncle who used to buy three year old Caddies off Hertz when they rotated them out, then every three years, he’d get another one. Mostly to impress the neighbors, but he never had any maintenance issues staying in less than six year old cars.
I’m reading what the OP wrote, and what we have all written in response, and my conclusion is that there’s a great job of homework being done already, and the car that gets purchased will be one of the most carefully researched deals I’ve seen so far on this forum.
Unfortunately, we all know that virtually anything can happen anyway. Life’s like that. So, good luck @faxit, and let us know hat you finally do.
Correct. But the OP is also worrying about things breaking that are no longer covered by the factory warranty. He mentioned that one vehicle had door weather strip problems but did not say if it would be repaired before purchase.
We drove into Chicago to the Hertz outlet store and helped my son buy a 2002 Mazda Protege in 2004. He is still driving it, it has over 300,000 miles. Hertz told us they only sell at outlet the very best of the cars. Any with excessive repairs are sold at auction. I don’t know if that is still the case, but if we were looking for a late model used car in the USA and a Hertz outlet were within driving distance we would give them another look. He has been very happy with that car.
True, but so what? You know, I know and the OP knows we can’t be very helpful about whether an extended warranty covers his weatherstripping.