Myth Buster: Program Car Stereotypes are Fact-Checked

When customers begin looking for a new car, and a salesman mentions a ‘program car’ or rental, it has traditionally sent a red flag into their minds. But there are a lot of things most people don’t know about program cars. Sure, about 90% of them were rental cars, but rental cars are not beat on like some people stereotypically like to think. The rental companies actually maintain them better than some private owners. They always have their oil changed on time because the rental companies keep track of the odometer readings like clockwork. 

Rental vehicles also come from southern states like California, Florida, or Arizona most of the time, so they do not have the hard winters and salty roads wearing on the paint.

Did you know when you are considering purchasing a program car, you can request a vehicle history report from the dealership? The report will have all of the information on any accidents and when the registration is renewed. Program cars also come at a lower price than a new vehicle, and have been properly broken in. Some of them are vehicles coming off of a lease or factory executive-driven vehicles. Most of them even have their original warranty. 

You do need to be careful when considering a program car, because some dealerships purchase buyback program cars, also known as “lemons”. Runde Auto Group does not believe in purchasing these vehicles. We want our customers to be 110% satisfied with their vehicle purchase, and selling lemons will come back to eventually haunt a dealership and its reputation. However, other dealers are not always as considerate of their customers. If you are looking into program vehicles, make sure to request the vehicle history report to make sure the car has been well-maintained and was not involved in any accidents — minor or major.

I, personally, purchased a program car a little over a year ago. It still had over half of its 36,000 mile warranty, and I got a Pontiac G6 GT for the price of the highest trim GTP. It came fully equipped with a sunroof, heated leather seats, 6-disc cd changer, remote start, and power everything. It had a little over 13,000 miles on it when I bought it. Other than regular maintenance, the only money I had to  put into it was for an XM radio. I absolutely love my car, and would definitely buy a program car again in the future.