Rent-A-Wreck
Encyclopedia
Rent-A-Wreck is a car rental company that is primarily known for renting used cars at discount prices. The cars may have been personally owned, or they could have been owned by another rental car chain company. They are also known for accommodating younger drivers to whom many other car rental companies will not rent. They charge less than normal rental companies, mostly because the cars they rent are used. The average Rent-A-Wreck vehicle is about 3-5 years old on average with 40,000 - 70,000 miles. The company is known as The Smart Alternative, a trademarked phrase. The easiest way to spot a Rent-a-Wreck
Rent-A-Wreck
Rent-A-Wreck is a car rental company that is primarily known for renting used cars at discount prices. The cars may have been personally owned, or they could have been owned by another rental car chain company. They are also known for accommodating younger drivers to whom many other car rental...
vehicle is to look for a bumper sticker with the Rent-a-Wreck
Rent-A-Wreck
Rent-A-Wreck is a car rental company that is primarily known for renting used cars at discount prices. The cars may have been personally owned, or they could have been owned by another rental car chain company. They are also known for accommodating younger drivers to whom many other car rental...
logo on it.
History
Founded in 1968 in Los AngelesLos Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
by David Schwartz, a young entrepreneur with a used car sales lot, Rent-A-Wreck began as a pioneering concept: renting used cars for less at neighbourhood locations. Airport based car rental was typical in the 1960s, and most renters were business travellers or vacationers renting while out of town. Media coverage, notably in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal and Mike Wallace show, sparked national interest in Rent-A-Wreck, and by 1973, the company had sold its first franchised unit.
Since 1973, Rent-A-Wreck has grown to include franchised locations in all 50 states and in Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
and Iceland. The company operates primarily in neighbourhood locations, often connected to or in close proximity to repair facilities, car dealerships or other automotive related services. Some Rent-A-Wreck locations offer airport pick-up and drop off.
Rent-A-Wreck was purchased by JJF Management on January 26, 2006. The purchase privatized the formerly public company, and added it to the stable of dealerships and car rental businesses owned and operated by the Fitzgerald Automotive Group under the leadership of Jack Fitzgerald, Bill Cash and Michael DeLorenzo. Under new ownership the company has begun an image makeover beginning with the hire of major independent advertising agency Cramer-Krasselt.
The cars that Rent-a-Wreck
Rent-A-Wreck
Rent-A-Wreck is a car rental company that is primarily known for renting used cars at discount prices. The cars may have been personally owned, or they could have been owned by another rental car chain company. They are also known for accommodating younger drivers to whom many other car rental...
rents depends on the location of the rental office. The agency could rent a Chevrolet Metro or they could rent a BMW 3 Series
BMW 3 Series
The BMW 3 Series is a compact executive car manufactured by the German automaker BMW since May 1975. Successor to the BMW New Class, it has been produced in five different generations and in no less than five different body styles. It is BMW's best-selling model, accounting for around 30% of the...
. For example, for the same price you would pay for a midsized car at another rental chain, you can rent a BMW from Rent-a-Wreck
Rent-A-Wreck
Rent-A-Wreck is a car rental company that is primarily known for renting used cars at discount prices. The cars may have been personally owned, or they could have been owned by another rental car chain company. They are also known for accommodating younger drivers to whom many other car rental...
.
Racing
Rent-A-Wreck sponsored a NASCAR Winston Cup car, the #66 car in 1999, and the #49 NASCAR BUSCH series team owned by Jay Robinson from 2000 - 2002. From 2002 - 2006 Rent-A-Wreck sponsored the Sullivan Pulling team in the American Tractor Pullers AssociationTractor pulling
Truck and Tractor pulling, also known as power pulling, is a motorsport competition, popular in America, Europe , Australia and Brazil, which requires modified tractors to pull a heavy sledge along a 35ft. wide and length of 100 metre or 300ft+ track, with the winner being the tractor that pulls...
.
Franchising
Rent A Wreck sells franchises for $8,500 per location. The ongoing fees collected from the franchisee include a per unit licence fee and a national advertising fee. Each are paid per month. Recently added franchises are located in Laurel, MD, Sheridan, WY, St. George, UT, Presque Isle, ME, Oxford, MS, and IcelandIceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
.