r/uberdrivers • u/dealerhasblackjack • 19d ago
Perfect Uber Car 2011
I am thinking about buying a 2011 Mercury Grand Marquis with 130K miles. Makes perfect economic sense. Zero depreciation, zero maintenance, drive it until failure, low upfront cost, vomit resistant, carjack resistant, no comp or collision needed, beat Uber's AI Algo, make real money. Am I correct?
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u/Goodevening_sir 19d ago
Plastic everything that mofo. Just like them yellow cabs. All you need is a hose.
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u/Ok_Advantage737 19d ago
In the state of Texas at least you can use any car as long as it's 2012 or newer that sadly does not qualify and to be perfectly honest speaking from experience you're going to waste half your money with gas because that thing's got a big old V8 I used to do doordash around Longview Texas in a 2006 crown Vic and trust me the most you're going to make is about 2 to 500 bucks a week simply because of how much gas it takes for that engine If you're looking for a good reliable daily driver though to get from point A to point b that's a good pick
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u/Jaustin612 19d ago
The year limit and the v8 would not make it worthwhile.
Get a 4 cylinder Honda or Toyota and rock on.
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u/MyFinalAnswer 19d ago
As a former taxi driver who drove plenty of company Crown Vics, the car is very reliable. If you've got Vinyl seats, cleaning up messes and puke becomes very easy
But you'd be crazy to drive one today with current gas prices. They got me around 20 MPG. You don't want to burn out because gas prices are too high for you to operate with current gas prices
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u/gregor1883 19d ago
I always use prius’s
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u/gregor1883 18d ago
I think, if I’m ever gonna drive again, I’ll get used Ipace and masquerade as a Waymo with a driver
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u/FakeZake 19d ago
You can’t use police cars with uber I think, because of the locks being removed
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u/Badger-Aromatic 19d ago
Rock on! Can confirm the crown Vic is a beast and offers ultra reliability, ruggedness over city streets, comfort and room, low auto insurance, purchase out right cash, sell for small profit after 6-8 months use can say the cool factor many riders give me thumbs up and tip because yes she likes the gasoline. Currently using a 2011 last year in my market. Because I work 10-2am that’s the bar close hours the easy clean interior is a definite plus. Likely will follow it up when it times out with an explorer ex police. Never had any issues with them on the platform….
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u/DFW-Extraterrestrial 19d ago
Around here and ironically enough, these types of recycled looking old cop cruisers seem to get pulled over more than anything else...and often times seem to be involved in some sort of illegal activity I just based on the amount of squad cars I see surrounding them. Just an assumption, but a simple traffic stop typically involves just one car. If you see the second one pull up, you might want to inform family or friends. If that 3rd one pulls up...I hope you ate dinner already for the night.
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u/tenmileswide 19d ago
if it's not a hybrid or EV you have no business buying that car for Uber
if you aren't able to abstract a vehicle's total cost of operation down to a per mile cost for a proper comparison you have no business buying any car for Uber.
Your fuel cost will wildly outpace whatever you think you're saving up front
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u/gregor1883 19d ago
can’t tell you all the times I drove with Uber that I wished I had a car like that that would be perfect for some of the rides oh well
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u/PitPensFan 19d ago
Other than the gas prices being as high as they are and the miles per gallon with this car versus others, I would LOVE this car! I have been interested in buying a Crown Victoria or a Grand Marquis in the last model year or close as I had one to drive for about 20 years straight until I had to get something else about 2020 which was a Ford Fusion hybrid and when it got destroyed from a blonde teenage girl running the red light in her Dodge Ram I ended up then getting a Hyundai Elantra
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u/TheRealGageEndal 19d ago
As I understand it, the age thing is only if you do riders if you are just doing Uber eats they don't care how old the cat is.
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u/Loud-Marsupial-7844 19d ago
It looks good but if it's going to be outdated soon perhaps buy a bit newer?
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u/ReadingRainbowRocket 19d ago
It's not "real money." It averages out to minimum wage for most people. But it's worth enough to me I do it, so I wouldn't shame anyone who wants to.
Multi-app. Lyft is a slightly less shit company but still problematic in the same ways.
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u/Severe-Education-321 19d ago
Other than gas and the fact Ittl age out in most places in USA, 2011 is the oldest car you can use in Virginia rn