Hyundai Genesis?
 

I’ve seen some suggestions and reviews online saying that the Hyundai Genesis was a decent and reliable vehicle. People claim that even as they cross the 100k mark they’re still fully functional and that they’re a lot of car for what they sell for. It seems so, you can reliably find some nice 2009 and 2010 cars for $7-9k depending on where they’re being sold and which powertrain. For example, I seen a 2009 4.6 sedan with just 100k for under 7k... are these really a reliable car? I thought about one as an Uber since apparently you can pick one up for around what a 4cyl Malibu would cost, or maybe just over if you look at year for year. The 3.8 cars use an Aisin trans and the 4.6 cars use a ZF six speed... other than fuel economy taking a hit (I expect a 4.6 car to get 15mpg in commercial use) what else should I expect to go wrong should I go this route?

Actually look for an Equus they are a ton of car for the money. They were when they were new, but especially now when you combine poor luxury resale no matter the brand with poor resale Hyundai also brings to the table.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=UPpLCthGP-Q

Are you thinking Genesis because it qualifies as an Uber luxury car? If you're driving Uber black only, then I'd get something more fuel efficient.

...and Hyundai's next car should be the Exodus. Maybe it would be an EV.

You can find 2011 Lincoln MKZ hybrids in that price range and get good mpg.
-mort

I mostly considered the Genesis because it’s a lot of car for as cheap as they can come, I found a 2009 V8 car listed for under $6500(cash price). People claim that they’re actually reliable, which is something I’m still not used to hearing about Hyundai. I did remember that the first gen Genesis did do pretty well even compared to its competitors, the E class and 5 series

So it isn't considered a luxury car by Uber?

I too went down the used luxury car path when I bought my most excellent Acura TSX. My thinking was that they depreciate quickly on the private party market because those wanting luxury are willing to pay for new luxury and aren't interested in used.

That said, depreciation is generally the #1 cost of car ownership, and fuel would be #2. You've got #1 covered by purchasing a vehicle that has already suffered the bulk of the depreciation, but #2 still remains, especially true when putting in a lot of Uber miles. My friend is putting in about 200 miles per day. That alone would be motivation to me to get something fuel efficient, and with all the stop and go, something hybrid so that it recovers braking energy and turns off the engine at a stop.

As I'm always saying, the Ford Fusion hybrid is most excellent, though trunk space is a little limited if that matters. I'd be tempted by a 2014 Hyundai Sonata hybrid limited, which goes for $7,500 with 100k on the odometer. The C-Max is a great car...

There's no sense having a nice car for Uber. If you want a nice car, buy it for yourself and drive the cheapo one for Uber. You'll end up destroying a nice car inside of 5 years if you're doing Uber full time.

If I were serious about driving for Uber, I'd buy a Chevy Bolt. Basically no maintenance, and my electricity cost makes it about 2 cents per mile.

I honestly haven’t even checked if it could do Uber Select or anything or even if it’s offered in my city. In all reality I’d LOVE a 2012-14 Tesla Model S, with the free supercharging. There are two or three stations in my city and I could drive people around for mostly free, instead of getting 15mpg... on the hottest days, my car only got 17-18 due to having to idle the engine constantly despite low demand... the Tesla is still $35-40K though, and I’m not into having a $1000 car payment, even if there are no fuel costs whatsoever...

I met a guy that truly drives full time (7 days a week) and he told me he’s killed two traction batteries in his G3 Prius... even grossing $1800 a week like he does I’d have issues swallowing a $2.5K battery replacement every year or less, hence my aversion to hybrid cars...

For what it’s worth I usually average 450-550miles per weekend, though that should go down a little when I get another day job to diversify my earnings portfolio

I've heard of some Prius batteries dying in taxis, and others that hold up over 300k miles. Some people theorize that passengers inadvertently cover the cooling intake which is built into the rear seat, or that dust ends up accumulating and blocking the cooling intake from people constantly getting in and out. The dead battery may be avoidable by periodically cleaning the intake vent. At the very least, it should be extremely easy to tell if the pack is getting too hot by using Torque and monitoring temps, perhaps setting an alarm if it exceeds some threshold. That would tell you when to clean the vents.

The Model 3 can be had for about $30k after incentives where I live, and the Bolt perhaps around $25k, and Leaf ~20k or less. Not sure if you have home charging access, but I'd be tempted by any of those options if I were driving for a living. I also like the idea of a used S with free supercharging.

I understand the concern of replacing an expensive battery, but if you're having to replace one due to extensive driving, then it's going to be way cheaper than paying for all the fuel and maintenance on non-hybrid vehicles in the long run.

The reason I lean towards an EV for Uber is that there's no maintenance except for tires and wiper blades. Just keeping the car on the road more days means more money. Not having to visit a petrol station is saving you time too; time which could be earning you more money.

My sole issue is the city I drive in is 80 miles away and I don’t have home charging access other than maybe 120V. I can make a Tesla work because they have the supercharging stations all over with the closest one being 26mi from me, but I’ve yet to find a universal DCFC station...

You may want to move.