Best Used Cars for Delivery Drivers You Can Find at AutoBidMaster and Copart

Delivery driving changes the way you look at a car

Photo by Paul Hanaoka on Unsplash

You stop caring quite so much about how exciting it is and start thinking about fuel costs, reliability, cargo space, parking, repair bills and how much money disappears every time you fill the tank.

That’s why some of the most boring cars on the road can actually be pretty good business tools.

We work with Copart auction inventory every day through AutoBidMaster website, and there are plenty of common models that make sense for delivery work.

The current inventory includes large numbers of Toyota, Honda, Ford, Nissan and Chevrolet vehicles, with models such as the Corolla, Civic, Prius, Accord, Camry, Elantra and Fusion regularly appearing in the search results.

Here are the ones I’d keep an eye on.

Toyota Prius

For someone putting serious miles on a car every week, the Prius is hard to ignore.

Fuel economy is the obvious reason. Stop-and-go city driving is exactly where a hybrid can make sense, and the hatchback also gives you useful cargo space for food orders, packages or whatever else you’re carrying during a shift.

The Prius also has another advantage in the auction world: there are plenty of them around. That means more lots to compare instead of having to buy the first one that looks cheap.

The catch is that a cheap Prius isn’t automatically a good deal. Check the hybrid system, battery condition, mileage, title status and damage carefully before bidding.

Toyota Corolla

The Corolla is probably the least exciting car on this list.

That’s actually part of the appeal.

It’s compact, economical, easy to park and there are a lot of mechanics and parts suppliers familiar with them. AutoBidMaster’s current inventory has thousands of Corollas listed, so there is usually plenty to compare.

For someone doing DoorDash, Uber Eats or similar work, you don’t necessarily need a huge vehicle. You need something that starts every morning, doesn’t burn through fuel and doesn’t make every repair into a financial event.

A Corolla checks a lot of those boxes.

Honda Civic

The Civic is another one I’d watch closely.

It’s small enough for city deliveries but doesn’t feel as cramped as some of the smaller economy cars. Fuel economy is decent, parts are widely available and there are a lot of them in the auction market.

The current AutoBidMaster inventory includes thousands of Civics, along with other common delivery-friendly models.

I’d especially look at clean-title or lightly damaged examples where the repair cost is predictable. A Civic with front-end damage that looks cheap at auction can become a very different deal once you add airbags, suspension components, sensors and labor.

Honda Accord

Need something a little bigger?

The Accord makes more sense than jumping straight into an SUV.

You get more interior and trunk space while still keeping reasonable fuel economy, and it’s comfortable when you’re spending several hours behind the wheel.

An Accord can be especially useful for drivers who do more than food delivery and need room for larger packages.

Toyota Camry

The Camry is another boring-but-smart option.

It gives you more room than a Corolla without becoming a huge vehicle that’s annoying to maneuver around restaurants and apartment complexes.

There are also a lot of Camrys in auction inventory. That’s useful because you can be picky about mileage, damage, title and location instead of trying to justify one questionable car because there aren’t any alternatives.

Hyundai Elantra

The Elantra is worth looking at when the budget is tighter.

It’s usually easier to find at a lower entry price than some of the Toyota and Honda alternatives, while still giving you decent fuel economy and enough room for normal delivery work.

This is one situation where I’d pay extra attention to the exact year and vehicle history rather than treating every Elantra as the same car.

Ford Fusion

The Fusion gets overlooked, but that can work in a buyer’s favor.

There are plenty of them in used and auction inventory, and the car gives you a comfortable cabin and useful trunk space without going all the way up to an SUV.

There are also hybrid versions worth watching if fuel consumption is a major concern.

The car itself isn’t the whole deal

This is probably the biggest thing I’d tell anyone shopping for a delivery car through an auction.

Don’t calculate the deal using the winning bid alone.

A $6,000 car can stop being a $6,000 car very quickly once you add auction fees, transportation, repairs, title costs, insurance and anything else needed to get it on the road.

That’s especially important with salvage vehicles.

A delivery car needs to make money, so you don’t want it sitting in a repair shop for two months because you bought a cheap lot with expensive hidden problems.

Look closely at the photos. Check the VIN and vehicle history. Pay attention to the damage location, airbags, suspension, wheels, undercarriage and whether the vehicle runs and drives. When possible, arrange an inspection before bidding.

And don’t forget storage and transportation when you’re calculating the total.

What would I pick?

For mostly city deliveries, I’d probably start with the Toyota Prius, Corolla or Honda Civic.

For longer routes and more space, the Accord or Camry makes more sense.

For a tighter budget, I’d also keep an eye on the Elantra and Fusion rather than automatically assuming Toyota or Honda is the only answer.

The nice thing about auction shopping is that you don’t have to limit yourself to one model. AutoBidMaster currently has more than 100,000 auction results searchable across cars, SUVs, trucks and other vehicle types, with filters for things like title type, damage, fuel type, mileage and location.

That gives you room to wait for the right car instead of forcing a bad deal.

For delivery drivers, that’s probably the biggest advantage of all: the cheapest car isn’t necessarily the best car. The best car is the one that keeps earning after you buy it.