Ernest Garcia II built DriveTime from the distressed assets of a failed rental-car chain, survived bankruptcy and legal setbacks, and later became the controlling owner behind both DriveTime and the early Carvana structure. [1][2][3]
His used-car fortune emerged after an earlier financial collapse
Forbes says Garcia's business career included both personal and corporate bankruptcies as well as a 1990 bank-fraud conviction tied to the Lincoln Savings and Loan scandal. [1]
His comeback began when he bought the distressed Ugly Duckling rental-car chain for less than $1 million and eventually combined it with a small finance company. [1]
Garcia turned the business toward selling and financing used cars for customers with weaker credit, raised public capital during the 1990s and later took full control after the share price collapsed. [1]
DriveTime and Carvana created a much larger ownership base
Ugly Duckling became DriveTime, which grew into one of the largest used-car retailers in the United States, while Garcia also became the controlling stockholder behind the DriveTime ownership structure that incubated Carvana. [2][3]
The reviewed evidence supports a primarily self-created fortune built through acquisition, restructuring, auto retail and financing rather than inheritance. His setbacks were substantial, but they arose during his business career rather than constituting the kind of starting disadvantage required for a score of 5. [1][2]
Sources for background
Sources reviewed Sep 27, 2026.
- How An Ex-Con Became A Billionaire From Used Cars · Forbes · Dec 18, 2017
- Ernest Garcia, II. · Forbes · Mar 10, 2026
- Carvana 2019 Proxy Statement · U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission · Mar 13, 2019
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