09/10/2026
NONE OF THIS HAPPENED OVERNIGHT.
Ever wonder why Budget’s wreckers started out yellow?
Where the signature flames came from?
Or how a Craigslist search in 2007 turned into the Budget you know today?
There’s a story behind all of it.
In 2007, one of the local wrecker services had closed its doors, leaving a need in the community. Andy Lewis saw an opportunity and decided to take a chance.
But first, he needed a wrecker.
So he did what you did in 2007.
He got on Craigslist.
That search took him all the way to Knoxville, Tennessee, where he bought Budget’s first wrecker, trailered it back to Oklahoma and put it to work.
A few months later, Craigslist came through again — this time with a bright yellow wrecker in Elk City.
The previous owner had painted it yellow so motorists could see him better along the highway. The paint was fresh, so Budget basically said…
Well, yellow it is.
The trucks that followed kept the yellow, and before long those wreckers became a familiar sight around Ponca City.
For the first couple of years, Craigslist was basically Budget’s fleet department.
Nineteen years later, Andy has graduated to Facebook Marketplace.
Eventually an all-black wrecker joined the fleet, and James — the paint and body guy Andy has used over the years — came up with the signature flames.
The flames stuck.
As the original yellow wreckers were retired, a little yellow stayed in those flames as a nod to where Budget started.
No marketing agency picked Budget’s colors. Sometimes that’s just how things become tradition.
OPERATING A WRECKER, YOU SEE SOME THINGS.
After 19 years, Andy has plenty of stories — including a car that hit a dip at a high rate of speed, split in half and somehow landed in the police department parking lot.
No injuries.
Once everybody is okay, that’s one you can laugh about for years.
But not every call becomes a funny story.
Christmas Eve 2009 brought a brutal Oklahoma blizzard. Budget worked from Ponca City out toward I-35, helping stranded motorists and even pulling out police cruisers.
Another towing company lost a driver that night.
Andy finally made it home in the wee hours of Christmas morning.
It’s a side of towing people don’t always see. When everyone else is trying to get off the road, wrecker drivers are often heading onto it.
Through all those calls, Budget kept growing.
Andy already knew used cars, but building Budget Auto Sales required another kind of risk.
He pretty much bet the farm on it.
Almost literally.
Andy took out a second mortgage on his own home to help fund Budget Auto Sales.
Then another need became obvious: fleet customers didn’t just need someone to tow their vehicles when they broke down. They needed someone to fix them and get them back to work.
That helped grow Budget’s repair operation.
What began at the location on 14th Street — now home to the tire shop — eventually expanded beyond fleet work to serve the general public.
As the repair side grew, Budget moved the operation to the larger shop on 1st Street, where Budget Towing & Repair has operated for the last decade.
Over the years, the customer base has grown and services including tire sales and Intoxalock installation and service have been added.
Like everything else at Budget, it didn’t happen overnight.
It grew one opportunity, one customer and a whole lot of hard work at a time.
Over 19 years, trucks have come and gone.
Employees have come and gone. Services have been added. The business has changed.
BUT THROUGH EVERY VERSION OF BUDGET, ANDY HAS BEEN THE CONSTANT.
Still answering the phone. Still dispatching calls. Still behind the wheel of a wrecker. Still checking on the repair shop and car lot.
And still pretty hard to convince he needs a day off.
Besides a wrecker, Andy’s first choice is a Chevy — although when you own a car lot, there’s really no telling what he may drive home. 😂
When somebody actually convinces him to take some time off, you’ll probably find him riding side-by-sides through the Arkansas mountains or simply spending time with his family.
Then it’s back to work.
Because businesses don’t make it 19 years because of one truck, one employee or one good year.
Somebody has to keep showing up.
And customers have to keep giving them the opportunity to.
You’ve called when you were stranded.
You’ve trusted us with your vehicles.
You’ve bought vehicles from us.
You’ve recommended us to your friends and family.
And for 19 years, you’ve given a local business the opportunity to keep growing and serving this community.
What started with a Craigslist search for a wrecker in 2007 has grown into Budget Towing & Repair and Budget Auto Sales.
The trucks look different. The business looks different. A lot has changed.
But Andy’s still answering that phone.
And, in the words of Paul Harvey…
NOW YOU KNOW THE REST OF THE STORY.
Budget Towing & Repair
805 S. 1st | Ponca City
Wrecker: 580-765-9100
Repair: 580-716-3030
Budget Auto Sales
215 N. 14th | Ponca City
Sales: 580-765-3979
Hooked on Service.
