Shareholders' Equity, Dividends & Stock Compensation (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2013	Jun. 30, 2012	Jun. 30, 2013	Jun. 30, 2012
Dividends Payable [Line Items]
Dividends, percentage of the difference between net earnings and amounts paid for tax that may be included in dividends paid			50.00%
Divendend distributions			$ 10,855,000	$ 25,724,000
DriveTime Automotive Group, Inc [Member]
Dividends Payable [Line Items]
Par value of common stock	$ 0.001		$ 0.001
Shares of common stock authorized	1,000		1,000
Shares of common stock issued	101.8		101.8
Shares of common stock outstanding	101.8		101.8
DT Acceptance Corp [Member]
Dividends Payable [Line Items]
Par value of common stock	$ 0		$ 0
Shares of common stock authorized	1,000,000		1,000,000
Shares of common stock issued	101.8		101.8
Shares of common stock outstanding	101.8		101.8
Chief Executive Officer [Member] | Restricted Stock [Member]
Dividends Payable [Line Items]
Restricted stock compensation expense	$ 300,000	$ 500,000	$ 600,000	$ 900,000