Car rental, guide me

The only time in my life i've rented a car, i got stuck with a Fiat 500 through insurance when the meth heads cut the cat off the blue jeep.

Renting a car, would prefer pickup on the 22nd, dropoff on the 24th. Car will be used to drive to and from Chicago from Indy, 4 adults. Do not want tiny rattletrap E36 M3box.

Willing to spend up to $100, would be happier in the $50 range including taxes. $105 gets me a Rav4. $57 gets me a Jetta. Both from Enterprise.

I have just about every rental chain within 10 miles of me. Who do i want, and what do i want?

Budget because Fiesta ST.

Wait seriously? I can get a Fiesta ST?

In Atlanta, it's now been around the track at One Porsche Drive as well

other locations have them as well

I can't figure out how to specify that model anywhere. Budget doesn't even list a Fiesta.

Tell me the secret! Will reserve today!

Call each of the locations and ask if they have any manuals. ( A co-worker lucked into the ST the first time, since then I've gotten it twice, he's gotten it again and a 3rd co-worker has also gotten it. It's done no fewer then 60 laps at Road Atlanta courtesy of us.) Once confirmed that they do, ask if any of them are Ford's as you'll be visiting a Ford parts supplier in your business travels.

Dude. Most rentals at the airport just have them lined up with keys in the ignition. You go and choose the one you want, etc.

Basically go check out a few local rental agencies and see what they have on the lots, then go shop for deals for that company and set it all up.

drummerfromdefleopard wrote: Call each of the locations and ask if they have any manuals. ( A co-worker lucked into the ST the first time, since then I've gotten it twice, he's gotten it again and a 3rd co-worker has also gotten it. It's done no fewer then 60 laps at Road Atlanta courtesy of us.) Once confirmed that they do, ask if any of them are Ford's as you'll be visiting a Ford parts supplier in your business travels.

Hhahah awesome, ok, thanks!

turboswede wrote: Dude. Most rentals at the airport just have them lined up with keys in the ignition. You go and choose the one you want, etc. Basically go check out a few local rental agencies and see what they have on the lots, then go shop for deals for that company and set it all up.

Airport is really out of the way (30 minutes+), but will go check out a couple within a 5 mile radius of me tomorrow.

Rent off-airport if you can - taxes and fees at the airport can add $10-15 a day over an in-town location. If you decide to name your own price on Hotwire or Priceline, keep that in mind and make sure you win the bid at least that much lower than an in-town location.

Your employer may also have a corporate deal negotiated with someone, look into that as well. If you are a Costco member, Avis, Budget, Enterprise, and Alamo all have discounts if you book through costcotravel.com.

One thing to watch out for with Enterprise - at the locations nearest me, "unlimited miles" turns into 200 miles per day if you leave the state. It may not matter for you, but make sure you look at the terms and conditions of the deal just in case.

don't forget the parking. my last trip to Chicago the parking was $50/day. I have had very good luck renting through hotwire, and do it often for long trips.

If you don't live in anything that can be considered a tourist destination, don't get your hopes up for an interesting car.

Just looking for rental stuff only. Parking will cost the same whether i rent a car or not. Airport is not convenient anyways so i'll avoid the airport tax.

Look at Enterprise Truck rental, if you want a truck. Never rent a truck from a car place.

I've had good luck with Enterprise cars. I've never had the 200 mile limit going to the next state. As mentioned it's better to go to a local store rather than the airport.

Maybe i should explain why i'm renting a car.

If i don't rent a car, we're taking 4 adults on a 3 hour highway drive on some pretty terrible pavement. In a 2dr XJ Cherokee.

Comfort and noise is what i'm mostly concerned about. MPG would be nice, but the Cherokee does 22mpg on the highway anyways. I mostly just don't want to subject anyone to that long of a trip in a 17 year old truck with original suspension.

Besides the Fiesta ST, anyone have actual car recommendations i should try to seek out? Jetta? Maxima? Any companies i should outright avoid?

May just be the local Enterprise franchisee, wouldn't be surprised if it was. With the Costco discount I usually end up with Budget or Alamo anyways, so they may have even done away with that since the last time I rented with Enterprise.

EDIT: I had a very nice Fusion Hybrid a few weeks ago. Think that ended up being $40 a day or so from Budget ($5 upsell from the compact I had reserved). I got a Camry SE from Hertz once that was really quite agreeable. Otherwise I usually get Altimas or Malibus which are pretty forgettable (I get full-sizes when I rent).

If you have a warrentee, or rental car coverage in your insurance you might be able to get some work done on one of your cars while the rental is paid for. Two birds with one stone and all that.

KyAllroad wrote: If you have a warrentee, or rental car coverage in your insurance you might be able to get some work done on one of your cars while the rental is paid for. Two birds with one stone and all that.

Nobody works on my cars but myself. Partly because i'm poor, and partly because nobody will touch my cars.

Just go get the standard car class and go. It should be 30-35 a day plus tax. It'll probably be something boring like a Fusion, Jetta, or something like that. You can call the local place and see what the normal options are. Any sort of upgrade from there is right in the car rental places profit center and they will hit you hard for it.

Understandable. But you can't do it all yourself. Windshield replacement? Then insurance picks that up too!

KyAllroad wrote: Understandable. But you can't do it all yourself. Windshield replacement? Then insurance picks that up too!

I think next time, i WILL actually do that myself. The Blue Jeep has been damaged by two exceedingly E36 M3ty glass installs over the last 3 years. Cost was $10 under my deductible as well.

I go to carrentals.com and actually just got back from a NJ -> FL trip in a Kia Soul that had XM radio and USB/Aux for no extra charge (believe it was Hertz, because 4x airline points). Otherwise I've had Jettas (not bad for hwy) and other compacts most of the time. That site will show you the rates for all the companies in your area.

I've had good experiences and somewhat crummy experiences at just about all of them. Only reason I stick with one company is to get loyalty points, and I just recently switched from Hertz (so chosen because it was easiest to get in/out of their lot at the airport I did most of my renting from) to Avis (because they're the only rental place within walking distance of my house.)

I guess I'd stay away from Alamo, they gave me a Kia Rio with 53,000 miles that died in a Taco Cabana parking lot on my way back to the airport. I'm sure that was just bad luck, but still.

Does Enterprise say they'll give a Jetta? Or is it "VW Jetta (or similar models)?" You're always going to be at the mercy of whatever they have on the lot; sometimes that works out in your favor. My best rental by far was when I had a 29 day rental for an economy car and they gave me a fully loaded Buick Lucerne because it was the only car they had.

Beware that renting a "full size" car will often result in a Mazda6/200/Altima sort of mid-size car in my experience. Getting an SUV might be a safer bet if you want to guarantee lots of leg room.