Car rental types - help!!!!!!!

[Jerry]

I would say that prices have gone up in the past two years and also, car rental fleets are getting smaller. Most car rental companies no longer have great buyback programs with auto manufacturers, so they are keeping their vehicles longer and carrying less of them; especially in categories like large SUV's and Minivans.

[Tony J Case, Super Genius]

So I'm planning on hitting the road over Memorial Day weekend for 10 days, driving from Seattle to as far as I can get in 8 and then back again. Potentially, I could be looking at a round trip of something like an upper end of 2,500-3,000 ish miles if all goes well. While I'm sure that my car has many many years left in it (She's at about 120,000 miles total), I'm torn:

Do I just go and bite the bullet, or do I rent a car for the trip and save all kinds of wear and tear on my ride? Sure renting will cost a bit more in the short term, but do I gain anything by extending the life of my car a handful of years.

You say "Oh, pishaw - it's just one trip. 3K miles is nothing!", but I'm also toying with a couple more big trips over the 4th and over Labor Day (provided that I get the time off from work). Suddenly a 3K excursion turns into 8 or 9 in one year.

Or am I just being paranoid and should shut up and drive my own beast? :)

[Leo H]

Hi,
Can anyone point me in the right direction please re Car Rental types. There are 6 of us (all adults) coming over from England in September next year, and we intend to drive from San Francisco, through Yosemite, Death Valley, and on to Las Vegas.

In order of preference we rather fancy:-

1. An SUV
2. A Minivan
3. A Ford E350 type (I think)?

The problem is that lots of them seem to seat 6 comfortably, but the difficulty is the luggage. Knowing the wives as I do I'm sure we'll end up with 6 suitcases loaded with all manner of stuff.

Does anyone know of a rental vehicle that will comfortably sit 6 adults and take 6 suitcases plus odd bits of hand luggage ?

Your help as always, is much appreciated.

Charlie

Hello there

Although this is a very old post, what is everybody's thoughts on a RV rental in this situation? I would think a small class A motor home might serve this purpose better than the options Charlie mentioned.

Is the cost of rental too prohibitive?

Leo

[Southwest Dave]

Hello there

Although this is a very old post, what is everybody's thoughts on a RV rental in this situation? I would think a small class A motor home might serve this purpose better than the options Charlie mentioned.

Is the cost of rental too prohibitive?

Leo

Hi Leo,

An RV is thought of a great way to travel by some where others prefer the comfort of a Motel, but with 6 people wanting to share this lifestyle it can be a good option. In my experience with 2 people sharing an RV it is much dearer than a car and Motels, with 4, the costs are getting closer and with 6 the RV cheaper.[in most cases]

I don't think a small class A would be the best option though [if at all with 6 to sleep] and I personally would opt for a large class C as you have 2 double beds already laid out, one at the rear and one above the cab with just the dinette table and bench to make up each night.

[monsoon]

One way rentals almost always have drop off fees

this topic is a treasure chest. and the forum is a tresure island.

my high hopes hang on the word "ALMOST" Midwest Michael used.
I am planning a trip from Houston to LA, and from all I saw on the web there's many $$ to be spent on the car due to one way run.

but the "ALMOST" leaves some hope - and maybe you'd suggest a company that does not charge for that?

To give you and example [and please verify my thoughts]
I made this query on rentalcar groupand chose Alamo there, here's the result for economy class 15 days rental:

TOTAL COST: 467.06 (USD)
Deposit to be charged: 70.06 (USD)
Balance to be paid at rental:(See rate exclusions below): 397.00 (USD)

INCLUDED
Collision Damage Waiver, Extended Protection, Customer Facility Charge, Included, Alamo Busing Recovery Fee, Concession Recoup, Harris Sports Venue Tax, Veh License Cost Recov, Motor Veh Rental Tax

RATES EXCLUDES

Motor Veh Rental Tax 10.0%
Drop Charge 500.00 USD per rental
Concession Recoup Fee 11.11 Pct 55.55 USD
Harris Sports Venue Tax 5 Pct 25.00 USD
Motor Veh Rental Tax 50.00 USD

and the Drop charge of 500 - is it actually the drop-off? or is it some other kind of drop I might make?


and big hello to everyone here

[Midwest Michael]

I wouldn't hold out much hope for the "almost" applying in your case. The $500 drop fee is the charge for renting one way, and it pretty typical for a rental of this distance.

When I say almost always, I mean there are just a few exceptions where you won't be charged a drop off fee. If you are traveling a short distance between popular destinations, between LA and San Francisco for example, you might not be charged an additional fee. Once and a while a company will offer sales to enourage one way rentals if they have an excess in a specific area, for example, occationally you'll see deals on one way car rentals from Florida in the spring, if you take the car out of the state. While you can certainly look around and try to find a deal, I think its unlikely you'll find that a situation like that will apply in your case.