Car rental tricks (sorry NPR) just urgent

bfdlad

bfdlad

T-Wheels
Silver Member
I hate to ask this but doe anyone know of any tricks to get a better deal on car rentals? Going on the road for 25 days and would end up dropping the car in a differnt spot than the pick up. They are really getting us on this and for 25 days we are looking at about $3,500 plus another $11 a day for a second driver to be added.
Been on expiedia, Priceline etc. Any info would be appreciated, oh we need a mini van and can leave from Salt Lake City or Phoenix and maybe even L.A. Not sure if that makes a difference or not. Thanks in advance for any help. Feel free to email if you prefer at cantrillmark@yahoo.com
 
bfdlad said:
I hate to ask this but doe anyone know of any tricks to get a better deal on car rentals? Going on the road for 25 days and would end up dropping the car in a differnt spot than the pick up. They are really getting us on this and for 25 days we are looking at about $3,500 plus another $11 a day for a second driver to be added.
Been on expiedia, Priceline etc. Any info would be appreciated, oh we need a mini van and can leave from Salt Lake City or Phoenix and maybe even L.A. Not sure if that makes a difference or not. Thanks in advance for any help. Feel free to email if you prefer at cantrillmark@yahoo.com
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Check on renting a motor home, in the long run it would cost less not having to check into hotels every night;)
 
You may want to see how much a AAA membership will save you. I haven't used it for rental cars, but I once was looking at a $500 tow bill and another $300 to have a key made for an Audi - I paid the $75 for a AAA membership and then got the issue resolved for around $200 total.

Also, a website called flyertalk used to be a good place to look for coupon codes for discounts. I saved a bunch of money on a few Avis rentals that way, but you have to be careful about which codes you use. If you pick one that is reserved for employees of the company, you may be asked to show some credentials.

$3,750 for 25 days? For $150/day I better be getting an AMG.

Aaron
 
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For 3000 plus to rent a vehicle, you might as well buy a beater van or something for that and sell it when you get to your destination.
 
realkingcobra said:
Check on renting a motor home, in the long run it would cost less not having to check into hotels every night;)
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This or a bus is likely the best solution IMO.

The best car rental fees I have found were with Southwest Airlines when booking a flight at the same time and rentalcars.com
 
BJones02 said:
For 3000 plus to rent a vehicle, you might as well buy a beater van or something for that and sell it when you get to your destination.
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Yeah, already thought of that. The problem is if it breaks down in the middle of nowhere we are screwed. If its a rental they come get the car and bring you another.

Thanks for the other advice and will take a look at some of it. Not sure on the motorhome/RV though as the gas is a killer and three of us in a motor home24/7 may not be a great idea. Thanks agin though for your input.
 
Rental Truck

What about a rental truck? Like moving van. Or as posted get cheap used one and have it listed online to sell or sell tickets to give it away at the end of the road trip. New owner must pick up for last location (like a cue auction).

Ricky
 
wrickyb said:
What about a rental truck? Like moving van. Or as posted get cheap used one and have it listed online to sell or sell tickets to give it away at the end of the road trip. New owner must pick up for last location (like a cue auction).

Ricky
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mmmmm, might be worth thinking about but again, it has to be a dependable one. Thanks,
Corey, that is a possibility too. Thanks
 
Discount ideas:

AAA (I know someone said this for their service, which really is great, but they also offer vehicle rental -and hotel- discounts)

little help, sorry.
 
I would do a search on Kayak to view multiple rental options at once; Also trying Hotwire & Priceline separately. Not knowing your destination or dates I saw rates between $2500-$3000 for 25 days. I would also look for 1 month rentals because they may give you a break on a longer rental - you can still drop it off early.

As others have said there may be additional discounts for AARP & AAA members.

Good luck and travel safe.

Dave
 
bfdlad said:
I hate to ask this but doe anyone know of any tricks to get a better deal on car rentals? Going on the road for 25 days and would end up dropping the car in a differnt spot than the pick up. They are really getting us on this and for 25 days we are looking at about $3,500 plus another $11 a day for a second driver to be added.
Been on expiedia, Priceline etc. Any info would be appreciated, oh we need a mini van and can leave from Salt Lake City or Phoenix and maybe even L.A. Not sure if that makes a difference or not. Thanks in advance for any help. Feel free to email if you prefer at cantrillmark@yahoo.com
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Try autoslash.com
 
Sometimes you can get a deal for a full month that beats the per diem rate.

You could pay a friend to borrow one sometimes.

You can pick up a super cheap used beater and sell it for scrap or to someone else who needs one when done with it.

On the 2nd driver charge - why pay it?

Don't get the insurance.

Renting through a corporate office instead of a satellite car rental office is usually cheaper (you can still pick it up at the airport or w/e).

See this link for tips from a rental place employee:

http://consumerist.com/2007/03/9-confessions-from-a-former-enterprise-rental-salesman.html
 
I know this is the case for rental trucks, and I believe it is also the case for rental cars as well, although there probably isn't as much impact. The state where you do the final drop off, and possibly even the state that you start from, affect the price of a one way rental.

Ultimately in fairly short time what happens with these one way rentals is that too many vehicles start stacking up in certain states, and other states start having a shortage. Some states tend to have a lot of people leaving from them one way, and others tend to have a lot of people ending there at the end of a one way. They then have to pay drivers to move their cars around the nation to where they are needed.

Like a couple of years ago for example I know California was in short supply of rentals (everybody was moving away), Texas had too many (everybody was moving there), and Colorado was in serious need of vehicles (can't remember why). So if you are leaving from a state where they have too many vehicles, and going to a state where they are in need of vehicles, you get the lowest rate. If the opposite is true, the rates can be much higher, even close to double the amount.

So if you have any flexibility in which state you can rent the vehicle, and/or (probably even more importantly) which state you can do the final drop off, it may (or may not) have a significant impact. Run a few quotes online with different pick-up and drop off states, or better yet, talk by phone to the rental agent that does the one way rentals, as they will always know where they need vehicles and where they have too many (if they are willing to say).
 
Also, the prices are always negotiable, although sometimes they are more willing than others to work with you on the price (largely depending on where they need vehicles).

You can also better the deal too by changing other things about the terms of the deal besides the price, such as the mileage allowance for example. Like you can get them to cut back on the amount of mileage they are giving you in exchange for a better price (if you KNOW you won't need that many miles), or once they stop budging on the price, you can always get them to throw in a higher mileage allowance or even unlimited miles for that same price. Make sure you have enough miles though because it costs an arm and a leg if you go over.
 
I've gotten good deals going through Costco Travel, but you have to be a Costco member ($55/yr?). A 1 month rental last year cost ~$1200 including the 2nd driver and one-way fee plus some extra mileage. I think we did that one through Budget. $3k definitely sounds steep.
 
OklaPony said:
Drive it back to where you started and fly home.
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I was almost going to suggest looking into this but then left it out. It may not even be feasible for him to consider doing it this way, but if it is, he needs unlimited miles or at least a boatload because he sure doesn't want to go over. It's worth looking into for sure to see how practical and cost effective it will be.
 
Also if you book your car when booking your hotel they always have a link to discount rental cars. Also make sure you join their reward programs. 25 days in the road with enterprise and comfort inns should get you free weekends for rentals and about 4 or five free hotel room nights.
 
Avis Car Rental Hand down AARP/Military Discount, the one I use. Is that cost including your Pool league or others membership discount.
 
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