Hire car for USA - tiny or huge???

realised

vikingaero wrote: »

The Aveo will have a pitiful boot. If you're cruising for 2,000 miles you'll want to make sure your stuff is hidden from view rather than having to leave stuff on the back seat with the Aveo.

That's what I thought when we got an Aveo for the first time on our last holiday BUT actually, it was the only car that we have had that fitted 2 large suitcases and 2 hand luggage suitcases in the back comfortably.

Btw we had the saloon version of the Aveo and admittedly, it was one of the best cars we have hired including a mustang, 2 dodge calibers and a pontiac which only fitted the 2 large suitcases as a push.

Feels more comfortable like the kind of car driven here in the UK rather than a massive american sized car

cubegame

To be honest you'll probably end up with a hire car company special Charger or similar with a pathetic little engine. You'll take a few pictures which will look nice and then spend the rest of your holiday hating the bloody thing when you have to get you luggage in and out of it at the end of each day.

Change it to an SUV. It makes sense.

GentleGiant_2

Go for the best car you can afford. Period.

C_Mababejive

Had a look at the Aveo and to be honest,i wouldnt want to drive 2000 miles in CA in it !

Go bigger..when you see the price of gas in the US as your filling up your charger...why you;ll just smile all over and the first time you fill it up,you;ll think the pump is broke as it clicks off and only registers some piffling amount.

petrolhead69

Even though its around $4.20/gal for regular in parts of CA just now I'd still say the charger is worth it, my mate had a 3.5 one last year when we were in orlando last year and it was great, smoother and nicer to drive than the 4.6 mustang we had but the fuel bills for a fortnight were negligable at $3.59/gal as we were using premium. This might be coming to the end of an era as far as decent powerful cars go so take the chance while you have it.

BillTrac

We went to Vegas a couple of years ago. Originally just booked a compact car as it was only the two of us and luggage. On the bus to the hire centre I realised I was going to regret my choice.

Anyway, left the counter and went down to get our car, as we walked through the car park we passed SUVs, mini vans and the vehicles seemed to get smaller the further we walked. Then the chap said oh heck just take whatever you want from here. We ended up with a Charger.

Felt much happier driving that than the expected roller skate...:rotfl:

davetrousers

By the way the Dodge Charger doesn't have great handling lol! Tyres start to squeel much sooner than your average European might expect.

Have you checked the insurance situation? You'll want Full CDW and SLI, your hire company will offer these at a premium or you can get yout own prior to travel.



Full stop not period :mad:

LittleMissAspie

We drove 2700 miles around California and Oregon. We booked the smallest cheapest car and were given one of those PT Cruiser things. So ugly from the outside but actually quite nice inside with plenty of room for all the maps and snacks and drinks. Plenty of room for luggage too. What we think of as a medium car is a small car to Americans.

If we did it again I would be tempted to go for a 4x4 because we went to a few places that didn't have proper roads (are you going to Bodie?? You have to go to Bodie) and it was slow going in the PT Cruiser. But if you are staying on normal roads any car will do.

Coveredinbees!!!!

Hold on a minute do you actually need a car for all your holiday? If you going to be in one place for a few days say in San Francisco you won't need the car and you will probably end up paying for parking. Only hire for the days you're going to need the car. Best car we have had in the US was a trail blazer SUV thing when we went to Yellowstone as the boot was cavernous, some of those cars are deceiving the boots look big but are awkward and you can't get much big stuff (like cases)in them.

We had a charger once it was pants, Pontiac Grand Prix was much better to drive but I don't think they make them any more but a regular full size car will be similar.

iolanthe07

*High Occupancy Vehicle lane, can only use if you have two people in it.

It depends where you are. In the Bay area around San Francisco you have to have a minimum of three (unless you're driving a two seater).