Help!!! Penske vs Uhaul (miles/gallon, rentals, move, prices)

[RockyMtnr]

Pennske is the most "consistent-best" I have used.
Ryder has been good - I hear they've gone to local-only. Is that accurate?
Budget has been "okay".
U-Haul has never damaged me at all.
Problem is, U-Haul is the only one that always has a store nearby. Sometimes, I can find a Pennske but it's a long drive to turn it in. Same problem with Ryder. Budget just never seem to offer as much service. If you use Pennske, call their 800 number - they have deals the local offices can't seem to give.
I've never broken down, never been messed over - by any of them.

[Mike78613]

Parents used Uhaul and it was junk. Drove it from Colo to Texas. Rode like ca-ca

Then I used Uhaul 22' to just move from my old house to new one, which was about 8 miles up the road. Darn thing could not even drive in a straight line for more then 10 sec's. Very unsafe vehicle. Old and crappy is the best way to say about Uhaul

I say Penske also.

[seahawksweetie]

We just rented a Penske 26' truck and drove it from San Diego to Seattle. No problems whatsoever. They were courteous, the truck was great and handled going through the Mt. Shasta, CA and Grant's Pass area of OR just fine.

I would highly recommend them over Uhaul. Also, Penske accepts AAA (knocked 12% off the price) and they locked in my rate which would never go up but it did end up going down.

[aragx6]

I know everyone hates U-Haul, but honestly I had a fine move with them from Columbia, MO to Chicago. The truck was new and in good shape. I had rented from them previously for an in-town move and the truck was quite old- I was concerned about this but was told that interstate moves are given the newest trucks. I don't remember the exact amount paid, but I looked at all the major companies with offices in Columbia and u-Haul was considerably cheaper.

I am sorry to anyone who had a bad experience, but I also wanted to make clear that not everyone who travels with U-haul has problems.

[Crew Chief]

Originally Posted by aragx6

I know everyone hates U-Haul, but honestly I had a fine move with them from Columbia, MO to Chicago. The truck was new and in good shape. I had rented from them previously for an in-town move and the truck was quite old- I was concerned about this but was told that interstate moves are given the newest trucks. I don't remember the exact amount paid, but I looked at all the major companies with offices in Columbia and u-Haul was considerably cheaper.

I am sorry to anyone who had a bad experience, but I also wanted to make clear that not everyone who travels with U-haul has problems.

Glad you had good luck with U Haul, Aragx6! But I'm truly amazed that a company with such a bad (and deservedly so) reputation still remains in business...

[shadowwalker]

Penske and Ryder first choices. U-Haul and Budget last. Moved over 40 times in over 16 states in my lifetime.
First choices. Trucks in better shape, usually bigger for the price. Governors set higher on them. Better at climbing the hills and good miliage.
Hireing loading and unloading. Keep valuables in unmarked containers,I just put a big star or X on them. I had best results with the temp to hire places for helpers. They were more apt to show up and work. I paid alittle more but You get what you want. If you go through something like job service. The people don't face reprimands if they don't show or are not working well.
Just make sure if you do rent a certain truck. That you don't have to drive much to turn it in. Call the place your turning it in. Before you take the truck.I once had to drive my rental over 110 miles one way to turn it in. The place I was told I could turn it in, in the same town. Was no longer in the rental business and wouldn't take the truck. In another move, I had to drive the truck to two places. The first one was full and wouldn't take the truck.

[artyst]

has anyone towed their car behind the moving truck? i'm moving from phoenix, az to somewhere in upstate ny and was thinking about using penske (after reading all the posts here) and towing my car. also do the trucks have a back seat??

[tambre]

Hi everyone,

My husband and I will be moving from NY to MO sometime next year. We have two dogs, two cats, two cars, and possibly some of our grown children coming with us. Would you recommend hiring a moving company, and if so, approximately how expensive is it? My husband has his CDL, so maybe he could drive a big truck out, if they rent to individuals? How many miles/gallon do you get with the 26 foot straight box trucks? Thanks for any and all information. Take Care and HNY2008!

[Jack Mitre]

We rented a 24 foot Penseky truck with an extended elevator lift gate for $49.95. It was just super, even comfortable. Got done in half the time with 1/10 the lifting. Even the help was actually nice, and competent.

U-Haul on the other hand, if I said what I thought of them I would break every forum rule. There are not enough 4 letter words to describe them.
Note that Eddie does not give his last name, probably would be a line just to punch him out. There are several U-Haul hate sites, with really good information. One site Uhaul-center.com or u-haul-center.com is gathering complaintants for a class action suit, I signed up. If this string is any indication, they will not have a hard time finding enough complantents to bankrupt U-Haul.

[Jack Mitre]

Originally Posted by tambre

Hi everyone,

My husband and I will be moving from NY to MO sometime next year. We have two dogs, two cats, two cars, and possibly some of our grown children coming with us. Would you recommend hiring a moving company, and if so, approximately how expensive is it? My husband has his CDL, so maybe he could drive a big truck out, if they rent to individuals? How many miles/gallon do you get with the 26 foot straight box trucks? Thanks for any and all information. Take Care and HNY2008!

With a 24 ft. diesel milage in the city was 8 mpg. hwy would probably be about 10 mpg. A smaller U-haul we rented previously got about 5 mpg when it ran. The tires were so out of balance and the front end out of track that we could only go 45 mph without it bucking. The Penski on the other hand was in fined tune and looked like they had just backed it out of the show room, smelled brand new.