Do you rent a car for driving vacations to keep miles/wear-and-tear off your vehicle? (windshield, minivan)

[getatag]

Originally Posted by Jean-Francois

Forgive me, completely off thread, but that reminded me of a scene in The Big Bang Theory, where Sheldon is trying to persuade Amy to help him with something to annoy Leonard, he says he'll do anything for her if she'll help.
She says, "Kiss me where I've never been kissed before", he pauses for a second or two, then says, "Salt Lake City?"

One of my favorite Big Bangs, thanks for the reminder and the laugh!!

Back to the topic:

We owned minivans for at least 18 years from when our children were born on through college days. We don't really need the space on a daily basis, so we've downsized our "fleet" to a smaller SUV/Crossover vehicle that is perfectly suited to daily drives and the occasional long weekend trip.
Once or twice a year we take longer vacations. None that require flights, just long drives to the ocean. We rent a minivan or large SUV for each of those trips. It makes moving everything our family requires much easier. An added bonus is I don't have to wash/scrub/wax the ocean grime that accumulates on and under the vehicle once we return home. 4 or 5 hundred dollars well spent in my opinion.

[selhars]

tough to beat a $9.99 Enterprise rental (weekends from 'off-airport-sites') They will even come fetch you, or deliver the car to your door!

$9.99 a day -- uh, where.
I'm in a major metro area. Economy for 2 weeks is 400.00 Daily rates here are more than $25/day. (Plus any add ons you might want like insurance.)

I remember the good old days when I could get a car for 19.99 a day. But $20 a day is loooong gone here.

[eastcoastguyz]

Originally Posted by selhars

Yes, but that's not going to screw up my vacation.


Because the less my car is on the road, the more likely it will make it to 500K. Because the less likely it's exposed to potential accidents.

So put the car in a garage, like Jay Leno and David Letterman do and not drive it at all. It will last you forever.

[eastcoastguyz]

Originally Posted by charlygal

Yes. Less wear and tear on primary vehicle keeps maintenance costs down.

Not if you waste the money on rentals in its place.

[IShootNikon]

Originally Posted by eastcoastguyz

Not if you waste the money on rentals in its place.

Yep, kind of like spending $10 to save $5.

Unless you get an extremely good rental car deal or are on a lease I say drive your car. You paid for it might as well make use of it.

[C24L]

Originally Posted by selhars

I've done this a couple of times. And may do it more and more as my car gets older.

Also, I'm at 206k miles and would like to hit 500k, so I find myself babying my 2006 4-wheeled "baby" more, as she gets older.

No, I do not.

[eddie1278]

Originally Posted by CGab

NEVER! I like driving my own car. It has everything I need including a Dvd player for the kids. If I was to get a flat tire or anything else happens I have AAA. I just feel if I'm trying to save money by driving instead of flying then why would I pay for a rental?

I'm 39 i don't know we ever survived road trips as a kid without dvd players (sarcasm) Oh yeah we amused ourselves playing games or with gi joes and transformers or whatever other toys we had. It's funny how children these days can only be quiet and calm with a movie on. I remember even having fun just staring out the window looking at stuff.

[Dirt Grinder]

I buy a vehicle to drive, not as an investment, so we use our own vehicles for all trips we make (well, unless flying).

[Range]

Never really understood the logic behind it. At one point or another you'll need to put money into a car to keep it going. Cars these days are made well so there shouldn't be any worry about it not lasting 10 years. Put alittle into maintenance and it'll get you a long way compared to pay $200 for a long distance rental car.

[Douglas Dakota]

I absolutely do. Currently I am driving a brand new rental Suburban for like 2,800 miles in 10 days for around $700. If i calculate cost per mile including tires, oil and maintenance, it is a good deal. Plus it gives me the opportunity to drive various cars for various situations... trucks, suvs, sedans, convertibles.