Help!!! Penske vs Uhaul (relocate, moving truck, job, rental)

[milliehubbard]

We used Penske to move from NY to FL last December and I can only say good things about them. We used a 17' truck to move mostly boxes. We had some minor pieces of furniture, 3 bookcases, a desk, a twin mattress/box spring, audio equipment and LOTS of record albums and CDs! We have a LOT of stuff though, I'm a kitchen gadget nut!

Being non-commercial you are not required to stop at the weigh stations. Also, I completely agree with all of the posts about Pensek vs. UHaul. I had a local move a number of years ago...we had had a snow storm with 36" of snow and they rented me a 22' truck with bald tires...need I say more! It was a nightmare. I will NEVER rent from Uhaul again.

Penske was a dream! Not to mention much more reasonable and they offer a AAA discount...so depending on the distance it might be worth it for you to join AAA if you're not already a member. It save me about $200 on my move.

Go PENSKE!!

[mm_mary73]

Originally Posted by Teressah

I think if you type in U-haul reviews on Google, there is a website just for U-haul horror stories.

My friend moved from NJ to FL and theirs broke down, had to wait hours to get it fixed.
When we moved from Boca to Naples FL we made reservations for a truck online for Uhaul. NEVER do that! The day we needed the truck, and many people drove far to help us, it turned out there are not enough trucks for everyone, so our reservation for a truck meant nothing!! After a horrible day of trying to entertain people and wondering if we would even move, we got a truck at 6:00 p.m!!
Then, as we went to unload, the truck broke down on the street and someone who spoke NO English fixed it...then Uhaul charged us for 8 extra miles???? Never again!!!

When we moved from NY to my mother's in PA (very short time!!!), 2 U-Haul execs passed us stuck on I-81 in the mountains, did a U-turn, and to make a long story short, not only did a tow truck arrive within 20 min (we had been waiting ~1hr at that point, for a U-Haul rep to get to us), but we were comp-ed the cost of the rental.

[epattridge]

I worked for Penske a while back, as a mechanic. They are strict on the maintenance on their vehicles. Every truck is on their nationwide network computer so it gets a complete thorough service every so many miles or months no matter where it is. Each service has a huge checklist of items to check. If something is going bad or looks like it might, it gets fixed or replaced. They treat their equipment with the highest of quality. Every truck gets washed outside and detailed inside. I left Penske for other circumstances, but if I were to use a truck or recommend someone, it would be Penske, period.

[theqbaby]

Definately Penske !!!
We recently moved, Fl-Ga. Rented a 26' truck thinking we could get all our stuff in 1 move. LOL, wrong ! Took us 3 trips. Penske offered unlimited mileage (thank God) and gave us 3 days. We had the truck for 5 days. It cost us an extra $125. per day. Considerable cheap for our situation. If we would of went with someone who charge by the mile, we would of been s******.
Truck was clean, ran great, never had one problem. I believe all the larger trucks are diesel, which saved money on gas.
Recieved discount for ordering online and AAA.
Go Penske !!

[uncgdad1]

Penske trucks are newer and cleaner by far....I've also gone the U-Pack route where they drop off a trailer at your location, you fill it up, and schedule a pick-up and drop off location...I believe the price was approx $600.00 from New Jersey to North Carolina, this worked out quite well provide you have a location for a trailer to be dropped off for a period of a couple of days to load and unload at your destination....Good Luck on your move..

[bigchuckie]

I drive around 2400 milew per week. When I see a moving van broke down it is
always Uhaul

[Foxbatnyc]

HEY!!! Weloveantiques... I need a fridge delivered from NY to FL...how much will you charge to ship it on your back for me? I have AAA... (just jokin!)

[JKJ]

I used penske and loved them. I used Uhaul as well and they were not as good. However here is something that everyone should consider. It is in your best interest to research where your pick up location is and where your going. We traveled 3 hrs to a rual area to pick up our truck and it saved us 1/3 of the rent rate. Almost $900. here is the reason why. If you move from a major metro area the locale office doesn't want to give up there trucks because they make more on the local in town moves so there one way rates are higher. So when we went to the country where the trucks just basically sits they were happy for the business and the rates were much cheaper. I would check rates within a 200 mile radius from your starting point. The contrary holds true as well check your drop off location. If your moving to the country see if there is a rate differential if you drop off closer to a city. None of these places want to lose the trucks to the country side where they will sit. I hope this helps save you some money!

[gronk]

Originally Posted by Foxbatnyc

First off, UHAUL 22' trucks I believe don't exist...as for the vehicle's bald tires, you have the right to request a vehicle which you believe to be safe to operate...Now on that note: who is more negligent? The customer who knowingly drives an unsafe truck in 36" of snow, or maybe the Uhaul Center who has no idea that the person before you abused the trucks tires without notifying UHAUL at return...36" of snow sounds pretty deep, snow packed on tires, is it possible it was missed? Must it be Uhaul's negligence...maybe... but why bash before knowing? I can send you pictures of people posting UHAUL trucks used solely for the purpose of abuse and stunting...maybe you should bash the renters who abuse the trucks? UHAUL doesn't purposely install bald tires, and intentionally put lives in jeopardy, and anyone who believes this may have alterior motives or needs re-educating? As for $125 a day extra on a one way truck from PENSKE??? Uhaul SOMETIMES charges $20 for extra days.. As for the extra 8 mile charge of .40 cents per mile??? If the $3.20 would turn you against UHAUL...be as assertive at the UHAUL center as you are here in this forum...Pretty sure the $3.20 would've been waived...or you may have experienced that kind of a person, indecorous of a UHAUL representative, UHAUL only hires humans (NO ONES PERFECT).
ANY BONAFIDE PRICE FROM ANY UHAUL COMPETITOR WILL BE BEATEN BY UHAUL...PERIOD
For every one location from UHAUL'S largest competitor, UHAUL has 100 locations...CONVENIENCE: THERE IS NO CONTEST...Penske's lift gate a convenience??? UHAUL trucks don't need lift gates...UHAUL does not discriminate against average to short people who move elevators on a truck should tell you something....Ramps are easier to operate, faster to use, and keeps costs down to provide better service for YOU, THE CUSTOMER! If you feel cheated by UHAUL...CALL 813-962-7338, let me know what I can do to clear up any 'bad-blood' between you and UHAUL - ANYTHING can be resolved...FAIR? Ask for Eddie

You've got to be kidding me. So poor UHAUL isn't responsible for the condition of the junk piles they rent? They can't even do a basic inspection of the equipment when it's returned to them and notice things like bald tires and the dead body in the back? UHAUL rents absolute crap, I should know my friend used to be a mechanic for them, they wouldn't let him requisition any parts unless the truck wouldn't run without it, they didn't care about the dangerous stuff, master cylinders, PS hoses, etc.

I personally witnessed the utter crappiness of their vehicles and maintenance when I was a kid about 10 years ago they rented my poor mother a '70's Ford POS with a 4 speed manual (which they didn't tell her about in advance, we didn't even think they still rented manuals at that point) It wouldn't even shift into 3rd! Had to rev the S*** out of it in 2nd gear and throw it into 4th. The brakes were terrible as well.
Now for your "right to request a safe vehicle" yeah, and guess what they'll tell you to f*** off! She said she didn't want it and wanted a automatic and they said take it or leave it, they didn't have any others to rent (while 3 were sitting outside with no evidence of repairs being made and 2 of them were still sitting there when we returned the truck the next day).

You're obviously biased, I've personally rented from Ryder, Budget, and UHAUL and never Penske yet, but I already KNOW they can beat UHAUL any day.

[UhaulManager]

Fact:
U-Haul performs service on it's trucks every 5000 miles, Penske--every 8000 miles. U-haul employs thousands of ASE certified mechanics.

Fact:
U-Haul has more new trucks in it's fleet (10', 14', 17' 26') than Penske has in it's ENTIRE FLEET.

Fact:
U-haul has over 22,000 drop-off locations across the US and Canada. Penske makes it's customers drop off hundreds of miles away from the customers destination because they don't have nearly as many drop off locations, which is why they give you "unlimited" miles.

Fact:
Penske trucks are designed for loading docks, Uhaul trucks have low decks.

Fact:
U-Haul will ALWAYS beat Penske and Budget rates.

Fact:
Uhaul trucks run on unleaded fuel, Penske trucks run on diesel.

Originally Posted by gronk

You've got to be kidding me. So poor UHAUL isn't responsible for the condition of the junk piles they rent? They can't even do a basic inspection of the equipment when it's returned to them and notice things like bald tires and the dead body in the back? UHAUL rents absolute crap, I should know my friend used to be a mechanic for them, they wouldn't let him requisition any parts unless the truck wouldn't run without it, they didn't care about the dangerous stuff, master cylinders, PS hoses, etc.

I personally witnessed the utter crappiness of their vehicles and maintenance when I was a kid about 10 years ago they rented my poor mother a '70's Ford POS with a 4 speed manual (which they didn't tell her about in advance, we didn't even think they still rented manuals at that point) It wouldn't even shift into 3rd! Had to rev the S*** out of it in 2nd gear and throw it into 4th. The brakes were terrible as well.
Now for your "right to request a safe vehicle" yeah, and guess what they'll tell you to f*** off! She said she didn't want it and wanted a automatic and they said take it or leave it, they didn't have any others to rent (while 3 were sitting outside with no evidence of repairs being made and 2 of them were still sitting there when we returned the truck the next day).

You're obviously biased, I've personally rented from Ryder, Budget, and UHAUL and never Penske yet, but I already KNOW they can beat UHAUL any day.