Car rental advice: Convertible vs. Wrangler vs. Small 4WD...

Huz and I are planning our holiday trip to the Big Island and wanted advice about what type of car to rent for the trip.

Two years ago in Maui we rented a convertible (larger-bodied ford mustang) and never put the top up. We made it around the ';undriveable';/rental company prohibited road around the north west side of the island and the northern windy road to hana (but not back around the south side-- it had gotten dark already!)

I%26#39;m reading that the big island, being... well, bigger, requires a bit more oomph in a vehicle along the lines of a 4WD. We had originally planned on getting another convertible but in light of the 4WD advice, had thought maybe a Jeep Wrangler would be good (convertible + SUV in one).

But of course it costs!

So, to wrap up my book, can anyone offer advice if we%26#39;ll be missing anything without the 4WD (meaning: go for the convertible) or if the SUV/4WD is highly recommended...

Oh, how, oh how, did we ever make decisions in the past without the advice of strangers on the internet : ) Cheers!

Car rental advice: Convertible vs. Wrangler vs. Small 4WD...

A regular sedan will be fine as there is only one rental firm that will let you take your 4x4 off a paved road and they charge 100 a day. It is a waste to rent a 4x4 for touring. Rental 4x4s are not set up for the high clearance roads...need 4 to 6 inches here.

Do people rent 4x4s and take them off on 4x4 roads, yes they do....... what happens...

Well when you turn in the car.. and they inspect it for tire and undercarrage you get a suprise bill some times for a whole set of tires ( lava eats tires) and undercarrage work.

And it gets better.... your out of contract so your and their insurance wont pay a dime. I guy recently drove down to the south point area and got stuck... his bill from Dollar was over $14,000.00 new tires, body work, towing, ...... Suprise suprise...

The rental car firms inspect their 4x4s closely on return knowing some disreguard the rules.... they look at excssive tire wear and mud and dings... even to the frame under the car. you will get billed for the repair.... every month some luckey ends up buying himself a car he only intended to rent.

Car rental advice: Convertible vs. Wrangler vs. Small 4WD...

My advice is similar to Hawaiidan%26#39;s. Actually, I work for one of the major Car Rental companies at their HQ and have been on the Big Island as well. I am not going to mention the name since that would be against posting guidelines here. Here is my advice, for what it is worth:

If you are like most of us, you will be doing a lot of driving on the Big Island...because the island is big. I would recommend renting a vehicle that is similar to what you drive back home. This way you can concentrate on getting to where you are going and seeing the sights rather than trying to get used to a vehicle with which you are not familar. It is also a safer option. One thing that you might consider about convertibles or the Wrangler is that they really don%26#39;t have much space for luggage. Also, on the Big Island, you will need to put the top of a convertible up if you venture outside of the Kailua-Kona area.

Also, like Hawaiidan said, the Car Rental companies do check the undercarriage of a vehicle when it is turned in. This is an important check to the car rental companies because undercarriage/frame damage can make the vehicle ineligible for return to the vehicle manufacturers. I can tell you that a higher than average % of renters are charged for undercarriage damage to the vehicles that they have rented because they take the vehicles where they aren%26#39;t supposed to.

Aloha lcb, Wranger is a good choice if you are the adventure seeking type, otherwise the standard rental works fine. Hard to believe the $14,000 rental story. Really hard!!

If the poster is that much of an adventure seeker, then they would be advised to rent from Harpers at $100+ per day where the vehicles are set up for true off-road driving...or do the ATV rental for those adventuous places. (And I don%26#39;t work for Harpers.LOL)

As for the huge bill, it doesn%26#39;t surprise me one bit. Tows from remote areas are expensive and the damage was probably substantial given the fact that the driver actually got stuck. Even with repairs, the resale value of that Wrangler will be a small % of the net book value. I know...my company carries the Wrangler.

Rental car advise:

Agree with the other posters, a four wheel drive is really not necessary.

Last year we had a reseerved a compact car with Dollar, and only got back to the baggage area to pick up Erica....she spotted a huge bubble on one of the tires...it was BIG. Not far from ka-boom..hisssssss.

We immediatedly took the car back, and they gave us a Chrysler LeBaron Convertable...drove all over, in comfort and fun, AT NO EXTRA CHARGE.....pretty neat.

Point being, if you want a convertable, you will be very pleased,and will not require an SUV,or 4 WD. Ahhhhhh...the fresh air, and cruising the big island in COMFORT.

Happy driving, you will be styling.

Denny

Thanks to the rental car professional for his reality. The $14K was actualy low. I re- checked with some friends who work here in the car rental buss. and they ';sell a lot of cars to renters';..as the car is non-returnable as explained. .

The South Point case , car got stuck, blew out 2 tires, trashed bumpers,and suspension, and got vandalized over night. All of which is the renters liability...and his choice.

Had to have a mechanic walk in to repair it enough to be towed, Towing and extracation took 2 days, The jeep was non returnable, so the renter was billed the wholesale value of the car. If it was a Blazer it would have been $19,000 ...........

If the car was repairable to returnable standars then the repairs + the number of days it took to repair X the full daily rate for the car, would be charged.......

If you doubt me.... fine...its your wallet and as dirty harry said'; well...are ya feeling luckey ';

LOL, Hawaiidan, your friend really did get off cheap at $14K. I wasn%26#39;t sure exactly how extensive the damage was and was very conservative in my guess. The one thing that anyone renting a car should also know is that the insurance that you buy at the counter DOES NOT COVER YOU IF YOU TAKE THE VEHICLE WHERE IT ISN%26#39;T SUPPOSED TO GO. I have heard that one%26#39;s personal auto insurance might cover it, but I wouldn%26#39;t want to put it to the test. Like you said, it could have been worse. It could have been a Blazer or a Grand Cherokee.

Okie, nice to have you posting and to have someone else on the forum who doesn%26#39;t encourage people to cheat on their rental agreements and do stupid things with their cars!

Another point about the trunk space... if you%26#39;re going to be staying in different places around the island and therefore touring with your luggage actually in the car at times, get a sedan with a trunk big enough to stow ALL of your stuff. Nobody recommends ever carrying your luggage around with you anyway, but sometimes you can%26#39;t get around it. Property crimes are high in Hawaii, and if anything%26#39;s in plain view, you%26#39;re asking for trouble.

I%26#39;m not sure how you%26#39;d be using your car, but I thought I%26#39;d throw that out there.

Thanks, everyone, for the answers. I think we%26#39;ll go with the convertible. I went back a few pages of posting and found a similar thread where someone said ';some books make it sound like you can%26#39;t drive anywhere on the island without 4 wheel drive'; but that is not really the case.

Re: my cheating the rental co in Maui -- I suppose my point was that those roads were no where near impassable or unsafe (just go slow) and I was curious if in comparison the Big Island restrictions were similarly conservative or in place for a reason. I have my answer: sounds like lava has created a different terrain with different hazards... and I%26#39;ll save my $14,000 to spend on another vacation, not a beat up car.

Thanks again for the honest answers.

Dan,

How did someone trash their car going to South Point? Do you mean they tried to get to the Green Sand Beach?

Logophile