Longest Drive you have taken ?

[Bigdog]

Originally Posted by SHines-IT

If you go to the Airport, you should be able to rent a car for about $10-20 a day.

Yeah and what 20 cents per every mile over a hundred?

You are not finding a unlimited mileage rental for anything less then 300-500 a week which is what he would need.

You have a 3 year old car, why this is even a question? Unless you have a lease, i dont see why even bother with a rental.

[Uniquely]

Mobile AL to Bridgeport CT... about 23 hours straight through. Did it in a 1998 Mustang in 1999. It was fine.

[s0nIc]

Originally Posted by Bigdog

Yeah and what 20 cents per every mile over a hundred?

You are not finding a unlimited mileage rental for anything less then 300-500 a week which is what he would need.

You have a 3 year old car, why this is even a question? Unless you have a lease, i dont see why even bother with a rental.

Thats what my wife says it only has 36000 miles, Getting the rac Would defeat the purpose on not spending money on plane tickets.

[OldSweat]

I did Winnipeg to Yellowknife, changed my oil before I left and sometime after I arrived. 1737Miles
http://maps.google.ca/maps?hl=en&q=y...-8&sa=N&tab=wl

[jw]

about 200 yards, I gave that golf ball h3LL

[s0nIc]

Can anybody recommend a good gps to make sure I get there.

[DutchBoy]

Rancho Cucamonga, CA to Dothan, AL and back - twice... with a wife and 2, and then 3, kids in the back. It's about 2,000 miles either way.

Just make sure you do your oil changes every 3,000 (before, after) and regular maintenance things and should be fine. Cars are made to be driven, after all.

[jono_0101]

the longest car trip ive ever been on was from st louis to washington DC when i was around 12, not sure the mileage, but it took a long time, and the longest trip ive ever driven was st louis to memphis, not bad, we stopped one time each way, i drove my 07 eclipse and it handled the trip fine

[jsteinhauer]

St. Louis to Big Bend, TX several times and back.
St. Louis, OK City, Albuquerque, Flagstaff, Salt Lake, Idaho Falls, Glacier Park, Grand Forks, ND over a few weeks.

Idaho Falls to Ann Arbor, 26 hours nonstop, two drivers
Detroit to Houston nonstop, solo
Fargo to Houston nonstop, solo
Grand Forks to Tuscaloosa, nonstop, solo

And several other long road trips.

If I was out for more than 3000 miles, I would get the oil changed on the way.

[jkwest]

Originally Posted by s0nIc

Can anybody recommend a good gps to make sure I get there.

either a Garmin or a TomTom....both are nice...you can usually find their entry level ones for about a $100 on Amazon...both entry models are on the same level...both have good map coverage...the preference of either or, is usually cosmetic or esthetically based.

[SDon1969]

The longest drive I've been a part of was from Colorado to Maine, as a kid with my dad in a U-Haul. Driving myself, it was from Florida to Massachusetts. I tried to make it straight through but I couldn't make it, had to pull over for a short nap in my cramped, packed car.

Speaking of long drives, the wife wants us to drive from Mass to Myrtle Beach SC in a couple weeks (just to "get away" and relax in warm weather). I'm not really too excited about it, I'd rather just wait a couple months and then it'll be warm up here!

LOL, OVN - I was going to ask if he was a hot dog!

[DutchBoy]

Originally Posted by jkwest

either a Garmin or a TomTom....both are nice...you can usually find their entry level ones for about a $100 on Amazon...both entry models are on the same level...both have good map coverage...the preference of either or, is usually cosmetic or esthetically based.

Are they really that cheap? Wow... I may have to take a look-see.

[groovyone]

WHy own a car if you aren't going to put some miles on it? I drove a modded 2003 Cobra over 1300 miles each direction. I changed the oil before and after.

I drove my beat to hell XJ over 1000 miles each way to Colorado with basic maintenace before and after.

Why rent a car?

[DAROCKNESSMONSTER]

14 hours I believe... not terrible, but not the greatest thing I have ever done.

I really hate long trips.

[brettallica]

Originally Posted by jwbbud

about 200 yards, I gave that golf ball h3LL

Damn, you beat me to the clever quip.

[phlydude]

Whoever said rental cars for the week can't be had for less than $300 W/ UNLIMITED MILEAGE is wrong...I get rentals all the time for 10-11 days for about $150-180 with Unlimited Mileage. A week can be had for under $100 (and these are FULL SIZE cars - Impala-size).

You have to look at all the vendors and look to get off-airport rentals (airports charge a fee to the rental company and they pass that on to you). Train stations are good as are neighborhood rental locations. If you are stuck with an airport, find one that is a smaller airport that might offer free parking...those have the cheapest fees.

Coupons really help too...there are a lot of companies out there that have discount codes, you just need to know where to look. Wholesale clubs like BJ's and Costco offer codes (technically you should be a member but NO ONE has ever asked me to prove it). Also, there are travel help sites like mousesavers dot com that cater to the tourist heading to Florida and they have tips on rental codes (Airtran code worked the best for me in September).

Also, sign up for the emails from the rental companies - they have good deals in there last minute or advance rental.

Don't lock in with a rate with a credit card - the big companies don't require it but the smaller ones may charge fees if you need to cancel. It may be tempting to pre-pay to get a discount with Alamo (they don't require it for a reservation) but my experience is that a cheaper fare may be had and pre-paying can cause cancellation headaches (not to mention that you are paying for something now).

Keep checking the rates (lower fares can often be found 4-6 weeks out depending on demand) and don't be afraid to book with multiple companies - locking in a car now with a reservation helps ensure that there is a car there when you need it. You can modify with different codes to keep the reservation, and lower the price from the web site.

Also, make sure you renturn the car before the same time of day that you picked up the car. If you picked up on 8 AM, return before 8 AM to avoid an extra day/hour/minute charge.

Put your rental on a credit card that has rental coverage - doing so can help you eliminate the other coverage charges - make sure you keep you auto insurance card with you (and double check with you agent to ensure you are covered driving a rental car out of state) as your auto insurance is for you as a driver with the liability limits.

If your car is out of warranty, why risk it? Rent a car that is someone else's responsibility - if it breaks down, they need to fix it or get you a new car.

And just to show you I am not BS'ing on the rate, here is my rental from Sept of last year with National:

Vehicle Type: Fullsize - 4-Door/Automatic/Air - Chevrolet Impala Or Similar

Pickup Information
Location: Orlando Intl Arpt (MCOT01)
Date & Time: Saturday, September 06, 2008 @ 05:30 PM
Address: Orlando
Orlando International Airport
Orlando, FL 32827
Phone: (888)826-6890 ext:MAIN
Fax: (407)851-4422
Hours: Sun-Sat: 12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Dropoff Information
Location: Orlando Intl Arpt (MCOT01)
Date & Time: Tuesday, September 16, 2008 @ 04:30 PM



Rate InformationItem: Prices (USD)Car Class: Fullsize 4-Door/Automatic/AirRates:
Time & distance 1 WEEK @ $107.91 $107.91
Extra - time & distance 3 DAY @ $15.42 $46.26
Extra - time & distance 0 HOUR @ $7.71 $0.00
Unlimited distance-time & distance 0 DISTANCE @ $0.00 $0.00
Contract I.D. 6600422 (this is the discount code)
Guaranteed Base Rate IncludedUnlimited Miles IncludedSub total............................................. ........$154.17DiscountsDiscount ($23.13)
Nationalcar.com $30.00 (this was the coupon code)
Weekly ($30.00)
Surcharges:Concession Fee Recov Chrg 9.8 Pct $10.37
Florida Surcharge 2.00/day $20.00
Tire/battery Fee .02/day $0.20
License Recoupment Fee .46/day $4.60
Taxes:Sales Tax (6.50%) $8.85Total Estimate.......................................... ......$145.06
(Country of Residence: US) (USD)Approximate Estimated Conversion: $145.06

Yes - $145.06 for 10 days - I was charged exactly the estimated cost for a Toyota Avalon - very nice car for driving around on vacation (and Disney is a lot more than where the buses can take you - driving around in property is so much better than relying on those buses)