Zipcar?

[randomness]

I'm considering getting a Zipcar membership. Anyone like them? Dislike them? Have any pointers or thoughts?

(Also, I see some interesting promotional codes floating around the intarweb: KQED (as in the San Francisco PBS station) gets you $50 credit, and VANCOUVERWEB gets you $75 credit. I don't know that either of them will work in Boston, as I haven't signed up yet. It's at least vaguely plausible that I might be a KQED member, while I'm not sure it's so plausible for me to use the Vancouver discount here. But hey, if someone's used it, I want to hear whether it worked. :)

dirque forwarded me a promo code, but for Flexcar, which sadly doesn't operate in Boston.)

Comments

[esmerel.livejournal.com]

ms-entropy (also in boston) just signed up for it also!

[kenjari.livejournal.com]

Other Kenjari and I have a Zipcar membership, and we've been quite happy with it. It was a big help with our recent move. The reservation system is really easy to use and there are about 10 or so cars within easy walking distance of our new place - a wide variety of makes and models, too. It's really convenient.

[starheptagon.livejournal.com]

I considered them a couple of years ago, before I got my car, and ultimately concluded that their rates ($60/day *plus* monthly fees now - even worse than when I looked) were simply out of line with normal rentals ($35/day). I did not join. I'd be interested in hearing your take on the economics of it; perhaps there are effects such as the value of one's time in not going through normal rental paperwork that make it work out.

[obra.livejournal.com]

If you're renting by the day, then zipcar is not for you. If you're using them to go to the grocery store, it might make more sense.

[dirque.livejournal.com]

The economics makes sense if you don't need to drive a car every day.

$60/day includes insurance and gas.

Now currently my insurance runs me around $600/year with liability only for a 2000 audi. Which means it costs me $3-4/day every day just in insurance if I had full coverage whether I choose to drive the car that day or not. So take your $35/day rental get full insurance(~$20/day) and pre-pay the gas and it'll come close or over $60/day as well.

[inevitablymango.livejournal.com]

There are a few really useful things about Zipcar: 1) not dealing with people at rental car places, especially stupid people 2) being able to do everything yourself online 3) being able to rent a car for only an hour or two at a time and not paying for an entire day 4) not having to pay for gas -- that's nice. You get a card that comes with the car and it's all taken care of.

That being said, I agree with the previous commenter -- I don't think the fees work out to be worth it. See if you can avoid the application fee; we got ours waived. Our membership is up at the end of September and I think we may not renew it.

Also: keep in mind how far you want to drive. We wanted to rent a car for weekend trips to places like Princeton. When you have to drive a few hundred miles there and back, Zipcar doesn't prove to be very useful; there are limits on the number of miles you can drive without paying a fee per mile.

[nhradar.livejournal.com]

I use it as a second car. It's great for anytime I need to move something in-town, or otherwise deal with cargo that my wonderspud has issues with. Great for grocery store runs, costco runs, moving a fridge from best buy to the house, etc.

I don't know where people find decent cars for $35/day rentals; that seems insanely cheap to me, so even the daily rental cost doesn't seem that bad (though I would not really expect ever to use it for that). Also, your membership works in every zipcar city (including london)

Harvard has some sort of reduced-pricing deal...$25 one-time fee for your membership, and the usual paygo or value-added rates. Not sure if it's the best deal, but it's a bit of a break.

Honestly, for a $25 one-time cost, it seems pretty painless to get the card and see if it's something useful to you.

Big thumbs up

[(Anonymous)]

Zipcar is not supposed to replace owning a car; rather, it's supposed to replace the cost of owning a car that you only need occasionally. I loved my membership. The cars were clean, well-maintained and plentiful. When I did get a car, I kept my membership; it was sometimes easier to pick up a car in town after work to drive to a friend's house in the suburbs rather than head home to get my own car.

I've moved to a different city and my car is paid for, but when it dies I'd go back to Zipcar, if it were offered. It's easy, convenient, and cheaper than owning a car if you only need one once in awhile. It's not such a big investment to try it out.

[koshmom.livejournal.com]

one of my LJ friends works for Zipcar in MA. She says it's a really cool environment to work in. The garage I park in for work has a couple cars in Malden.

[uberjay.livejournal.com]

I have a membership, and the handful of times I've used it it's been awesome. Highly recommended. It's also great for the occasional pickup truck rental, like I did this past sunday.

I sent you a $50 promo in case you decide to sign up.