Rental cars vs SUVs

[Arif]

I recently reserved a vehicle for our Santa Barbara trip and noticed something I'd never seen before. A full size SUV was $155 (out of LAX) and a regular sedan was $220. I wonder why the larger SUV was cheaper to rent than a smaller car? My only guess is because gas is so high no one rents the SUV. Anyone else notice this when renting a car?

BTW- We opted for the SUV from Alama because we have 3 adults and 1 child with luggage for a two week vacation.

 

[FinallyRetired]

I had the opposite experience. Wanted to rent a SUV to go from Washington DC to Charleston for a week and was quoted $550 versus $300 for a Chrysler 300, so took the Chrysler. I suspect it has to do with the number of vehicles they have and the demand.

 

[CyclingInvestor]

I had the opposite experience. Wanted to rent a SUV to go from Washington DC to Charleston for a week and was quoted $550 versus $300 for a Chrysler 300, so took the Chrysler. I suspect it has to do with the number of vehicles they have and the demand.

Exactly. I rent frequently, often on one way trips. When they want to move a type,
you can get excellent deals. I almost always rent sub-compacts, but have had free
upgrades clear up to an Expedition when they want to get it back to LAX

 

[bssc]

Supply and demand. I was in Denver and got my rental through priceline. I had gotten a full size car but they were out. They offered me an SUV but I talked them into a minivan.

 

[dt123]

Off topic, sorry, but there is a company that rents hybrids at LAX for about the same price as other cars. This is cool if you are traveling alone, because you can use the HOV lanes single driver. Also, if you are curious what the hybrid thing is like, this a way to get to know.

 

[MasterBlaster]

Even more cool. There are a few companies near LAX that rent Ferrari's and Porshe's and Corvettes and Hummers etc.

You can't legally go in the carpool lane but you can either zip by everyone else or drive over the top of them.

 

[Andy R]

Also, a great site for finding deals for rental cars is Hotwire.com - Discount travel deals.. I have found amazing deals on that site but be careful if you tell someone about it. I remember someone asked me how I got such a good deal and I told them "Hotwire" and they looked at me very strange until I explained.

 

[bssc]

Also, a great site for finding deals for rental cars is I remember someone asked me how I got such a good deal and I told them "Hotwire" and they looked at me very strange until I explained.

Followed by BrickThroughTheWindow.com and StolenValetKey.com

 

[justin]

I don't rent cars that often, but the last 4-5 times I rented, my compact car I requested (which I prefer) was not available and I was upgraded to an SUV or SUV/Minivan crossover. I didn't really care since I wasn't paying for gas in general, I just prefer the lower profile, acceleration, handling, and inner-city parking ease/navigability of a small car vs. a much larger SUV.