I'm sure this topic has been discussed before, but I'm looking for an inexpensive tow vehicle + flatbed trailer rental for hauling a track car for a weekend. I've rented the flatbeds and trucks from Penske and Uhaul before, but the trucks are larger (and more expensive) than I'm looking for. Basically just looking for a more reasonably priced heavy duty pickup + trailer. Any ideas?
Read your rental agreement!
If you should happen to rent an SUV from Enterprise and it states that you can not use the vehicle to tow, and you get into an accident, your insurance company will not cover you!
IIRC renting something small from a moving Co. will be less than going to enterprise/hertz/ect. for a truck/suv
Get an early 90's Ford F150. I found one for about $750. It's done the trick.
I got an F250 diesel 4x4 crew cab from Enterprise rent-a-truck a few months ago for about $55 a day and was allowed to tow my own trailer with it. I borrowed a trailer from a friend, so that was free-to-me. I needed 4x4 to go over the mountain passes in December (24 Hours of LeMons @ Thunderhill) and had three people and a dog to haul. The value was awesome, for that price it's really silly to own a truck like that for occassional usage IMO. It towed great and got decent mileage, it was a hell of a lot better than buying an old clunker to save a couple of hundred bucks IMO. If you get a bigger Penske box van, you can fit most vehicles INSIDE the truck if you've got access to a loading dock (or appropriately sized hill, etc.) at both ends of the trip, thus avoiding getting a trailer at all.
Bryce
I've looked into it and the Penske/Uhaul places charge per mile which can get expensive. Around here Enterprise rents pick up trucks (2wd and 4wd), but you would have to check if they will let you tow with them or not. I couldn't get those with unlimited mileage either. Just the first 100 IIRC.
Clay wrote: I've looked into it and the Penske/Uhaul places charge per mile which can get expensive. Around here Enterprise rents pick up trucks (2wd and 4wd), but you would have to check if they will let you tow with them or not. I couldn't get those with unlimited mileage either. Just the first 100 IIRC.
There are different packages when it comes to mileage with Enterprise, they have ones that allow higher mileage but cost more per day...in my case, it worked out to be less money to pay more per day and avoid the per-mile fees. I think my package allowed for ~300 mi/day and I used up most of it but didn't go over. They had cheaper-per-day packages, but once you factored in per-mile charges it was about twice as much money.
When pricing out Penske, don't get an in-town type rental where you rent and return at the same place and get charged per mile. Instead, do a one-way that leaves from two locations very close to your house. IE, rent from St. Paul and return to Minneapolis. They'll charge you a fixed price with unlimited mileage for X days (usually two days for something very close like that) and then charge you $50/day on top of that for more than two days, IIRC. Unlimited mileage for all of it, you're just paying for number of days.
Bryce
yeah what nashco said about penske- if you drive the truck at all its almost never worth paying the intown rates. I've done exactly what he said...
oh and a tip, call the 800 number and ask them if they have any areas near you that they are wanting to move equipment from. I know in a lot of cases you can get a one way move for rediculously cheap. I live in WV but it was worth it for me to drive to salem, nc (right over the VA state line) to pick up my truck for a move I had a few years ago, because they had too much equipment in salem, and wanted it moved westward where I was moving to. Truck ended up being almost $400 less for my move!
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