Renting a muscle car in the USA

[paulyv]

Hi all, thanks for reading.

I aim to rent a car in the states (Boston) for a week or so in 2017. Would dearly like it to be a muscle car of some sort but would like to ask for advice. I am thinking Corvette, Mustang, Camaro and the like.

What's the best way to go about this? Rent the model from the UK, or rent something small then upgrade once in the States? I have heard it mentioned that doing the former can result in limited mileage if it is a car which is a bit out of the ordinary.

Any ideas of general cost, including insurance?

Thanks for any advice.

Pauly

[Mr Kitten]

I hired a car from Boston around two years ago, booked a "standard SUV" in advance through Enterprise, and upgraded at the desk to a Camaro, only the 3.6l but it was still pretty good fun.

Seemed to be a lot cheaper to do this than book in advance... but if you're after a proper muscle car (e.g. the 6.2l Camaro or 5.0l Mustang) then I think it's necessary to book in advance as they didn't seem to have many of these.

[Byker28i]

You'll get plenty of the V6 mustangs and get offered a choice of that or the camero

[strath44]

Hi Paul, my wife and I rented a convertible Mustang a few months back in Seattle (ok other side of the usa but same idea).

We got very drunk in a bar on the first night of our trip and the weather was amazing so we had a mad idea to hire a convertible mustang after one went past where we were sat. I went online and going by the prices they are as common as mondeos over there. We paid £90 for 24hr hire inc a sat nav (which the car had built in anyway!) damage waiver and extra insurance to take it into Canada. It cost £16 to fill the tank which we did I think twice.

Was the best £100 odd I have ever spent and to me was a bargain.

I booked online and from memory did it through the USA site but had to state I was a non-usa resident so just check what paperwork you will need.

We picked the car up at 8am and dropped it off the next morning, was great did a massive amount of miles in the time! Although cheesy my wife was particularly taken by the prancing horse that was projected onto the pavement from the wing mirror when you open the door at night!

Edited by strath44 on Monday 25th July 16:50

Edited by strath44 on Monday 25th July 16:50

[djc206]

I've just booked a couple of mustangs in the states from as little as £45 a day with CDW. I'm sure they'll be the V6.

Hertz do an "adrenaline collection" which includes the corvette stingray and a few other muscle cars.

[Dave Brand]

It's a minefield!

You can reserve specific cars with some of the major rental companies, but it will be very expensive; if you don't reserve a specific vehicle you're at the mercy of the "or similar" clause.

If you look on the rental companies' US websites you'll see "sport coupe, Ford Mustang or similar", as one of the car groups offered. However, for some inexplicable reason, as soon as you select "resident of UK" this option disappears, but "convertible, Ford Mustang or similar" is still available, although not every site will have convertibles.

It is possible to reserve something "ordinary" & upgrade to a sport coupe on collection, but of course that depends on what they actually have on the lot at the time.

For the best prices make sure that the website you rent from asks for your country of residence - as a UK resident you'll get insurances (CDW & ALI with zero excess) included at no extra cost. Whether or not you go through a broker is your choice - for the locations & dates I've used I've never found them cheaper than going direct to the rental company & I prefer not to use a third party.

While the base model Mustangs, etc, may not be real muscle cars, 300-ish BHP is more than adequate!

[NickXX]

I've rented a few Mustangs, including the GT. None of them really feel that special - but luckily the V6s are quite cheap to rent. The Camaro is better to drive than the Mustang, but smaller.

The Corvette on the other hand is awesome - I rented a soft top C06 from Hertz Adrenaline, and would really recommend it. One thing to watch though is that the boot is very small!

[Chucklehead]

If you rent a convertible with Alamo you stand a very good chance of getting a mustang.. V6.

If you want a V8 then you'll probably need to book direct or upgrade on the day

[alangla]

Just to say, the last Mustang I booked in the US (March 2015) was an Ecoboost 4 pot - you're probably more likely to get that than a V6 these days. Stupidly, I didn't take the offer of a desk upgrade to a Camaro SS....

[Mr Kitten]

Chucklehead said:

If you rent a convertible with Alamo you stand a very good chance of getting a mustang.. V6.

If you want a V8 then you'll probably need to book direct or upgrade on the day

Yep - Alamo had loads of Mustangs at Boston, they also share stock with Enterprise - so much more chance of getting something interesting.

Conversely - I got the last Camaro (not sure how many they normally have)... but I got it for free because it was a bit grubby! They did have a Dodge Challenger, too... nearly had that, but felt comfier with the size of the Camaro.

[tim0409]

I rent cars quite often in the US and choose Alamo as they are competitive on price and you normally have a decent selection of Mustangs and Camaro to choose from. I go for a mustang as it gives more room for luggage in the boot if you want to drove with the roof down (there is a cover in the Camaro that needs to be in place to have the roof down which limits boot space).

I avoid Avis since they tried to give me a VW Beetle when I booked a Mustang (or similar)....

[skeeterm5]

If you want a specific car then I find Hertz to be good although pricey.

[bad company]

skeeterm5 said:

If you want a specific car then I find Hertz to be good although pricey.

I paid extra to specify a Mustang Convertible at Los Angeles Airport only to be told on arrival that they didn't have one. They offered a Chrysler Sebring as an alternative but that is the worst car I have ever driven so I rejected it.

Ended up driving away in a people carrier or 'van' as the Americans call it.