[Mithras]

I've been getting anxious to have a car again, after 5+ years without one. I want to be able to get out of the city for hiking trips, mainly. Just once a month or something.

But car insurance for city dwellers is very expensive, and I know I'll end up racking up eleventy billion dollars in parking tickets. So I've been thinking about Zipcar.


Has anyone ever been a Zipcar member, or just heard about it? Pros / cons?

[SamuraiDL]

cool idea, if your in NYC, and you want to use a car for going hiking once or twice a month then that would rock. The hourly rate is cool too, but you know how long it takes to get in and out of the city, plus if your hiking then you wont be driving that much, so 65 bucks a day sounds great. Let us know how it turns out.

[G4ME]

how is this much different from renting a car, its in the city? the hourly rate?

[drive-thru]

Originally posted by G4ME:
how is this much different from renting a car?

"Zipcar is easier to use than a fax machine and twice as fun." - That's how.

But seriously, for the occasional trip, would it be cheaper than a rental car?

http://www.zipcar.com/is-it/ - Find out if zipcar is for you (really they just give you some options which all work out as Yes!)

[Mastrap]

$65 per day is quite expensive, even with gas and unlimited mileage thrown in. Still, it's a brilliant idea and I would use it myself if it was available in Toronto.

[george68]

How about this idea: Purcahse a shitty $500 cutlass ciera, get ghetto insurance, anda cheap parking spot and use it whenever you want.

- Ca$h

[Mithras]

By comparison:
* Renting a 2-door Chevy Metro from Enterprise is $75/day + tax.
* Ca$h, a "cheap" parking spot? This is Manhattan, man. A subsidized parking spot from the Teachers College nearby runs $300/month.
* I'm having a hard time finding reliable insurance information, but it looks like at least $100/month, probably more.

so I think the Zipcar is looking pretty attractive! I'll sign up next week and let you know what I think... I'll have to use the Mini Cooper at least once, just to try.

[george68]

Originally posted by Mithras:
By comparison:
* Renting a 2-door Chevy Metro from Enterprise is $75/day + tax.
* Ca$h, a "cheap" parking spot? This is Manhattan, man. A subsidized parking spot from the Teachers College nearby runs $300/month.
* I'm having a hard time finding reliable insurance information, but it looks like at least $100/month, probably more.

so I think the Zipcar is looking pretty attractive! I'll sign up next week and let you know what I think... I'll have to use the Mini Cooper at least once, just to try.

So how exactly to you get to the zipcar? Where do yo upark it when you go into your apartment?

Seems like a stupid idea.

- Ca$h

[villalobos]

Originally posted by george68:
So how exactly to you get to the zipcar? Where do yo upark it when you go into your apartment?

Seems like a stupid idea.

- Ca$h

Dude, there is a link in the first post......

[Mastrap]

Originally posted by george68:

Seems like a stupid idea.

- Ca$h

Might be an idea to read the site before spouting off, no?

[voyageur]

There are some colleges in the Boston area which make Zipcars available to their students; IIRC Wellesley is one of these. I think that's a great idea for college students who might need a car now and then to get off campus, but can't afford one.

[Captain Obvious]

Originally posted by Mastrap:
Might be an idea to read the site before spouting off, no?

Look who you are talking you. Good luck with getting him to use a logical thought process.

There is some shared car program here in Chicago but I don't know anyone who used it. I know they stash the cars in the parking lot of an Anne Sathers restaurant which just happens to be owned by the ward Alderman. I just wouldn't want to participate in something like that. The expense of it might be lower in the short run but I would not want to assume the liability of a communal vehicle. What recourse do you have if you get accused of damage you did not cause but went unnoticed until after you used it? If you need a car for a weekend trip find a good rental company.

Originally posted by george68:
How about this idea: ---- anda cheap parking spot and use it whenever you want.
- Ca$h

Yes, parking is cheap in New York.

[george68]

Originally posted by Captain Obvious:
Yes, parking is cheap in New York.

Oh my god you are SO better than me. If I gave you my address could you send me your autograph?

[Spliffdaddy]

"How do I get the keys?

You don't have to go anywhere to get them, they'll be waiting for you in the car in a super-secret spot. Shhhh...

Remember, your Zipcard gives you and only you access to the vehicle when it's your turn to drive. It unlocks and locks the doors and ignition. So that's why we can leave the keys inside the car."


When the ZipCar franchise moves into the downtown Oakland, CA area - I predict these cars will become the most stolen cars in recorded global history.


edited: But it's an awesome idea for wannabe-wealthy yuppies competing with one-another for who can live in the most crowded, most popular areas of cities which hold zero appeal for non-yuppies.

[Lancer409]

Zipcars sounds like

City Car Share

in san francisco .. all their cars are a pearlescent green with the logo on the door. I think it's the same idea..

[Mastrap]

Originally posted by Spliffdaddy:
"[i] I predict these cars will become the most stolen cars in recorded global history.

As all cars are fitted with GPS locators and microdots I predict that anybody stealing them will be the most arrested car thief in recorded global history

[AB^2=BCxAC]

Originally posted by george68:
Oh my god you are SO better than me. If I gave you my address could you send me your autograph?

Hey, I'll give you mine, so you can send me 9 hours worth of parking money, for the lot closest to my office on the east side in NYC, so I can drive to work one day this week ($14.95 an hour off peak, before 8am).

[hayesk]

Originally posted by Mithras:
By comparison:
* Renting a 2-door Chevy Metro from Enterprise is $75/day + tax.

Really? I can rent a full size sedan for $175/week in Canada - and that's Canadian dollars. I've seen ads for renting cars for $30/day CDN. Go check the Enterprise site - there's an ad on there for $10/day during the weekend.

[turtle777]

Originally posted by george68:
So how exactly to you get to the zipcar? Where do yo upark it when you go into your apartment?
Seems like a stupid idea.
- Ca$h

Duuuuhhhh ! RTFL !

-t