Ever notice how the waiting areas at car rental offices almost never have seats? See, they'd prefer you fall asleep on your feet so you'll be more apt to sign your life away in case someone accidentally breathes on your car in the parking lot. Well, fear us, rental-car agencies of the world!

Or rather, fear scientists at MIT who have been working on a car you can check out as easily as an airport luggage cart.

The electric City Car, a two-seater just slightly smaller than a Smart Car, folds in half for parking and is easily rechargable. The team's even contemplating installing a joystick that would allow users to steer the car. A joystick! All that and it "promotes a socially responsible and more effective means of urban mobility."

Related Stories:
· City Car [Official Site]
· Rental Cars coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: Smart Cities project]]]> egw 2008-03-12T13:00:01-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2007/10/31/135056/20

Zipcar, the by-the-hour rental outfit from the East Coast will merge with Left Coast darling Flexcar, creating a nationwide car-sharing cabal. The old Flexcar brand is out, and members will now have the luxury of renting from both fleets in the few cities where both companies operate.

Zipcar's rates aren't as low as some daily car rental services, though you can't just rock up to a location and drive away as with other car rental agencies. (Zipcar also includes gas and insurance, making the rental process painless.) You'll first need to sign up for a Zipcard; the cheapest option includes a $25 application fee, a $50 annual fee with hourly rates that start at $10. After you get approved, all you need to start driving is your Zipcard, which will unlock the doors when you walk up to whatever vehicle you've reserved.

With the merger, the fleet is available in a bunch of cities, including New York, Boston, DC, Chicago, Seattle, Portland, LA, San Diego, Atlanta and London. The UK cars even come with the London congestion charge ($16.50) pre-paid.

Related Stories:
· Zipcar [Official Site]
· Rental Cars coverage [Jaunted]

[Photo: katmere]]]> pbb 2007-10-31T14:00:02-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2007/8/28/164745/643

The frustrating answer: Sometimes.

We all know the drill. We find a clown car-sized vehicle online that can get us from Point A to Point B for $34.99. When we get up to the counter, taxes, gas, insurance and (for some of us) the under-25 fee pushes the cost well above the $150 mark. Suddenly an afternoon on the open road costs more than a round-trip flight on a budget carrier. What went wrong?

For starters, many of us insure something that's already insured. Rental insurance is a waste for car owners because most auto policies extend to rentals. Just make sure the rental car is worth about the same as the one you own. A policy on a $500 '89 Oldsmobile will only cover up to $500 in damages to that $60,000 Lincoln Navigator you rented to drive up and down the Jersey Shore. Next time, you won't let those girls in bikinis sit on the hood.

However, car-less renters need to suck it up and pay the extra $40 for basic collision and liability coverage. In the worst-case scenario, an uncovered driver could be accountable for the total cost of the rental vehicle and any other cars involved in an accident. Now that'll ruin a trip.

Related Stories:
· Travel Tips [Jaunted]

[Photo: Palm Covers Car]]]> ced138 2007-08-30T11:30:02-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2007/8/22/13439/1220

Every travel story we have is usually a long complicated story and this one is no different. But for your sake we are going to make it short.

The past week we've been hanging on the East Coast, reviewing hotels, attending weddings and catching up with family. Our "travel buddy"/husband was along for the trip when at the last-minute he found out he needed to be in Pennsylvania for work on Monday. And thus he needed to rent a car.

By this point, we had left NYC and were chilling in the rain-soaked 'burbs of NJ. Noticing an Enterprise Rent-A-Car nearby, we headed inside to see what they had to offer.

MORE]]> juliana 2007-08-22T13:20:56-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2007/5/22/215119/650

Maybe Avis does try harder--even if their blog is weak. The car rental giant has just announced that its on-board WiFi service has started rolling out of San Francisco International Airport, with locations around the country set to follow suit. (We actually got pretty fired up about this back in January, if you'll recall.

The WiFi enabled cars sound pretty awesome, at least to bloggers like us:

Avis Connect enables travelers to enjoy broadband wireless Internet connectivity at all times and places during their travel, from airports to meetings to hotels, and everything in between.

Obviously, Avis doesn't want you online while you're driving. (Or maybe they do, and this is a big insurance scam?!) Either way, it's clearly aimed at biz travelers, spending on their corporate card: you'll pay $11 a day to log on. Just think, if you're staying at the wrong hotel and renting from Avis, you could end up paying $25 a day for 'net access!

[Photo: palmasco]

Related Stories:
· Avis Blog Doesn't Try Hard Enough [Jaunted]
· Avis Bringing High Speed to the Highway [Jaunted]
· Jaunted's car rentals coverage [Jaunted]]]> pbb 2007-05-23T08:58:35-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2007/5/10/231532/259

If everyone else is doing it, why shouldn't we? That's the attitude from the British branch of Avis car rentals who claim they've started up the first ever car rental company blog with We Try Harder. Since the start of the year, Avis employees have been blogging about how wonderful Avis is, how responsive they are to customers and, well, how wonderful Avis is.

Having said that, it does actually give a few good tips like how and where you can hire snowchains in the Alps, or info on renting sat nav equipment with your rental car. But since the blog authors introduce themselves with tales of football, mountain biking or playing golf, we think there could be a bit more of a personal touch, and a few more interesting posts. Avis, you have to Try Even Harder.

[Photo: X-travalueMeal#2]

Related Stories:
· Avis Bringing High-Speed to the Highway [Jaunted]
· We Try Harder Blog [Official Site] ]]> amandak 2007-05-11T09:50:02-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2007/4/17/13422/4142
Hertz has launched an hourly rental program at three of its Manhattan locations, becoming only the second major rental company to offer such an arrangement. Enterprise runs a similar pilot program in Chicago; Hertz's hourly competitor in NYC is Zipcar. Hourly rentals are available at three West Side locations (34th Street, 55th Street and 95th Street) at starting rates of $12 an hour.

Hourly renters must be members of Hertz's loyalty program, the Gold Club, which is free to join but requires a minimum member age of 25. So, those between 21 and 24 can only look to Zipcar for their hourly needs in NYC. According to Newsday, Hertz will expand the program if it proves successful in Manhattan.

[Photo: _e.t]

Related Stories:
· Hertz to 'test drive' hourly car rentals [Newsday]
· Hertz [Official Site]
· Zipcar [Official Site]]]> djk 2007-04-17T15:18:50-05:00 Search Jaunted string http://www.jaunted.com/search/