Car hire in NZ

[VPS]

Flabbergasted at how expensive hire car in NZ is - checking vroom vroom and even with local motoring discount comes out to over $100NZ per day - anyone used any of the non mainstream companies and were you happy with them

Cheers

 

[ksthommo]

Used Ace once, never again, cough car, tyres on
the way out.

 

[trooper]

Had decent experiences with ACE and Juicy... out of AKL and NSN.... just don't expect a new car!<br><br>NOTE!...Some places seem way more $$$ than others... Im going over in November and am flying to AKL and driving down to Rotorua... not just because the AKL-ROT flight added so much to the ticket... but car rental AT ROT was 2-3 times as pricey as out of AKL....

 

[bsb]

Yes NZ tourism knows how to charge and I've been there when there were literally NO cars available from AKL on a Friday and had to taxi into town to pick one up (which made the whole exercise veeeeeeeeery expensive). But I have used Jucy whose cars are old and average on comfort but get you from A to B. You do get what you pay for though

 

[dajop]

Tried airportrentals.com? They often have good prices with second tier companies.

 

[RB]

Whenever I read questions asking for help re satisfaction with car/motorhome hire I recommend reading this site New Zealand Travel Reviews - Online Internet Traveler Reviews, Opinions, Forums & Travel Information on New Zealand NZ

 

[OZDUCK]

We used APEX Car Rentals for a 4 week rental. Car was 4 years old but in excellent condition. Price was good including pre-paying for things like the Cook Strait ferry crossing. Pickup/Drop-off points in major cities were convenient.

 

[Major]

It depends on what days you need the car.
Last week I booked a Holden Cruze, or similar, with Budget through the QF site. The booking is for 4 days at the end of the month for $270 NZD all up.
I think it's classed as an intermediate car.

 

[drron]

It hasn't changed in 40 years.We drove around NZ in early 1977.We arrived in Christchurch and picked up our red Cortina.Now road signs went metric in 1971.I stuck to the 60 limit but wondered why I was passing everyone until I realised the car still was MPH.Then in the North Island picked up our second car in Wellington.Stopped in Palmerston North.Opened the door to get our son out and the door came off in my hand.
Since then we have only hired a car when it is part of an airfare deal.

 

[Barks]

We used Apex over the Christmas/New Year period last year. They were about 50% cheaper than the big guys with full insurance. Not bad at all and probably will use them again.

 

[DaveB]

Europcar over the weekend from AKL was fine booking a mid size SUV from Friday PM to Monday PM for NZ$230.94. Unlimited K's and 11K odometer on the Rav. Almost forgot how bad their roads are with AWD handy.

 

[dairyfloss]

I'm another who would support going with Apex in NZ. We picked up at AKL airport, and returned to Auckland CBD a few days later, after touring Lake Taupo and the surrounding area. We hired a smaller car (Ford Focus), and were able to guarantee a more recent model by paying a slightly higher fee in that category. I did feel the car's interior and cleaning wasn't as good as the big guys, but we had no other issues. Great rates, by comparison.

Cheers,
Matt.

 

[fortunately]

I tried go rentals in Auckland in April this year.

It was okay, staff was very friendly

 

[coles525]

Quick question, I'm doing a few quotes for europcar in NZ. their main website is asking what country I live in, as well as other basic questions.

Would it be outlawed (T&C) if I chose NZ, instead of AU? I only ask as I wish to pay in NZ$.

Attachment included.

 

[AdMEL]

Quick question, I'm doing a few quotes for europcar in NZ. their main website is asking what country I live in, as well as other basic questions.

Would it be outlawed (T&C) if I chose NView attachment 95242Z, instead of AU? I only ask as I wish to pay in NZ$.

Attachment included.

I wouldn't run the risk of voiding your insurance by selecting NZ instead of AU. For my recent Europcar NZ rental, I was billed in NZD with AU as the country I live in, even though the main website quotes in AUD (once you get to the last screen, it also quotes in NZD).

 

[Drakecula]

We're heading to NZ in October and looking to hire a car from Wellington (we're doing a big loop of the North Island). Thrifty seems a likely choice as I get a discount via my NRMA membership. I know this is an old thread, but perhaps someone more recently has hired a car over there and can give some advice.

I'd like to know more about insurance/cover for hire cars, as I've not hired many cars before. I will have complimentary travel insurance from Westpac - looking at the fine print, it says they will reimburse any excess up to $5k. Will that be suitable do you think?

Is there a type of car I should look at? I note that @DaveB said AWD was handy for their roads, do others agree?

 

[RB]

We're heading to NZ in October and looking to hire a car from Wellington (we're doing a big loop of the North Island). Thrifty seems a likely choice as I get a discount via my NRMA membership. I know this is an old thread, but perhaps someone more recently has hired a car over there and can give some advice.

I'd like to know more about insurance/cover for hire cars, as I've not hired many cars before. I will have complimentary travel insurance from Westpac - looking at the fine print, it says they will reimburse any excess up to $5k. Will that be suitable do you think?

Is there a type of car I should look at? I note that @DaveB said AWD was handy for their roads, do others agree?

You need to have a close read of the PDS. Not sure of the style of vehicle you are contemplating, but from memory there are some insurances(regardless of paid or credit card) that exclude motorhomes in the excess reduction section. We didn't have a AWD vehicle-I guess the perceived need varies depending on the seasons
I still think this site is a great starting point for people going to New Zealand.New Zealand Travel Reviews - Online Internet Traveler Reviews, Opinions, Forums & Travel Information on New Zealand NZ

 

[VPS]

I found Thrifty good value through your car discount but when I picked my car up it had less than half a tank of petrol. He said oh just tell them that when you drop it off - no way. Eventually he wrote on the rental form 1/8 tank on pick up so I was happy with that.

 

[annielee]

i've booked Apex iMax/Previa for about 1 week in Aug, anyone rented iMax/Previa before ?

 

[Major]

I have used Thrifty from WLG several times and had no problems. You do not need an AWD for NZ roads in Oct.

A lot of the roads between smaller towns can be quite winding and narrow. You need to allow more time for this but a 2 wheel drive standard car is suitable.

Don't forget your FF number for either QF or VA points