Essentially all rental cars in the US are automatic - since byy far most of the cars on the road are automatic and many drivers don;t now how to drive standard shift. The only way you could get a standard shift car is to rent some sort of expensive sports car from a specialty agency.

Can't comment on insurance - since this differs by state and I haven;t driven in Nevada. (Plus our credit cards usually cover all insurance - if for some reason your own car insurance doesn't.)

I think if you book as an Australan outside of the US, the insurance is included. Be sure your confirmation says this. Otherwise you can get insurance at the counter or from a third party site. I'm afraid I don't know the real answer here.

Thanks for the responses,
I will be looking for an automatic vehicle so that clears that up nicely.
Doug
I did ask if the price he gave included all insurances and no further was required and he did indicate yes, but obviously I will confirm this in the rental documention
thanks again

Go to www.hertz.com From there you can get an example of the cars that are available. Click on details to see what the car will hold.

If you are only going to Las Vegas and not going out of town, I would highly suggest that you take a cheap shuttle to your hotel. Many hotels have free shuttles.

Taxis are cheap and plentiful. The net would be much cheaper than renting a car. That was you don't have to deal with the American side of the road for driving.

Your credit card should cover many of the insurance costs, but check with your credit card company.

There are cheaper car rentals, but not necessarily better.

Go to www.google.com for the American google website.

Sorry - credit cards outside the US usually do NOT cover insurance for rental cars as part of their service. Even US cards have different standards of what they cover - based on type of card, issuer, and level (plain, gold, platinum, black, etc).

I have also read that foreign credit cards do not provide sufficient insurance to comply with legal requirements.

Foreign travelers aren't getting insurance from their credit cards (well, they may be depending on the card). They're getting it from the car-rental company, which bundles the insurance with the rental fee.

There are also a lot of travel agencies in Australia that can bundle insurance with the car-rental. The thing I'm just not sure of is what happens when you book directly with Hertz, but I've read that non-Americans are usually quoted a rate that's inclusive of insurance. This may depend on the company. If you're not sure, you can always call Hertz directly.

I rent cars in the US and pay for loss & collison damage waiver, personal insurance,theft protection etc, the whole nine yards plus any excess (eg if you are liable for the first xx amount of damage you can pay an excess or deductible so you are not liable for anything). You can book directly with Hertz or whoever, it doesnt matter, if you look at Hertz.com they list the payable extras so you can see if loss damage or CDW is included or not, same as unlimited mileage etc. I booked my car thru autoeurope and ended up with an Alamo car. I take everything being offered, the US is the last place I want to be with inadequate cover.

It is usually better to rent the car in your own country - where they often offer bargain rates that include both taxes and all-inclusive insurance (collision, personal injury an deductible). While in the US these are typically all on top of the price you are quoted.

Try traveljigsaw.com, recommended by many from Australia on another forum, they will included all insurance and only rent from the majors.

Thanks again for the responses!
The only vehicle I have rented was in France last year, and they are the opposite; most vehicles are manual and you pay extra for an automatic vehicle. They also charge 6 euro a day environmental fee for the first 6 days as they consider automatic vehicles to be less efficient.
I used Hertz and would use them again either directly or through Autoeurope
Obviously I have no experience with insurance cover attached to an American credit card but do know you really need to read the fine print on such policies with Australian CC's.

Odin- Agree with your sentiments, the USA is the last place you would want to be without cover and I have the same attitude with full cover!
When taking out travel insurance in Aus, the USA is one of the most expensive due to the medical system, so am wary of requirements needed to protect myself.
When I used Hertz in France I took out full cover with Hertz themselves and they didn't even inspect the vehicle in my presence, presumedly because they weren't in a position to be claiming anything against me anyway.
What was surprising to me when I posted initially was how much cheaper it was for a small vehicle with full cover in comparison to the one in europe, hence my post asking for information about full cover.
Thanks again

Car rental is less expensive in the US, compared to Europe. Sometimes you cannot pay for the excess at time of booking but when you collect the car you might be asked if you want additional insurances, which I usually take.

And yes, travel insurance is also more expensive because of the medical cover, there is one price for worldwide exc US/CA and another for US/CA and usually you have to make sure the cover is for several million $$.

I know that with holidayautos.com.au they work with alamo and national with no excess in the event of damage. As well as full LDW they also bolt on SLI so you are fully covered

Prices differ based on nationality and for some reason Aussies and Brits get great rates from Hertz, Alamo and National, with all fees and insurances included.

Many things are much cheaper in the US than in europe. Typically car rental is much cheaper - since it's our primary transit (we really don't have a viable train system). Also, cars cost much less here than they do in europe (not sure if because the market is bigger or because foreign makers have to compete with US car prices - but a Japanese car in the US often costs less than it does in Japan).

"Also, cars cost much less here than they do in europe (not sure if because the market is bigger or because foreign makers have to compete with US car prices . . . "

The difference is mostly the huge taxes on cars in Europe.

Definitely rent ahead of time from OZ. Americans usually either use their personal auto insurance or credit card coverage when renting at home. Those aren't options for most foreign visitors and you can get MUCH better deals renting from home . . . especially if you are doing a one-way drop off.