Carol

Has anyone had any experience with the programs to purchase and then sell back a car at the end of a trip. For example, Peugot and Renault have these programs. We will be travelling for six months with our three children, and this seems the most economical. We're wondering if there are pitfalls we should be aware of! <BR>Thanks.

Paulo

To have a car for six months certainly Renault's and Peugeot's purchase and sell back guarantee program is the more economic one (normaly referred to as "leasing" ... wrongly so). <BR> <BR>There are no pitfalls that I'm aware of. You get a brand new car, with all insurances. The only inconvenience is the car's redish licence plates. They mark you 100% as a tourist, possibly with goodies and trunk break in is much more likely than with a rented car (which has "normal" plates). When you have your trunk full, favour guarded parking lots or park your car in visible spots. <BR> <BR>One other possible inconvenience is if you have a 2nd person that's going to drive. It has been a long time since I "leased" last. At the time, a 2nd driver was allowed as long as the car "owner" was travelling in the car at all times. If you have a 2nd driver, chances are that in six months this 2nd driver would be using the car all by himself here and there. Be sure to discuss the subject before signing the contract. <BR> <BR>Finally, if you intend to travel to Eastern Europe, you also should discuss the subject before signing the contract. Last time we "leased" we made sure that we were allowed to drive into Hungary and the Czeck Republic. I'm not sure, but I think we had a specific piece of insurance (3 days) regarding Hungary. <BR> <BR>Paulo <BR> <BR>

Jim

I requested and received a brochure and prices from Auto France. www.auto-france.com <BR>There is a color brochure of the Peugeot cars available with great diagrams showing the actual trunk demensions-Length-width-depth. Excellent brochure. <BR>Their buy back lease is up to 175 days. Prices for this length is from $2701 for the Peugeot 106 basic up to $6523 for the Peugeot 607 luxury car with the mid size 306 at $3701. These prices include all the insurance with no deductible and no VAT tax. <BR>

John

Hi, Carol, <BR>We've used the Renault program and it was a breeze. In addition to cheaper prices, you can get a larger car than you'd be able to afford through normal rental channels, and the insurance setup is also quite favorable. Paulo's advice is good re the red plates (exotic looking but attention-getting) but we had no problems despite numerous nights in open lots. (Not in Spain, though, which I understand is more prone to break-ins. There we tried to use protected spaces, but not always.) <BR> <BR>Given the length of your visit, and if your budget can tolerate it and domestic needs justify it, you might also consider buying a vehicle on one of the European factory delivery plans and shipping it home when you're done. There are some very attractive deals to be had through Mercedes, BMW, Volvo and Saab (also Porsche but I don't think your family of 5 would fit in a Boxter) where you buy the car in N. America, pick it up at the factory or some other point in Europe, drive it around for however long, then have it shipped (at the dealer's expense) back to N. America. The sticker is 7-10% less than at home, you don't pay for a rental car, and you get the car and the equipment you want. Not all of the cars these manufacturers make are luxury vehicles; might be worth having a look. The dealers and car web sites have info. about these deals. Also, it's a blast.

Patrick

We used Auto France for a 306 turbo-diesal two summers ago for two months. We took the train from Paris to Rouen and picked it up at a dealer. They did require us to take it in for a check-up (no charge) after a certain number of kilometers, which we did in Bordeaux. We thought that it might be a time consuming deal, but we drove into the dealer there and asked if we needed to make an appointment. They did it on the spot and it took about 10 minutes. Wish I could get service like that in the US. The license plate thing must be new, because ours were just like everyone elses. We dropped off ours in Rome so there was a substantial drop off fee, but still less than the parking for five days there would have been. It was a perfect experience, other than signing a couple of additional papers, you would never know it was a "buy" program --set up to work just like a lease, but allows them to resell the car without a VAT tax (it is then a "used" car). As Americans we get the benefit of the deal because we are exempt from the VAT tax on the new car "purchase". And the deal automatically includes all insurance!!

BOB

I've used the Renault achat/re-achat (?) several times, and there is no other way to go. It is much better than rental through typical companies, and they have LOTS of variety for everyone's tastes and budgets. Pitfalls? - none that I have ever had.