AutoEurope car rental
 

We will be traveling to Italy with another couple in September and have looked at renting a car from AutoEurope. It is hard to determine car size from their web site. Does anyone have a recommendation on what type car to rent that will accomodate 4 people and their luggage?

The full size is a Ford Taurus size and the mid-size is a Ford Contour or Honda Accord size--I would get the full size.

Kathryn,<BR><BR>The questions is "how much Luggage"?<BR><BR>You can find pictures of cars and cubic metre dimensions of trunk space on several different car web sites.<BR><BR>Not everyone packs the same---Have your group measure their suitcases or garment bags, and then you can check which car's trunk space will be adequate.<BR><BR>Example: We usually have sufficient space for four small garment bags and two 18" rollaboards in an OPel Vectra intermediate size car (for four people). Just got back from Switzerland and the Audi Quatro station wagon they gave us had barely enough space for two garment bags, one 18" rollaboard and a small duffle bag offsouvenirs.<BR><BR>Check your cubic meters!

The 3 of us reneted a 4-door Alpha Romeo 146 and could put 3 carry-on suitcases plus other stuff in the trunk. If you each had 1 suitcase it would probably work. I believe you can get a larger Alpha Romeo. It performed beautifully on the winding Tuscan roads.

If you are anything like the "average" tourists, you will probably have one large suitcase and one carry-on suitcase per person. If you do, not any automobile, no matter what size, will accommodate you. <BR><BR>When I travel in a group of four, I always rent a minivan (like the size of a Dodge Caravan) and it gives us room for everything. Also, though most rental minivans will have non-removable third row seating, some rental companies will provide a minivan without the third row seats if you ask ahead. That will give you even more room. In the terminology of the rental car companies, this is called a 7-passenger van.

When we rented from AutoEurope last Sept/Oct we picked up from France and dropped off in Italy. We had reserved a midsize automatic,(probably Honda Accord size) for four adults. When we picked up the car we had been upgraded to a Volvo station wagon. My inlaws had tons of stuff. We packed light. In all we had about 10 bags (Three of which were ours). We got it all in but it was tight. Try to get the bigger car and pack a lot lighter than they did!<BR>My husband had a great time driving on the highways, if you love to go fast you will too! Have a great time!

AutoEurope has always been very helpful in assisting me in determining trunk size. However, what they tell you is cubic meters which, depending no your luggage dimensions, may be of no help at all. <BR><BR>When we went to Spain this Spring trunk size was of vital importance to us because of the physical dimensions of our luggage. So, I called them and they told me the type cars available in Madrid where I would be renting. I then went to the local car dealers to physically measure the size of the Saab trunk and the Mercedes C-class. I found that the Mercedes boot actually had a small protrusion in it which would not allow both our roll-on cases to fit. So, I specified the Saab.<BR><BR>When I got to Madrid the whole thing was academic as the Saab was not an option. However, the Opel Elegance was offered along with the Mercedes. The Avis people told me the Opel boot was larger than that of the Mercedes. I took the Opel and things worked perfectly.<BR><BR>So, as they say, measure twice, cut once.<BR><BR>David