julies

Thanks to all who helped me with this dilemma of deciding on a rental for 4 adults with one suitcase each. Rarely, we'll have 5 people and no luggage. This is a one week rental and realistically we'll have two 3-4 hour trips with the luggage, and the rest of the time it'll just be people.

Now I'm down to the nitty gritty of which to actually pick based on the quotes I've gotten. Interestingly enough some of the agencies i am looking at will actually give you a specific car rather than a general category. Here's what I've come up with as my best possibilities. Prices do vary but not so significantly (with the Meriva exception) that one is a deal maker or breaker.

Opel Vauxhall Meriva--$380 & by far the cheapest

Passat sedan category ($460) or Toyota Avensis sedan category--I think these must be the same size cars.

Corolla wagon--intermediate wagon category $470

Laguna wagon--intermediate wagon category--$460

If you have rented or know anything about these cars, I'd appreciate your thoughts. I just spoke with a friend who frequently travels with 4 adults in Europe & he said they always get the wagon for the luggage capacity; this makes me a tad leery of the standard sedans. My final concern (and I don't know if I should even be concerned about this) is that the cheapest quotes are from smaller local agencies rather than the big well-known agencies. On the other hand, this rental is in Lithuania, and I know that the country is still in the midst of a transition to a more entrepreneurial economy, and I'd like to support this.

aeiger

Hi I drive a VW Passat and it has enough room for 4. The trucnk is large though it depends the size of the luggage. The wagon may be better especially if the rear is covered.

hsv

I'd also recommend either the Passat sedan (large trunk) or the Laguna wagon.

The Meriva is truly a mini-van in the sub-compact class - and while roomy in its category (for the passengers) would likely not provide sufficient luggage space.

The Corolla wagon is in fact a compact, whereas the Laguna is a midsize car. If it comes at the same price, I'd prefer to have that. The Passat and the Avensis are also mid-size cars. I am not familiar with the trunk space of the Avensis, but from the outside it does not appear to be small.

One comment: I do appreciate your intention to support local business. When I used to live in the region, I tried to follow that principle, too. However, it is highly likely that also the outfits of the big name car-rental companies will be locally owned. At least I remember that the Latvian outfits of Hertz and Avis were franchises when I was in the region. I therefore liked to rent from them as I felt I got a bit better quality cars. This, nevertheless, is not to imply that their competitors would deliver a bad product in your instance. I guess it was just my own comfort level that I tried to please.

BTilke

Like HSV, I'd vote for the Passat sedan or the Laguna wagon. With the redesign, the Passat is a very nice car, some elegant touches and roomy enough for 4--but how big is your luggage? If you've all got 26" suitcases, it's going to be tight with a sedan. You could get them into the Laguna, but then your rear visibility would be shot. And you wouldn't be able to stop along the way (except at highway rest areas) because the luggage would be too much of a beacon for thieves.
The Avensis would be my third choice. There's nothing wrong with it, there are several in my neighborhood, but I don't think its trunk space is any better than the Passat's and it's not as nifty a car.
The Corolla wagon and the Meriva don't seen like the right choice for your group.

speckles

Being hire cars, they should be relatively new, so try looking up the technical specifications (dimensions, trunk capacity etc) on european websites for the carmaker. Below is the site for Toyota in Europe. As HSV states, the Corolla is a small size car. The Avensis is also on this site.

speckles

oops, it helps to add the site..

http://www.toyota-europe.com/cars/ne...olla/specs.asp