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Renault Eurodrive compared to normal rental ... too good to be true?

Renault Eurodrive compared to normal rental ... too good to be true?

Old Sep 23rd, 2010, 11:33 AM
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Renault Eurodrive compared to normal rental ... too good to be true?

A two part question...
1. We've rented cars in europe many times using the "typical" rental companies, but only 5-6 days at a time. We're renting for 22 days this time, picking up in Barcelona, returning in Paris. I've looked at rental agencies (budget, Sixt, Europcar, etc) - all cost WAY more than leasing through Renault. Plus, all the extras (CDWs, deductibles, etc) are included with Renault - it looks too good to be true - am I missing some important expenses that Renault does not cover?

2. The Renault lease also includes a Carminat TomTom. We've always used our Garvin - is this Carminat TomTom a good choice? It would be nice to not have to carry our own GPS with charger. Thanks.
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Old Sep 23rd, 2010, 01:16 PM
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We did that once and saved a bundle---good luck !
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Old Sep 23rd, 2010, 01:28 PM
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Renault has had this factory sponsored program for years.
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Old Sep 23rd, 2010, 01:55 PM
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We have used the Renault buy-back program several times. You read it right - no additional charges and all-inclusive CDW, $0 deductible, etc. There are no catches. The vehicle will come with red colored "TT" plates, indicating that is temporarily tax-exempted. (this is essentially why it is so affordable - as a foreigner/non-EU national, you are exempted from paying taxes on the vehicle for a specified time-frame).

By the same token, the plates will also scream "tourist" and could attract unwanted attention from would-be thieves, etc. We never had a bad experience in this sense. Our friends did, however. It was a car break-in overnight in a hotel parking lot, but nothing of value was left in the vehicle, so no loss to them. The local Renault garage did not have a replacement window for the broken one on-site, and there would have been a 2 day wait .... But I am pleased to report that given this wait, Renault provided our friends with another similar replacement car so that they could proceed with their journey without undue delay. Total cost : $0.00, and no further questions asked.

We were quite reassured hearing of this excellent service provided by Renault, even though we never had the unfortunate luck they did.

kanadajin
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Old Sep 23rd, 2010, 07:07 PM
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Just make sure you don't have to take the new car into its 50000-km checkup unless you speak the language. I had to do that, and was fine with it because I speak French, but if I hadn't, it would have been a pain.
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Old Sep 23rd, 2010, 07:34 PM
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it does sound too good to be true, does it work for rental within Italy only?
could you please post the website address?

I never cease to be amazed by the info offered in these boards ...

THANKS!!!
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Old Sep 23rd, 2010, 07:44 PM
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its a fantastic program...i have used it tons of times... you get a brand new car as well.....are you using the agency in new jersey? they are very reliable... and you can talk to them for free...
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Old Sep 23rd, 2010, 09:24 PM
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The program is excellent.
On our last trip we rented the least expensive model and Renault provided an upgrade to a more expensive model at no cost.
We picked up the car ,near a tube station, in Paris and left it 3-weeks later at CDG airport where we were shuttled to our airline.
A great program with complete coverage.
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Old Sep 24th, 2010, 09:05 AM
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Screen-name-taken (love it!) ... don't know if it works in Italy. You can find them by googling Renault Eurodrive.

rhkkmk ... wasn't planning on using an agency. It looks like the transaction can be completed on Renault's website. Is there an advantage to using an agency for this?

don82 ... we're staying in Barcelona - will they shuttle us from our Barcelona hotel to the airport for car pickup? Also, we'll return at CDG - will they shuttle us back into Paris?

Thanks all.
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Old Sep 24th, 2010, 09:59 AM
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My info is maybe out of date regarding Italy, but here is what I remember.

This plan is where you actually purchase a brand new Renault car from Renault France. At the end of the agreed period term, Renault pledges by way of a promisory note to buy the car back from you for a pre-determined price. You only pay the difference between the two numbers. The car is registered in your name, and you are the legal owner. Renault takes care of the insurance premium on your behalf and this is included in the contractual arrangement.

As a foreigner, you are issued "tax-exempt status" plates. These are french plates and registration of the vehicle is in France. You will get a "Carte Grise" for the vehicle. The related bureaucracy only makes sense for time periods of approximately 17 days or more. If you want a car for a shorter amount of time, for example 1 week, it is cheaper to rent. You may turn your car in early, but there are no refunds for the unused days. Taking possesion of your vehicle can sometimes be arranged out-of-country (i.e. out of France) but there a usually fees associated with this option. Ditto for returning the vehicle. It always remains a "France registered" car. It will normally be repatriated if dropped of at an out-of-country location, and this represents a liability to Renault. This cost is normally passed on to the owner i.e. the customer.

Peugeot and Citroen also still have, I believe, similar plans.

Hope this helps.
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Old Sep 24th, 2010, 10:05 AM
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It is not too good to be true. These plans have been around for years.

Enjoy your trip
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Old Sep 24th, 2010, 10:31 AM
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Indeed, these plans have been around since the early 1970's.

And since we are on the subject, it used to be, in those pre-EU days, that citizens from outside France such as Germans, Spanish, or any non-french person could take advantage of this plan. I believe it initially was instored by the French government as a way to encourage tourism in France at the time. Also the minimum time period used to be 23 days.

Now that the European Union is a fact of life, this plan is no longer available to EU nationals. This has significantly reduced the "customer" base for such plans, now leaving essentially the North Americans as having the biggest share of the business. Some manufacturers decided at that time that it was not worth their while to continue with this plan given the huge drop in business and terminated it. In response, the French governement agreed to lower the minimum time period to around 17 days, as to allow more overseas visitors to qualify, and as a result some of the manufacturers have re-instated their plans afterwards.

So there you have it - today's "Trivial Pursuit" !
kanadajin
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Old Sep 24th, 2010, 12:37 PM
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We have leased cars from Renault Eurodrive at least twelve times and have picked up cars and returned them in various cities in France, Spain, Italy and Germany. We have also driven our leased cars in Portugal, Croatia, Slovenia, Hungary, Austria, Czech Republic, Montenegro and Bosnia. All these countries are included in the car insurance.

The car is yours, so if something happens to it, you have to fix it at your nearest Renault Dealer, of which there are many throughout Europe. On two different occasions (and countries) we have had windows broken and have been loaned a car by the local dealer until the window could be fixed (one time for a day, the other time two days). Three years ago, we had problems with the motor (Husband noticed an odd noise a couple of hours after picking up the car)and, after checkup by the local Renault dealer and deciding it was a major problem, a car was rented for us so we could continue on our trip while a new car was sent from Paris. The new car arrived about four days later and it was delivered to us at the hotel we were staying at. It was a hassle, but in the end, everything turned up all right.

So, leasing has its good things and not so good things, but we continue to lease directly from Renault and are picking up a car in Munich in March of next year for travel in Germany, Czech Republic and Poland.
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Old Sep 24th, 2010, 12:39 PM
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I forgot, last year our car had a Tom Tom GPS and it worked perfectly. We also had our Garmin with us so we could compare and they both worked fine.
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Old Sep 24th, 2010, 02:04 PM
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Thanks to all for your replies. Looks like Renault Eurodrive is a go!
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Old Sep 24th, 2010, 02:15 PM
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bookmarking
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Old Sep 24th, 2010, 02:21 PM
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Peugeot's program is called Open Europe, and runs on a similar plan.
Eligibility is you must not been resident in Europe for longer than 6 months (so even if you are EU national, provided you are ordinarily resident outside EU, you qualify) or have a visa that allows you to stay longer than 6 months, such as work or study. If you are in an EU country on a long-stay non-working visa (such as for retirees), you aren't eligible.
To pick up and return in Italy, you normally pay a fee of around $100 to $150 for each.
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Old Sep 24th, 2010, 04:26 PM
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Here's a link regarding the TomTom Carminat:

http://blogs.totalpda.co.uk/2009/11/...ed-navigation/

If you Google you'll find lots more including videos. I expect your unit will be integrated into the car. So to be sure it's updated you'll need the free TomTom Home application on a laptop and an SD card to transfer updates to the unit.

If you can't be bothered it will probably work fine as it is.

I can't comment on the Carminat per se but I own 2 TomToms... an entry level ONE and a top of the line 920. They both work very well. It's my understanding that TomToms offer more choices in route planning than Garmins. Many people say the TomTom will outperform a Garmin in Europe and the reverse is true in North America.

Rob
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Old Sep 24th, 2010, 04:45 PM
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What's in it for the car companies? I guess I don't get why they would do this.
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Old Sep 24th, 2010, 04:51 PM
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I would want to pick up and return in Italy, so I guess it is not worth it for me....
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