My lady suggested we rent a car for a road trip instead of driving hers because the cost would be better than depreciating her car. I was skeptical, because it seems if the rental company allows you to do this they get a bad deal. I looked at some numbers and I think she is right. It appears if you are driving a long distance and not staying for a long time, renting can be cheaper.
For the cost to drive her car I looked at AAA's brochure* and excluded insurance, registration, licensing, taxes, and finance costs because those don't change whether we do the trip or not and she didn't finance cuz she's cool like that. So that leaves gas, maintenance, tires, and depreciation which totals 33 cents per mile for a small sedan.
We'll drive around 1,500 miles so $500 to take her car.
If we rent, we'll pay about (1,500 miles)/(30 mpg)*($4 per gallon) = $200 for gas. So if we are gone for 5 days, it will be cheaper to rent if we can get a car for less than $60 a day [($500-$200)/(5 days)]. Ain't it nice when the numbers come out pretty? I got some quotes and it appears we can rent a car for $35 a day, unless there are hidden fees. That would be ($35 a day)*(5 days) + ($200 for gas) = $375 to rent vs. $500 to drive her car.
Anyone else rent a car for trips to save money? Or see something wrong with my reasoning?
*
http://newsroom.aaa.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/YourDrivingCosts2013.PDF
