Transportation options for picking up a car I bought 375 miles away?

[atikovi]

Well, I guess my brain works a lot differently than yours.

Twice as much gas????

Not sure what the person that would drive down with me would drive but for the sake of argument lets say it gets 25 mpg. That's 15 gallons of gas going down and 15 going back, plus the car I'm picking up gets at least 50 mpg so that's 7.5 gals for that. Total of 37.5 gallons to bring it back.

For easier calculation, the rental I'm driving down gets 37.5 mpg so will use 10 gallons going down, plus 7.5 gallons for the car I'm picking up. That's 17.5 gallons total. So yes, twice as much gas to have someone drive me to get it. Plus it's a BIG favor to ask of somebody to take off a whole day and then put all those miles on their vehicle to do this. I'd feel guilty for such a big ask and would then owe them a big favor in return. I don't like owing anyone, but maybe MY brain does work differently then most people.

Of course you wouldn't abandon your "broken car" by the side of the road. But it sure would be better having a friend with a car there with you versus standing on the side of the road waiting on an uber. IMHO

I wouldn't be standing on the side of the waiting, I would be sitting in the car. How would a friend there with me improve things? I mean, maybe if I was a 20 something female in a sketchy part of town, I could see your point, but AAA and a cell phone is all I really need.

 

[Gebo]

Not sure what the person that would drive down with me would drive but for the sake of argument lets say it gets 25 mpg. That's 15 gallons of gas going down and 15 going back, plus the car I'm picking up gets at least 50 mpg so that's 7.5 gals for that. Total of 37.5 gallons to bring it back.

For easier calculation, the rental I'm driving down gets 37.5 mpg so will use 10 gallons going down, plus 7.5 gallons for the car I'm picking up. That's 17.5 gallons total. So yes, twice as much gas to have someone drive me to get it. Plus it's a BIG favor to ask of somebody to take off a whole day and then put all those miles on their vehicle to do this. I'd feel guilty for such a big ask and would then owe them a big favor in return. I don't like owing anyone, but maybe MY brain does work differently then most people.


I wouldn't be standing on the side of the waiting, I would be sitting in the car. How would a friend there with me improve things? I mean, maybe if I was a 20 something female in a sketchy part of town, I could see your point, but AAA and a cell phone is all I really need.

 

[addyguy]

Guys, he is just posting for conversation. He is a smart guy, does this a fair bit, and knows what he is doing.
Hope it works out the way you planned.

 

[atikovi]

Guys, he is just posting for conversation.

For other options I may have overlooked.

 

[atikovi]

To wrap this up, I picked up an Avis rental Monday night. Coincidentally they happen to give me a Prius,

I head out Tuesday morning and get to Wilmington after 3. I filled up 40 miles before, for $20, so total cost to get to the car, $89. I brought the Corolla out from the auction and put in my stuff from the rental, then drove the Prius to Avis a mile and a half away. I asked if anybody could drop me off back to the auction, but they couldn't. Took a half hour to walk back. Got back to the car after 4 and headed back home. Filled up at the same gas station for $28, as it was the cheapest around at $3.05. Got home at 10:30 with about half a tank used. Total cost to pick up the car, about $110 out of pocket. Yea I know.....what's your time worth.

 

[Exhaustgases]

Going a long distance to pickup a strange vehicle? No thanks. Unless I had a super dependable truck and trailer. With a strange car or truck you never know what your in for. If something major happens to it you could be stuck in the middle of nowhere (for days?), and end up needing it shipped or towed back home anyway.
Glad it all went good for ya.

 

[vavavroom]

An auto driveaway service would have been an option.

 

[atikovi]

Going a long distance to pickup a strange vehicle? No thanks. Unless I had a super dependable truck and trailer. With a strange car or truck you never know what your in for. If something major happens to it you could be stuck in the middle of nowhere (for days?), and end up needing it shipped or towed back home anyway.
Glad it all went good for ya.

All cars sold at auction these days have detailed impartial condition reports so it's not like you're buying blind.

 

[atikovi]

An auto driveaway service would have been an option.

Only viable between major cities and takes weeks to find a possible match.

 

[Hillbilly Deluxe]

You left out your leisurely walk down a major US highway to your destination.

 

[atikovi]

You left out your leisurely walk down a major US highway to your destination.

Nope,

drove the Prius to Avis a mile and a half away. I asked if anybody could drop me off back to the auction, but they couldn't. Took a half hour to walk back.

 

[Sonny88]

Ride the bus and bring oil, filter, and tools to change the oil before driving home .
That’s what a BITOG member would do.

 

[GON]

I give credit to ATIKOVI for getting this car home at the lowest cost and what I believe was an efficient manner. Can't believe he got a one-way AVIS rental at that price- but he did and kudos to him.

Yes, risk was involved. And that is ok.....

 

[y_p_w]

I give credit to ATIKOVI for getting this car home at the lowest cost and what I believe was an efficient manner. Can't believe he got a one-way AVIS rental at that price- but he did and kudos to him.

Yes, risk was involved. And that is ok.....

It could be cheaper if hourly, but that depends on the rate. Every car rental I've had listed a weekly, daily, and hourly rate, even if I only had it for a day. I've gone over a day and the hourly rate was always waived if it was less than an hour. I've never rented for just a few hours though. Once I was renting for less than a day but I wasn't sure what to do. I rented in the morning, took the car out for a spin and then back to the hotel. The hourly rate already reached the daily cap so I just kept it until the morning before returning it. I probably wouldn't have if I had to pay for parking at the hotel, but we had free parking.

I've heard of some weird ones too. Like one guy booking a one-way rental taking it on the fairly new (and pre-Amtrak) Auto Train from VA to FL back in the 70s. They needed an explanation when they looked at the odometer.