Turo at local airports

[N201MKTurbo]

1 hour ago, T. Peterson said:

Courtesy cars are fine for a lunch run, but not for a couple of days of sightseeing.

Sometimes they are.

But you need your Jake and Elwood sun glasses.

[EricJ]

9 minutes ago, N201MKTurbo said:

Sometimes they are.

But you need your Jake and Elwood sun glasses.

 

[NotarPilot]

2 hours ago, N201MKTurbo said:

Sometimes they are.

But you need your Jake and Elwood sun glasses.

You know, if this little business venture we’re to be seen as being a mission from God, it might actually work. 

[Pinecone]

Unlikely that there were will be several Turo at a field to use for several days.   And what is the cost for a basic car from Turo?

I would not expect an airport courtesy car to be available for several days, but I have been able to use one overnight several times.   Sometimes for a small fee, sometimes free.

Heck, last time, I overnighted at KMNV and the courtesy car was local government tagged.  So a county vehicle.

EDIT---

I just checked for Knoxville airport.  $54 a day for a Ford Focus. $64 for a Camry.

I will rent from Hertz or Enterprise. 

[whiskytango]

18 hours ago, N201MKTurbo said:

I was trying to get a Hertz at some FBO recently (Spokane I think). When I called their reservation number they sent me to a special FBO reservation desk. The quotes from them were crazy high. I called back and said I wanted to pick the car up at the local office. The price was 40% less. I called the local office after I made the reservation and they drove right over and picked me up. If I would have made the reservation through the FBO desk, it would have come from the same place.

Maybe it's just me, but ever since Hertz came out of Chapter 11 I have had nothing but problems getting a Hertz rental, particularly if they are supposed to have a car for me at an FBO. I have been a Presidents Circle member for years, but in most of my rentals they claim they have no record of my reservation, and no car gets delivered (even though I have a Reservation Record Number).  I think the secret is to make the reservation through the FBO, not the Hertz website.

[Shadrach]

1 hour ago, Pinecone said:

Unlikely that there were will be several Turo at a field to use for several days.   And what is the cost for a basic car from Turo?

I would not expect an airport courtesy car to be available for several days, but I have been able to use one overnight several times.   Sometimes for a small fee, sometimes free.

Heck, last time, I overnighted at KMNV and the courtesy car was local government tagged.  So a county vehicle.

EDIT---

I just checked for Knoxville airport.  $54 a day for a Ford Focus. $64 for a Camry.

I will rent from Hertz or Enterprise. 

Many courtesy cars are county owned if the airport is county owned. I was a line boy in Indiana (KMCX) and we used retired Roads Dept vehicles for courtesy cars. Often blaze orange suburbans… Turo hosts don’t leave cars anywhere unless it’s incidental to the amount of traffic. Turo is not always the best deal but it is sometimes. I searched Turo for cars in the first week of November at KTYS and found three Jettas available for under $50 a day, $43 a day being the least expensive.

Turo is just another option and a good one at times. I didn’t stop staying in hotels because of Airbnb and Verbo, but I’ve surely found scenarios where those options offer more for less.

Interestingly, I think a YouTuber (I believe he goes by Mojogrip) is attempting to do the same thing with GA aircraft. I have my doubts that it will ever come to fruition given the insurance and liability challenges.

[Pinecone]

I did not look, do they have a per hour rate?

I don't typically need a car for a day or more, but just a lunch run.

[Shadrach]

2 minutes ago, Pinecone said:

I did not look, do they have a per hour rate?

I don't typically need a car for a day or more, but just a lunch run.

Turo is not the solution for hourly rental but then what is?  The courtesy/crew car will always be the best deal going for a lunch run. 

[EricJ]

1 hour ago, whiskytango said:

Maybe it's just me, but ever since Hertz came out of Chapter 11 I have had nothing but problems getting a Hertz rental, particularly if they are supposed to have a car for me at an FBO. I have been a Presidents Circle member for years, but in most of my rentals they claim they have no record of my reservation, and no car gets delivered (even though I have a Reservation Record Number).  I think the secret is to make the reservation through the FBO, not the Hertz website.

That's been my observation as well, but it doesn't seem to be limited to Hertz.    They all went through a paradigm shift of some sort that seemed to start before the pandemic and that just accelerated it.   

 

[larryb]

For the most part I have had no trouble with rental cars delivered to the FBO. I make the Hertz reservation on-line. Then the day before the rental I call the Hertz outlet directly and confirm that the car will be delivered to the FBO. I also e-mail the FBO with my arrival time and Hertz reservation and ask them to be on the lookout for the car. 

 

Regarding the cost, if you work for a corporation and have access to their corporate rates, it makes a huge difference. $99/day offered to the general public suddenly becomes $35/day on the corporate CDP. 

[MooneyMitch]

11 hours ago, NotarPilot said:

You know, if this little business venture we’re to be seen as being a mission from God, it might actually work. 

“Are you the police?   No m’mam, we’re musicians!”

[Pinecone]

18 hours ago, larryb said:

Regarding the cost, if you work for a corporation and have access to their corporate rates, it makes a huge difference. $99/day offered to the general public suddenly becomes $35/day on the corporate CDP. 

We need to get a Mooney Space corporate rate with FBO delivery negotiated in.

 

[NotarPilot]

The more I read about Turo the less I am inclined to move forward with this. I just see too much risk and liability. I think to do it right I would need to form an LLC just to register the cars with to protect my assets. I’m just not that much of a risk taker for this.

[NotarPilot]

Hey guys, I really appreciate all the comments on this thread 2 years ago. This little business idea still permeates my brain and as I approach retirement in the nearish future I’m considering doing something like this as I will be able to devote more time to it. I would really like to offer an hourly rate for pilots who might want to drop in and grab lunch and not have issues with taking a crew car for 2-3 hours from an FBO, if they even have one available. I would probably start this business with Brown Field in San Diego (KSDM), to test out the waters. It seems to have enough local attractions to make daily or hourly car rental worthwhile, such as Downtown SD, Petco Park, maybe you need to visit a loved one at the local prison, I don’t know. 

My question is, what’s the sweet spot for an hourly rate for something like a little Honda Civic or do you think a mid size car like an Accord or Camry would be more practical? I’d like to know what pilots would be willing to pay and us Mooniacs tend to be the CBs of GA so that’s likely the best people to start polling.

Secondly, what type of car would you like to see available for a short time rental? Honda Civic with cost being as cheap as possible first and foremost? Midsize sedan for a little extra room but a little more cost? Ford Ranger crew cab with 4 doors for the versatility to take 4 people and throw a bunch of luggage or materials in the bed?