What’s the most memorable car you’ve ever rented and why?

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tomnan24@reddit

Thanks for the question, I had forgotten about this. Sometime in the 80s I rented an Isuzu Impulse at Newark Airport driving to Montvale NJ. It had more buttons than any car I had ever driven. I was driving at night and eveey one of the buttons were backlit and it was quit a light show. Took forever to find the correct button.

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BunnyBads@reddit

One of the coolest rentals I had was a Jeep Wrangler in Hawaii with my cousins because being able to take the roof off and drive along the coast made the whole trip feel way more adventurous than a regular car would have with just the windows down

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jpiw6@reddit

2025 Lincoln Navigator that was decked out.

Drove like a luxurious tank.

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dubgeek@reddit

A 202? Jeep. I needed a one way rental to pick up a car I bought online that was a couple hundred miles away. I was feeling whimsical, so I opted for "manager's choice." The reason I remember it was how easily it went into death wobble. I was familiar with that, so I was able to recover, but I could invoke a wobble almost at will and had to pay closer attention to my driving than usual.

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A_Bot_A_Bot_A_Bot@reddit

Mine wasn't so exciting but the last time I rented a car, it was a Nissan Versa. And here's the memorable part: despite being a gutless car, it was actually quite a bit fun to drive. I went from Glendale to Port Hueneme to surf for a couple days while my apartment building was tented for termites. And, for real: the Versa was much newer than my last car (I only had a motorcycle at the time) and had all sorts of electronics that I'd never had before, like the real-time mpg estimator, AND with the passenger seat down, it fit a 6'10" surfboard inside!

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bbroecker37@reddit

So my VW GTI got rear-ended, and the rental car they gave me was an Ecoboost Mustang convertible. I got to drive it for a month while they fixed my car. One thing that was so memorable was how big the mustang is. It felt like a boat compared to my GTI. I couldn't even fit it in my garage because it was so long. It felt a lot slower, and the blind spots were terrible. I drove it for a couple of weeks when I decided to take the top down because it was a nice day. After that drive with the top down, I realized how fun it was to drive a convertible. It was a memorable experience.

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BristleConeRanch@reddit

911 convertible from Porsche (factory) in Stuttgart. Drove through alps.

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hatred-shapped@reddit

I have two really.

Rented a EK9 civic type R in Japan. It was white with red interior, they apologized profusely because the car I rented (some little van thingy) had broken down and this was all they had with a hatchback that could fit my tools. ~8200 RPM fuel cut off. ~8500 RPM redline. And control's that felt connected to my nervous system. God that was awesome.
A Fiat Panda 4x4 (that I ended up buying) in Malaysia. It was perfect for driving (drifting) around the small country roads we were driving on when visiting my in-laws in Malaysia. It spent about 80% of our trip at redline and tipped over so far I thought I was going to scrap the doorhandles off in corners.

I'm waiting for it to time out so I can legally import it to the US.

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PurpleSausage77@reddit

2014 Model S back in 2020 or so. Turo. Free supercharging. Just rented it to try out. Utilized $50 off promo at the time and it came out to $100 in all to drive it for 3 days.

Also a 2018 Camaro RS V6 8spd auto with an exhaust. Sounded really good and loved how fast it shifted. Sweet cars that Alpha platform. I started looking for a Cadillac ATS with the same engine and trans and ended up getting one of those for $5k with just easy things I fixed.

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PhD77777@reddit

2024 Corvette! Drove it on Tail of the Dragon and Cherohala Skyway. Bucket list item completed!

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m-alacasse@reddit (OP)

Wanna try a Corvette too ))

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PhD77777@reddit

Look on Turo in Knoxville TN. That's where I got the one I drove.

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deconstruct110@reddit

My contribution is pretty boring. I rented a C6 for our anniversary weekend through Turo. It had all kinds of nannyware on it so we couldn't let it loose but we did have fun. Best part was hubby decided our '65 bug vert is a more thrilling ride and we would just keep and enjoy the six cars we already have.

Thanks for one of my favorite posts yet.

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drummer414@reddit

I once rented a Lotus Elise from Enterprise. I loved that car through it was hard to get in and out due to wide doorsills.

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m-alacasse@reddit (OP)

Looks great

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drummer414@reddit

My only regret was that I only rented it for a little over 2 days. It was less than $200 per day.

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TTTBeekman@reddit

Shelby Mustang GT-H out of SFO, took it to Big Sur. I liked it way more than I should

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m-alacasse@reddit (OP)

Huh, how beautiful it is .. )

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Nicegy525@reddit

I’ve never driven exotic rentals but the two most recent that stand out were:

Flew to Colorado with my wife for a concert and got upgraded for free into an Audi sedan. It was super nice and rode so smooth!

Flew my family to Kentucky and got placed into a Ford explorer. It was nicer than I anticipated and the hands free driving mode was fun to play with.

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The_Carl_G@reddit

I’m visiting my Dad right now and Hertz gave me a 2026 Prius for the rental. As a GTI owner, I fucking hate driving this car, but I now understand why so many people buy these things. Simply no grief, just push the power button & chicken nugget Drive or Reverse. Engine turns on when it needs to. Very simple & drama free.

Side note, my Dad has a 2010 Prius. Hate driving that car, too, but same characteristics as my Prius rental despite being 16 years older.

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Slow_Description_773@reddit

Can’t remember the exact model , but it was a 500 bhp GMC suv. I’ve even extended the rental period just because I was enjoying its acceleration.

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slartibartfast64@reddit

Chevy Spark. I think it was the 3 cyl version but not 100% sure.

Memorable because on the way to return it at the end of a weekend rental, merging onto the freeway, it let out a hellacious bang and a puff of black smoke that I was certain would leave us stranded, but it kept going.

Top speed was 45mph after that with the gas mashed to the floor. It would occasionally jerk and shudder but kept moving forward so I just kept my foot in it. My wife suggested we pull over and call the rental place for a rescue but I said we didn't need a rescue unless it actually stopped, and we'd miss our flight if we chose to stop when we didn't really need to.

Made it all the way to the airport, turned it in and got on our flight.

The Little Sparky That Could.

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nadanutcase@reddit

Many years ago I was on a business trip with a couple other guys. Somehow we all wound up in a rented Chevette S, where the "S" was supposed to mean "sport" ..... it didn't take long before we got to referring to it as a Chevette SLUG...... Boy that thing was a DOG

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suffaluffapussycat@reddit

Went to Barbados to do a photo shoot years ago. Rental car was a Mini Moke. Fantastic.

As a US driver it was my first right-hand drive experience and it had a manual transmission.

I got pulled over in Bridgetown but it was because I was wearing camo cargo pants which is illegal in Barbados. They asked me to go back to the hotel to change.

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sububer@reddit

I was on Cozumel with my wife and the rental guy had readied for us what he called "dee Mexican Lam-bor-GHEEEE-nee" - a bright orange VW Beetle convertible, heavily modified with various parts from kitchens and junkyards, fastened rigorously with duct tape and faith. It backfired violently once per minute, and was the perfect car for circumnavigating the small island. We had it for 3 hilarious days. Best. Rental. Ever.

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bevipop@reddit

A Ford Fusion, because of how the back seat was utilized.

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warmvegetables@reddit

A Jeep Wrangler because I thought I was going to die the entire time.

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Tree_killer_76@reddit

I’ve rented a million cars. The most memorable was the Toyota Aygo I drove all through France and Belgium for 2 weeks because it was the only car I was able to use my free rental days on, it was the most gutless car I’ve ever driven (3 cyl / 5 speed), and it wasn’t big enough to get 2 weeks worth of luggage for 2 people in without having to have stuff in the front passenger footwell. I regretted renting it. But it got great fuel economy, I guess.

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ThinkChemist2106@reddit

Ford Edge, Canadian version. LOL That touch screen is a hazard. I just want to turn the seat heaters on or AC up, why is it 4 menus in?

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Smirnus@reddit

Mercedes C class up to Santa Barbara and back to O.C. was fun.

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Billios996@reddit

Chevy Aveo. Slowest car I’ve ever driven. Could barely keep up with traffic.

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robindawilliams@reddit

I had flown in from a winter hellscape to a town that was hot and coastal for work. My original "economy shitbox" rental was apparently handed out to someone an hour before I got there by the new hire, so they gave me the keys to a brand new Jeep Wrangler for the weekend instead. I was absolutely exhausted flying in on the redeye and they could feel the tension and felt bad, so they were trying to sell me on it by pulling the roof panels off, the windows down and pushing me to take the old coast Highway to my destination.

I ended up grabbing a Gatorade and jumping in to do the drive up the coast and something in my brain clicked because even though a jeep drives like ass on the highway, this older slower road in the sunshine really made it feel incredible. It was sort of the moment my brain realized how wonderful it is to be in your environment instead of driving through it sealed in a cabin. I still think jeeps are kind of hot trash, but they really really shine when you're driving slow in nice weather with the roof opened up. My mood totally shifted and I was having a great time, and it really made me fall in love with any sort of vehicle that makes you exist in the places you drive through (motorcycles, convertibles, roof-off 4x4s, Targa, etc).

Now I still live in a place that's a frozen hellscape half the year, but the other half of the year I avoid enclosed cabin vehicles like the plague. I also yearn to live somewhere warmer so I can be like that dude on Californication who lives somewhere that you don't need to own a car with a working roof.

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heyitsYMAA@reddit

Maybe if I'd ended up in a Wrangler the last time I rented a car I'd have more appreciation for the shitbox feel of a Jeep.

On a work trip to Tampa, FL a couple years ago, when my economy rental wasn't available I chose a Renegade over a minivan. I should have just gotten the minivan. The Renegade was an absolute turd. A Wrangler also would have been a turd but it might've at least been a charming turd. The Renegade was just a turd, and its only redeeming quality was that I thought it had an astonishingly good turning radius for any car, let alone a 4x4 SUV. It had inadequate aircon for Florida heat even in "spring" and threw error codes for something that sounded expensive toward the end of my time with it.

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Downtown_Reward_6339@reddit

I get you.

Escaping our winter hellscape meant rent a Mustang convertible in the south. Switched to Jeep when the kids got tall.

I bring the tools you aren’t supposed to to remove the top and doors when the housing is safe for storing it.

Sure miss the Mustangs of the highway; the jeeps track the same as they did in ‘43

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Angelblues13@reddit

For prom I rented a brand new ‘96 Mustang GT. Pretty sure we got our moneys worth. Nothing nefarious or dumb, just fun. A huge group of us went to the lake about 2 hours away. We had a boat and some jet skis some friends towed with their trucks. Also had a rental trailer with two wave runner rentals. About thirty minutes from the lake the rental trailer has a tire blowout. The mustang spare fit the trailer bolt pattern and we were in our way! When we returned the trailer and rentals the owner gave us a huge discount for taking “care” of the tire ourselves! Gave us the spare back and went in our way. The Mustang was a very fun ride. I drove an 84 Camaro at the time so it was quite different.

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Joe_B_Likes_Tacos@reddit

2005 PT Cruiser convertible. It was nothing special, but it was fun to drive all over Kauai. The recent years' hate for PT Cruisers is unfounded.

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lowfreq33@reddit

The hate for those comes from owning them, not driving them. They’re very unreliable and extremely hard to work on. Something as simple as replacing the alternator becomes an all day ordeal because there’s no room under the hood to get to anything. You have to remove the motor mounts and lift the engine to get to it. Stuff breaks on them all the time, there are issues with the electrical system. Even replacing a headlight is a pain because there’s barely any room to get your hands in there.

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ztcsdtx@reddit

My opinion of Volvo completely changed after renting an S60. My RSX Type-S was in the shop, and no rental car is going to rev to 8K, but the cool, younger guys at the rental place said: "We've got a car for you!" Volvo's reputation may be for safety, but their cars drive extremely well. I had all sorts of fun keeping it in manual mode and pushing the little turbo 5-cyl. It's definitely the best rental car I've ever had.

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9BALL22@reddit

A lowly Chrysler Sebring convertible that I drove over Colorado and Utah Jeep trails for 2 weeks.

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Intrepid-Machine-650@reddit

Base model Subaru imprezza with a CVT, in teal.

It was memorable because a friend and I went on a work trip to Dallas and we somehow ended up with this shitbox we affectionately named Alanis. We had a great time on the trip and the car provided great humor. It wasn't the car, it was the whole expierience.

It was loud, it vibrated, it had thin metal, the radio was nearly impossible to figure out while navigating DFW traffic.

It was.... Oddly fun to drive as long as you treated the accelerator pedal as a binary device. It handled better than it should have... and... Well... Always landed on all 4 wheels at once.

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OpinionofanAH@reddit

I have two. Traveling with kids I have to rent boring cars so we can fit all of our crap.

Rented a truck off of Turo. 2022 Chevy Silverado ZR2. It was cheaper, including $0 deductible insurance, than a minivan from one of the large companies. Fully loaded with heated and cooled seats and a HUD. They had some exhaust work done on it and that 6.2 made all the right noises. I was tempted to buy one after the fact but post covid prices were insane.

About a year later I rented a minivan Alamo. It was a brand new Pacifica with 2k miles on it and fully loaded. We drove it around San Diego for a few hours then headed to Coronado. It died on the highway headed north out of imperial beach. It was blocking the lane on a 65 mph road and wouldn’t restart. It died as I was slowing for a stop light and I couldn’t get it out of the lane. Multiple people almost hit the van as it was sitting in the road. Luckily there was room well off to the side of the road for my family to stand. We ended up leaving it where it died at because Alamo had no idea what to do. They were ZERO help. We had a family friend (that was staying at the same place we were) pick us up.

The van got impounded and the next day I got a ride back to the location I picked up the van at. They were horrified at the situation and refunded me for the week and gave me an Explorer for the remaining 5 days.

I’ll never put my family in a Chrysler/Stellantis product again.

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TealSapphire@reddit

They don’t have those cars at Budget or Alamo

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Superlooie@reddit

One time they upgraded us from a Kia soul to a Camaro lol. Probably the best it’s gets at those places.

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HousingSmart4426@reddit

Rented a BMW Z4 using Sixty.

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m-alacasse@reddit (OP)

Good choice, mate

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HousingSmart4426@reddit

Coming from Toyotas my whole life, it was amazing and now I want to buy one.

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Angelblues13@reddit

They are amazing fun cars, but coming from Toyota you will shiz a purple Twinkie after your first service visit. Sixt is great for getting vehicles that are considered luxury with other companies. Have rented 7 BMW’s from Sixt. Only thing I’ve noticed is that some locations are run fantastic and others are awful. Not a lot of middle ground or consistency.

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Frustrated_Zucchini@reddit

A 2017 Skoda Citigo I rented on holiday in Thassos, Greece in 2018.

Managed to take it to the top of the mountain - the same mountain that the hotel reps and local guides had all recommended taking a "jeep tour" to see because the path up was so crazy that only extreme off-roaders could get up it...

The path was pretty interesting in that little nugget, but it managed it just fine, and I only ever scraped the undertray one time, on the way back down, when I got a little too cocky with it's capability.

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Due-Toe-3163@reddit

2008 Ford Edge in Portland, Oregon; I was newly divorced and it felt like pure freedom.

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Downtown_Reward_6339@reddit

I reserved a Malibu or equal for mountain drive and they did the stupid “Upgrade to an SUV”. I told them that pig was a downgrade and I wasn’t interested, I just wanted a sedan or an econobox.

They ended up giving me a black Charger RT with a RT bumblebee strip and a 5.7. It didn’t really corner, but it looked and sounded cool. . . And was a sedan.

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Highergenius@reddit

A Ram 2500..felt like I was driving a Semi lmao. Had a Frontier Pro 4X during a winter storm and handled 6"+ of snow like a champ. A Ford Mustang GT 10A was a beast on the hwy. I LOVE the RAM Laramies as they are drive like a big a$$ Lexus and with the new Hurricane motors, very quick & smooth. Durango for long trips and the Chrysler mini vans with full stow & go seats for moving and almost 1000 miles. Chrysler/Dodge/Rams/Jeep infotainment & audio (and interior for the classes) second to none despite some random lost connections.

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ThaiTum@reddit

Years ago, we rented a Hummer H2 from Hertz on the Big Island of Hawaii using Hertz points for free. We drove it over lava fields, even though I’m not an off-roader. It was a lot of fun! I saw people driving regular Jeeps on the field, so the trail we went on wasn’t too challenging. At the end, we dropped the tailgate and had a lovely picnic by the ocean.

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Lobster_K@reddit

My family rented a Toyota Rav4 to drive out to Oklahoma when my great grandma died. I drove it the whole time because I needed the hours for my drivers license.

My brother, sister, and I took it for a joyride and beat the absolute piss out of it on the country backroads.

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DeFiClark@reddit

Most memorable rental was a VW GTI 16V I rented in Portugal at a time when the highway was under construction and the new segments had no posted speed limit yet.

Only rental I’ve ever gotten that had no governor and would go a legit 200kph.

The thing that made it truly memorable is after at most 10km the highway would end and you’d find yourself slowing down from 200 to maybe 60 onto tiny two lane roads with ox carts. That and telling my Dad that 200kph was “around 80mph”

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Warm-Patience-5002@reddit

Turo it’s great for that . Rented a mini cooper convertible and drove it thru some winding country roads in Alabama . Great experience, the car was designed with those overcast country roads in mind another time I flew into Bogota and drove a Suzuki swift sport mild hybrid ( what a mouthful) It was hybrid stick- shift , great fun . 1st 2nd and 3d gear were on electric mode and 4th and 5th the gasoline motor would kick in , plenty of pick on sinuous mountain roads . We need that car in the states , Chevy should re badge it and sell in North America.

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m-alacasse@reddit (OP)

Both of mine were rented through Turo too. Super easy process and way more interesting options than the usual rental companies.

Totally agree, we need something like that in the States )

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VirgoJack@reddit

I rented an early 2000s Volvo XC AWD wagon. Best ever seats and handled great. It got 30 mpg hwy and would haul ass.

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JONOV@reddit

A nice suburban that was in the national grab and go aisle. A Chrysler minivan that was the only car available, took it on a week hunting trip in the Dakota’s (was supposed to have an SUV.).

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DirectionImmediate88@reddit

I randomly got a Mercedes EQS on Maui. With <1/4 full charge. My hotel did have a couple of chargers though, and it all worked out. It was a weird car though, fancy at times and rough edges too.

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m-alacasse@reddit (OP)

I’ve never driven an electric car before )

Is it the same kind of adrenaline as driving a gas or diesel car?

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healthycord@reddit

A 2016 Toyota Camry in brown.

Obviously nothing special, but it was my first time experiencing a car with stuff like a touch screen and wireless phone charging. Super modern car compared to my parents early 2000s cars at the time. It was also a family vacation (I was in HS) to Disney world so that also made it memorable.

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ilikestuff1231234@reddit

Audi rs6. Fell in love so bad that I spent 800 out of pocket to rent it another 24 hours. Ended up buying one the following year. 800hp with 110k miles on her

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m-alacasse@reddit (OP)

Huh, nice car. Congrats!!!

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onemorethingie@reddit

F430 Spider, what a car

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m-alacasse@reddit (OP)

ngl, looks like a dream

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BorntoBomb@reddit

mclaren 720s. great weekend car.

honestly 3rd gen NSX great as well

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m-alacasse@reddit (OP)

Solid car ))

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benicebuddy@reddit

Grand Wagoneer for a family road trip: Absolutely amazing car when everything is working. Cupholders and USB charging ports everywhere!

911 to drive the PCH. It was a 99 and pretty rough and it was so lovely I went out and bought one.

R8 convertible, which I was able to let my 12 year old drive. Not the fastest (v8 not v10) but damn was it sexy.

Nissan GTR (heavily modified) to drive Tail of the Dragon. Tail of the Dragon is kinda lame because you can't get out of 2nd gear, but the Devil's Triangle has some very long stretches that are 2 lanes with mountain on one side and river on the other so you can open it up with no fear of other traffic. The thing was wrapped in blue camo and spit fire.

Ram 2500, which I used to trailer my jeep on the first trip with my 8 year old son that was just the two of us after his mom and I split. Took the jeep to an off road park where most of the trails required lockers and NOS. Had a ball.

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