[Matticus91]

For those not familiar - Turo is a "rental" car app where you can borrow people's cars for a set price and time frame. I got kind of sick of Allstate not taking care of my rental bookings while my car is being repaired so I figured I'd try this out.

Picked up an 08 GTI with a manual trans (when was the last time you could rent a manual???) for $25/day. So far the app is kind of shit (lots of freezing and some incorrect system redirects) but the overall function has been great. You can search listings, filter on location/price/features/type of car/etc., and manage the booking through your phone (when it works).

The car itself is so much better than an average rental car simply because it has some character. Instead of getting a Corolla or Mirage or some other crap-box I got a little turbo 4cyl with a manual trans for the same price. MUCH more fun, even if it has 100k on the clock! I'm pretty tempted to try some of the higher end cars listed on there, I've seen a few C7 Vette's, an M4, and a V8 Vanquish.

Anyway this is day 2 so we'll see how it turns out in the end - and if Allstate agrees to consider this a valid rental company and reimburses me

[Naz24]

Originally Posted by Matticus91

For those not familiar - Turo is a "rental" car app where you can borrow people's cars for a set price and time frame. I got kind of sick of Allstate not taking care of my rental bookings while my car is being repaired so I figured I'd try this out.

Picked up an 08 GTI with a manual trans (when was the last time you could rent a manual???) for $25/day. So far the app is kind of shit (lots of freezing and some incorrect system redirects) but the overall function has been great. You can search listings, filter on location/price/features/type of car/etc., and manage the booking through your phone (when it works).

The car itself is so much better than an average rental car simply because it has some character. Instead of getting a Corolla or Mirage or some other crap-box I got a little turbo 4cyl with a manual trans for the same price. MUCH more fun, even if it has 100k on the clock! I'm pretty tempted to try some of the higher end cars listed on there, I've seen a few C7 Vette's, an M4, and a V8 Vanquish.

Anyway this is day 2 so we'll see how it turns out in the end - and if Allstate agrees to consider this a valid rental company and reimburses me

I almost rented an M4 convertible out in San Fran when i was traveling for work. I find that its hard to drive around in crappy rentals once you've had some good cars at home....

Maybe i'll give it a shot too

[Nihilation]

My only suggestion is to opt for the premium insurance. I rented a 2016 Miata in California through Turo and I ended up paying $1,000 after I was rear ended in a parking lot, with witnesses, while I was parked.

I also used Turo to travel to Canada with family in a Suburban and the border agents were beyond suspicious.

[Naz24]

Originally Posted by Nihilation

My only suggestion is to opt for the premium insurance. I rented a 2016 Miata in California through Turo and I ended up paying $1,000 after I was rear ended in a parking lot, with witnesses, while I was parked.

I also used Turo to travel to Canada with family in a Suburban and the border agents were beyond suspicious.

So Turo offers additional insurance? I see they insure all the cars, but i assume with a high deductible, etc.

[Jhenka]

I used turo for my trip in Cali last year. I had a 2016 convertible mustang 5 days for 400 bucks. Much better than using enterprise or hertz in my opinion.

[Z K]

There's two sides with Turo... it's a car sharing service. There's horror stories of people stealing and sometimes wrecking the cars they rent. I would not put my car on Turo.

As for renting from Turo, that can be fun but the pricing is not always affordable for the nicer cars.

[gulewamkulu]

I rented an E93 M3 for a whole week and drove it down the coast of California from Santa Barbara to San Diego and back. This served as the most ideal test drive as it simulated what the car would be like to own. Renting through Turo ultimately led to me purchasing my E93.
Would I rent again? absolutely!! Will likely try out an F10 M5 sometime this summer when I go West.

[PoorLurker]

Someone on this site rented a 997 911 Carrera in some snowy state.. I think Colorado. He said it was a blast. He also said there was a GT3 in the area for relatively inexpensive.

Nihilation If you opted for the better insurance, what would the coverage be?

Turo seems like a great deal, however, I see many of the nicer cars in OC/LA as overpriced.

[Matticus91]

Originally Posted by Nihilation

I also used Turo to travel to Canada with family in a Suburban and the border agents were beyond suspicious.

That's hilarious

Originally Posted by PoorLurker

Someone on this site rented a 997 911 Carrera in some snowy state.. I think Colorado. He said it was a blast. He also said there was a GT3 in the area for relatively inexpensive.

Nihilation If you opted for the better insurance, what would the coverage be?

Turo seems like a great deal, however, I see many of the nicer cars in OC/LA as overpriced.

The pricing is definitely all over the place, but that's because people set their own prices for their cars.

The "advanced" coverage basically covers everything with zero out-of-pocket to either party in the event of any damage.

[kprocivic]

I used it to rent a m4. good service would use again.

[PoorLurker]

Must...

Resist...

Rental...

https://turo.com/rentals/cars/ca/lon...159?s=IbCy5gpR

[Matticus91]

Originally Posted by PoorLurker

Must...

Resist...

Rental...

https://turo.com/rentals/cars/ca/lon...159?s=IbCy5gpR

DO IT DO IT!!

[capo180]

Man I thought I was gonna have to rent that but you gotta be 30 or older :/ I thought after 25 the world was mine lol...

[PoorLurker]

Originally Posted by capo180

Man I thought I was gonna have to rent that but you gotta be 30 or older :/ I thought after 25 the world was mine lol...

We can go halfsies. (Well, 60/40 where you pay 60 because I am over 30)

[Matticus91]

Originally Posted by capo180

Man I thought I was gonna have to rent that but you gotta be 30 or older :/ I thought after 25 the world was mine lol...

Lol!

[Housekeeping]

He a couple audis via Turo in Denver, awesome experience.

[W Cole]

I rented a 911 turbo for the day to see if I wanted to buy one. Despite only 30k miles the car had seen better days.. kept going into limp mode. Complete waste for me to rent, everyone who drove the car said the same thing.. it was terrible and felt like it had 200k miles.

The guy I rented the car from was nuts. With turo you aren't working with a professional business just some guy who rents out his car. Right before it was time for me to return the car (wish I knew before 7pm...) he told me I had to get the car washed which I had no idea about (didn't say in his ad or any emails from turo). So I said no problem I didn't really get it dirty since I only had the car a couple hours but no problem. I washed the car myself and when I went to drop it off the guy flipped out and yelled that it wasn't clean enough and he was afraid I had ruined the paint (I understand his fear id never ever let a stranger wash my car..). Ended up paying him like $25 to go get it washed again and I was afraid the whole time the guy was going to try to extort money out of me somehow since turo had my credit card info.

The guy has a fleet of cars - 911 turbo, Nissan GT-R, etc. but lived in a really run down apartment complex in a bad area. I'm thinking this is a low risk business (insurance covers any damage) and low initial capital required (100% financing on cars).

[Robert_tran]

I've rented a few cars through turo and so far I've had good experiences. Although I can't speak for the higher price luxary cars. There is a premium insurance option but of course that can cost much more depending on the vehicle. I've never rented out a personal car of mine, nor do I plan to, but from what I've heard, turo takes a big cut out of it. I've also heard stores where an owner received his car back with a damaged front lip and turo would not reimburse him.

[Matticus91]

Originally Posted by W Cole

I rented a 911 turbo for the day to see if I wanted to buy one. Despite only 30k miles the car had seen better days.. kept going into limp mode. Complete waste for me to rent, everyone who drove the car said the same thing.. it was terrible and felt like it had 200k miles.

The guy I rented the car from was nuts. With turo you aren't working with a professional business just some guy who rents out his car. Right before it was time for me to return the car (wish I knew before 7pm...) he told me I had to get the car washed which I had no idea about (didn't say in his ad or any emails from turo). So I said no problem I didn't really get it dirty since I only had the car a couple hours but no problem. I washed the car myself and when I went to drop it off the guy flipped out and yelled that it wasn't clean enough and he was afraid I had ruined the paint (I understand his fear id never ever let a stranger wash my car..). Ended up paying him like $25 to go get it washed again and I was afraid the whole time the guy was going to try to extort money out of me somehow since turo had my credit card info.

The guy has a fleet of cars - 911 turbo, Nissan GT-R, etc. but lived in a really run down apartment complex in a bad area. I'm thinking this is a low risk business (insurance covers any damage) and low initial capital required (100% financing on cars).

This is why reviews are important lol. Also take pictures before you rent and go to Turo if the owner tries to pull shit like that, they'll back you up.

[PoorLurker]

Originally Posted by W Cole

The guy has a fleet of cars - 911 turbo, Nissan GT-R, etc. but lived in a really run down apartment complex in a bad area. I'm thinking this is a low risk business (insurance covers any damage) and low initial capital required (100% financing on cars).

It wasn't that blue 911 turbo was it?

I have seen some cars listed by multiple people. It's like they are brokers or something? Very interesting to hear that a guy with $200k worth of cars is living in said place.

[sirdaft1]

I've used it twice. WILL NOT USE AGAIN (and I've rented two different Porsche's!)

When it works, it works well... but when ANYTHING pops up that is questionable about the car when it is returned, the renter is at fault. I cannot stress this enough. The renter is considered guilty until proven innocent. Hell... I've read a number of nightmare experiences where the car experiences mechanical failures due to normal wear and tear (ie: failed engines, transmissions, etc) and the renter is responsible for the cost of repair (read the fine print, it's even listed there!). That being said, there is far more liability on the renters end than they let onto at Turo. Hertz and many exotic car rentals have a liability waiver which releases you from all liability for a few extra bucks.

My quick experience: I rented a 996 Turbo for two days while I was in So Cal. Upon return, the owner saw a tiny 3mm chip in the windshield hidden below the wiper blade. I could barely even see the chip when he pointed it out. I'm certain that the chip hadn't occured under my eye (I used it to put put around La Jolla). But, it was my burden to provide pre-pickup photos showing that the windshield was unharmed prior to pickup. Well, the four photos I took from 10 feet away of each side of the car weren't close enough or the right angle to see any imperfections in the windshield, so I was charged the $500 deductible, no questions asked (they would have charged me more had I not paid for their expensive premium insurance). I took care of that car like it was my baby, and the way they handled that experience left a really bad taste in my mouth.

That said, I'll re-iterate: when things go well, it can be a great experience. But the moment there is an issue, renter beware. This isn't a traditional rental car company. You will be seen as guilty until you can prove you are innocent should the person renting you the car question ANYTHING wrong with it.

[buddalun]

I've used Turo twice. Once to rent a Cayman S (had to scratch the itch) while in Malibu, and again to rent an EV around town (Chevy Spark, dude this thing has 400lb ft of torque!). Both times was smooth and quite enjoyable.