BayArea Zip car

[Orangettes]

Hi guys,

I am moving to the city soon and planning to use Zip or city share.  Has anyone here tried that, if so, how did you like it and any advise?

Thanks!

[duckwrench13]

I have the $50/year "Occasional use" plan, and it's great!! Before I got the 4Runner (complete w/ girlfriend) I used Zip Car exclusively. I still have it, just in case.

I was going to use City Car Share, but they wanted a $300 deposit @ sign up, Zip doesn't. Plus Zip has locations all over the country (and Canada and London too!), and your one membership is good with all of them.

So far, no complaints. It's a great tool for living a densely populated place like San Francisco.

[Orangettes]

Thanks for the info, how about availability?  Do you need to schedule way ahead or on holidays? 

How does the free gas works by the way...

[duckwrench13]

You can schedule as little as an hour before. I've never had a problem with availability; There's so many locations, if the one by my house doesn't have a car, then the one a few blocks from that usually does. I've never been "shorted" a car.

The free gas is pretty simple: if you're just running around town, etc, then just fill 'er up w/ the Zip card in the car. If you're gonna make a day trip, then gas should be out of pocket...to be fair...then top it off w/ the Zip card on your way to drop it off. At least that's how I like to do it. You get 180 miles free...more than enough to get most "area stuff" done... so you should be fine w/ just using the Zip card.

[BikerGoddess]

I used City Car Share for a few years and found it very convenient. CCS and ZipCar are economical only if you use them once or twice a month. The mileage and hourly fees really add up.

[ro-monster]

Zipcar rocks! Even if you were to drive quite a bit, it's far cheaper than owning a car in the city. And you can use whatever type of vehicle suits your needs at the moment. I have, in a pinch, reserved a car just a few minutes before driving it, but you'll get a much better selection if you reserve a day in advance. Being a Zipcar member also gets you discounts at several businesses around the city.

They don't charge mileage unless you go over 180 miles/day, btw.

[BikerGoddess]

Zipcar rocks! Even if you were to drive quite a bit, it's far cheaper than owning a car in the city. And you can use whatever type of vehicle suits your needs at the moment. I have, in a pinch, reserved a car just a few minutes before driving it, but you'll get a much better selection if you reserve a day in advance. Being a Zipcar member also gets you discounts at several businesses around the city.

They don't charge mileage unless you go over 180 miles/day, btw.

My experience with CCS was over 6 years ago, so I imagine things have changed. Each service probably has a slightly different fee structure. I've also noticed that Zip Car has an impressive fleet of Volvos, Toyotas and Subarus.