x

Update

I just finished building this page and it works... come on you konw you want to send me money

I have been researching cars. Buying a car is not just another purchase, a car is an extension of your personality and lifestyle. Three months ago I had no car and it was great. I biked everywhere often 10+ miles in a day and was in the best shape I have been in since middle school. It worked great till I meet this cute girl in Chicago and now reliable transportation there and back is a priority. But what about in three months? Maybe this girl wont be in the picture anymore, or maybe she will have succeed in getting me to move to Chicago. In either scenario the ideal automobile is quite different. With leases ranging three to five years the number of variable to consider is impossible to calculate. Maybe ill be rich, maybe ill be broke. What if I have kids, or get married. What if I need more space or less, or maybe a hybrid? My life changes so much year to year I find my choice in automobile is likely to fluctuate a lot over the next three to five years, so I am at a loss of what to buy. This is why I dont own a house. I can never decide what I want long enough to commit to something. I am in Lansing this year but what about next? This is why I rent. So why is it you cant rent a car. Not just for a day or a week, but how about a month, six months, a year?

When I first ran into trouble with my old car I thought about a long term car rental company as a business and I still think its a viable one. Instead of buying or leasing a car would you consider renting a car monthly or yearly? I love the piece of mind that comes with renting. If the water heater goes out I just make one phone call and they come and fix it the next day. I would love to have this with a car as well which is one of the reasons I think long term car rental would be so appealing to people. No surprise costs, no repair bills, or maintenance fees since all these would be covered by the car rental place.

So how much would you pay to rent a car for a month knowing you would have no surprises on it?

There are of course catches to the plan. The customer probably wouldnt be able to select the exact car they wanted to rent but rather a category like economy, standard, luxury, suv, truck, etc. like normal car rental places. Would this bother you? Would not being able to customize a car with stickers and other items, or know the color detour you from wanting to drive it? Or would the freedom of knowing you could upgrade from economy to suv next month outweigh that restriction?


Also cars I am considering. Opinions?
Car MSRP MPG
Saturn ION 11,995 26/35
Toyota Echo 12,500 35/43
Ford Focus 14,880 24/30
Kia Rio 11,030 26/33
Honda Civic DX 14,875 32/38
Mitsubishi Lancer 14,170 28/35
Mazda 3 14,530 28/35