# Discount Hawaii Car Rental



## Tamaradarann (Feb 2, 2019)

We are looking for low renter car rates in Maui for April.  A friend mentioned Discount Hawaii Car Rental and when I checked it did have lower prices than I got from Travelocity.  Has anyone had experience with this site?


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## chellej (Feb 2, 2019)

yes.  I use them often.  Costco often beats them but this tear they have been less


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## NiteMaire (Feb 2, 2019)

Tamaradarann said:


> We are looking for low renter car rates in Maui for April.  A friend mentioned Discount Hawaii Car Rental and when I checked it did have lower prices than I got from Travelocity.  Has anyone had experience with this site?


No. Costco usually has great rental prices for Hawaii.  They typically have the cheapest gas...significantly cheaper. It's usuaslly worth the membership for the savings on food and fuel.

We're going to Oahu and Kauai (I realize you're going to Maui) at the end of April.  We found the cheapest rates directly from Avis for one and Advantage for the other.


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## Luanne (Feb 2, 2019)

What I suggest doing is make your reservation through whoever you can find the cheapest price.  Then register that reservation with AutoSlash.  They will monitor it and send you emails when they find a lower price.  You have the option at that time to accept one of their prices, or not.  You can also use AutoSlash to search for a rental.

I had tried searching with Discount Hawaii in the past, but in my experience Costco always came in cheaper so I haven't even bothered to check with them recently.


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## cgeidl (Feb 2, 2019)

Beware of using autoslash for booking until you check the rental car company about complaints. We recently got an autoslash much cheaper quote but when we reviewed the unknown to us company decided the grief would not be worth the savings.


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## Luanne (Feb 2, 2019)

cgeidl said:


> Beware of using autoslash for booking until you check the rental car company about complaints. We recently got an autoslash much cheaper quote but when we reviewed the unknown to us company decided the grief would not be worth the savings.


When booking with AutoSlash I always select a company I'm familiar with and have never had an issue.  Many times if you want to select a pay ahead option, or choose a less familiar rental agency the prices will be lower.  I'm willing to pay a bit more to get a car from someone I'm familiar with.

AutoSlash partners with Priceline and that is who our recent rentals have been through. Again, no problems.  We've gotten cars from Alamo and Hertz.  They also have an option where you can get a lower price if you are willing to take your chances on who the rental will be with.  I don't want to do that as there are a couple of companies in the mix that I'm not all that familiar with.

Currently we have a rental made through AutoSlash and Priceline with Alamo for a midsize SUV, 15 days on Maui in March for $597 all in. When I checked Discount Hawaii their lowest price was around $800.


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## TUGBrian (Feb 2, 2019)

and if you are using priceline, be sure to go to the site thru the tug links in my sig!


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## DaveNV (Feb 2, 2019)

DHCR is a fine company to work with, but make sure they have the lowest rate for the same car.  As Luanne suggests, make your reservation, but then shop around some.  I normally go with Costco or DHCR, and haven't found a reliable company with lower rates.  Usually, between those two, I've found rates I couldn't beat elsewhere without prepaying the reservation.  I've not used Autoslash, so don't know whether they really help or not.

Weird tip to try:  Shop for auto rental rates on Tuesday mornings.  It doesn't always work, but I've often seen lower rates when shopping that day than when shopping on other days.  Also, if you're going back to a site you've shopped before, clear your browser cookies for that site before you do.  You may find they'll offer a lower rate if they don't know they've seen you before.

Dave


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## Luanne (Feb 2, 2019)

TUGBrian said:


> and if you are using priceline, be sure to go to the site thru the tug links in my sig!


Only problem with that is, sometimes the prices are higher going directly through Priceline than going through AutoSlash.


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## CalGalTraveler (Feb 2, 2019)

Never an issue with more than 36 rentals made over the past 3 years with Autoslash/Priceline. The rentals are made via Priceline so perhaps the review is a fake review by an auto rental company employee. Always had the lowest price/with Autoslash/Priceline compared to Costco and others.


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## Luanne (Feb 2, 2019)

DaveNW said:


> DHCR is a fine company to work with, but make sure they have the lowest rate for the same car.  As Luanne suggests, make your reservation, but then shop around some.  I normally go with Costco or DHCR, and haven't found a reliable company with lower rates.  Usually, between those two, I've found rates I couldn't beat elsewhere without prepaying the reservation.  I've not used Autoslash, so don't know whether they really help or not.
> 
> Weird tip to try:  Shop for auto rental rates on Tuesday mornings.  It doesn't always work, but I've often seen lower rates when shopping that day than when shopping on other days.  Also, if you're going back to a site you've shopped before, clear your browser cookies for that site before you do.  You may find they'll offer a lower rate if they don't know they've seen you before.
> 
> Dave


And sometimes changing the time of your reservation by an hour or so can make a big change in the pricing.


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## CalGalTraveler (Feb 2, 2019)

I just ran a search for Maui this summer via Discount Hawaii Car rentals and my Autoslash/Priceline rental is about $80 to $100 cheaper.

However the first quote is not always the lowest. You have to track with Autoslash, get notified then rebook via Priceline and create a new Autoslash track on the new reservation.  It's a bit of work to redo several times but well worth it to ratchet down and save $100 in my slippers.


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## DeniseM (Feb 2, 2019)

We use them every year.


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## CalGalTraveler (Feb 2, 2019)

TUGBrian said:


> and if you are using priceline, be sure to go to the site thru the tug links in my sig!



I will try this next time.


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## Luanne (Feb 2, 2019)

Tamaradarann said:


> We are looking for low renter car rates in Maui for April.  A friend mentioned Discount Hawaii Car Rental and when I checked it did have lower prices than I got from Travelocity.  Has anyone had experience with this site?


First, if you are just now looking for April you may have already missed finding the lowest prices.  I don't remember exactly when I started looking for our rental on Maui in March, but the price I have now we got in December.

That said, I was also given the tip to check up to the day before your rental and many times the price will drop at the last minute.  This doesn't mean wait until then to book, it just means to keep checking.


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## CalGalTraveler (Feb 2, 2019)

@Luanne Great idea to check the day before the rental. I always reserve the "free cancellation, pay at the counter' option.  Well worth it for Maui where it can run $400 or more for a standard SUV or full size.

I also have a Vegas trip coming up during spring break that has been quite costly even with Autoslash, so will give it a try.


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## Luanne (Feb 2, 2019)

CalGalTraveler said:


> @Luanne Great idea to check the day before the rental. I always reserve the "free cancellation, pay at the counter' option.  I don't bother for weekend stays, but well worth it for Maui where it can run $400 or more for a standard SUV or full size.
> 
> I also have a Vegas trip during spring break that is quite costly even with Autoslash, so will try this.


I never believed this, or really it was more that I never tried it, as I found I was getting the lowest price about 6 months out.  I would keep checking (this was back when I wasn't using AutoSlash).  Then on one trip I checked Costco a day or so before we were to pick up our rental and the price had dropped.


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## CalGalTraveler (Feb 2, 2019)

I set up Autoslash/Priceline for Maui just after we booked our Hawaii timeshares last Sept. racheted and rebooked several times.

Also set up several reservations for different arrival times because we haven't booked our airfare yet - awaiting Southwest schedule for late June(!)  Will cancel extras when schedule solidifies.

Right now I have a Standard SUV from Alamo for $434 for 10 days end of June (peak season) via AutoSlash/Priceline.


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## easyrider (Feb 2, 2019)

I looked every where for a rental car for two weeks in Maui and couldn't believe how high the rates are these days. I recently canceled a discount Hawaiian car rental reservation for about $780 in a compact for an autoslash reservation at about $480 for a compact at Hertz. The reservation says Mazda 3 or similar. 

The best rate was through Kehei Car rental in Kehei. It was about $370 for two weeks in a 2011 Altima. I was actually going to go this route but no one would email me the confirmation, even after I called to tell them I wanted the confirmation. I might still go this route but I'm not wanting to wait for a shuttle to Kehei.

Bill


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## rickandcindy23 (Feb 2, 2019)

The Chase Ultimate Rewards portal has been my best bet for reserving cars recently.  I was using RCI, but the prices on RCI have increased substantially, and the same with SFX.  

With Costco, you get a second driver free, which is helpful for some, but not for us because Rick and I go everywhere together, and he does all of the driving on vacation.


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## Luanne (Feb 2, 2019)

rickandcindy23 said:


> The Chase Ultimate Rewards portal has been my best bet for reserving cars recently.  I was using RCI, but the prices on RCI have increased substantially, and the same with SFX.
> 
> With Costco, you get a second driver free, which is helpful for some, but not for us because Rick and I go everywhere together, and he does all of the driving on vacation.


And with AutoSlash if they know you have a Costco account the second driver is also free.  Steve does most of the driving when we are on vacation, but I like knowing I can use the car if I need to.  Like like year when he ended up needing to have emergency dental care and I had to drive him back to the condo.


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## T_R_Oglodyte (Feb 2, 2019)

We have used DHCR frequently in our travels to Hawaii (annually).  For our trips, they usually are cheaper than Costco Travel, and on occasion, 50% to 70% of the Costco rate.  DHCR also serves up more options for extra drivers than Costco - Costco might be spouse/other drives free, whereas DHCR often offers two other drivers, without regard to relationship, as long as they are over 25.  That's great for us, because we are often in Hawaii with extended family, so that gives more flexibility in car usage.  

But it always pays to check around.  Sometimes we find the cheapest rates booking direct with a car rental company.  Sometimes using DHCR.  Sometimes Costco.  Sometimes Hotwire.  Sometimes Priceline "Name Your Own Price".  (I've never seen a Priceline direct rates to be any different from what I can see elsewhere.  I always run a search on Kayak to see what comes up there.  

Note: if you use Hotwire or Priceline "Name Your Own Price", always check the other sites first so you know that the best available offer is.  Then you will know whether the Hotwire offer truly is a discount, and what is the maximum amount you should offer on Priceline.


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## Tamaradarann (Feb 3, 2019)

Luanne said:


> When booking with AutoSlash I always select a company I'm familiar with and have never had an issue.  Many times if you want to select a pay ahead option, or choose a less familiar rental agency the prices will be lower.  I'm willing to pay a bit more to get a car from someone I'm familiar with.
> 
> AutoSlash partners with Priceline and that is who our recent rentals have been through. Again, no problems.  We've gotten cars from Alamo and Hertz.  They also have an option where you can get a lower price if you are willing to take your chances on who the rental will be with.  I don't want to do that as there are a couple of companies in the mix that I'm not all that familiar with.
> 
> Currently we have a rental made through AutoSlash and Priceline with Alamo for a midsize SUV, 15 days on Maui in March for $597 all in. When I checked Discount Hawaii their lowest price was around $800.


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## CalGalTraveler (Feb 3, 2019)

rickandcindy23 said:


> The Chase Ultimate Rewards portal has been my best bet for reserving cars recently.



Chase portal is great. 

Chase recently moved to Expedia so wondering how that will affect rates and whether it is viewed by the airlines as a third party purchase or direct revenue.  Tried Chase/Expedia for my upcoming Maui and it was $100 more expensive than my current Autoslash/Priceline.


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## Tamaradarann (Feb 3, 2019)

Thank you all for your thoughts on this subject.  We usually go to Oahu without getting a car so car rental doesn't matter.  Also, we can walk to Sam's where we are members so we are no longer Costco members.  I just got $593 for 2 weeks in Maui for April 19-May3 from Discount Hawaii Car Rental for an SUV.  That does include Easter week so I thought that was pretty good.  I will look into both Costco and Autoslash to see if I can do better.  Also, the tip about getting the Costco card that will let us stock up on lower cost food for this trip and another one in December to the Island of Hawaii does make sense since Sam's is not there.


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## CalGalTraveler (Feb 3, 2019)

@Tamaradarann Congrats, sounds like a great rate. Don't forget to add your reservation back to Autoslash to track to see if you can ratchet it down even further.


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## Tamaradarann (Feb 4, 2019)

CalGalTraveler said:


> @Tamaradarann Congrats, sounds like a great rate. Don't forget to add your reservation back to Autoslash to track to see if you can ratchet it down even further.



I went on Autoslash and got a rate of $651.29 for the same period.  What does "add your reservation back to Autoslash mean".


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## CalGalTraveler (Feb 4, 2019)

First offer is usually not good.
Autoslash Main screen hit tab "Track Reservation"
Enter your $593 DHCR reservation and it will email you when it finds lower offers. May take a few weeks to find offers and you can reject and keep looking if you don't like car company e.g. Fox, Ace, or don't want to pay upfront.




Tamaradarann said:


> I went on Autoslash and got a rate of $651.29 for the same period.  What does "add your reservation back to Autoslash mean".


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## brianfox (Feb 4, 2019)

One important perk of Costco is that it always includes spouse driver at no cost.  What you end up with through Autoslash probably does NOT include spouse.
Having to pay for that at the counter is upwards of $80 a week.


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## Luanne (Feb 4, 2019)

brianfox said:


> One important perk of Costco is that it always includes spouse driver at no cost.  What you end up with through Autoslash probably does NOT include spouse.
> Having to pay for that at the counter is upwards of $80 a week.


If you notify AutoSlash that you are a Costco member they will make sure the extra driver is included at no cost.  That is why they ask you for any other "clubs" you may belong to.  You can also communicate directly with AutoSlash to be sure you get that extra driver for free.

Next.


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## controller1 (Feb 4, 2019)

Luanne said:


> If you notify AutoSlash that you are a Costco member they will make sure the extra driver is included at no cost.  That is why they ask you for any other "clubs" you may belong to.  You can also communicate directly with AutoSlash to be sure you get that extra driver for free.
> 
> Next.



Yes, that's why they always ask if you are a member of Costco and National as both provide an extra driver free.


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## CalGalTraveler (Feb 4, 2019)

Luanne said:


> If you notify AutoSlash that you are a Costco member they will make sure the extra driver is included at no cost.  That is why they ask you for any other "clubs" you may belong to.  You can also communicate directly with AutoSlash to be sure you get that extra driver for free.
> 
> Next.



So if we use Autoslash/Priceline to reserve Advantage or Budget or Ace where there is always an extra fee, we can call Autoslash to get the free extra driver as part of the reservation even though it may not have been reserved as part of Costco's program?

BTW...just was notified by Autoslash that our Standard SUV rental with Alamo for Maui dropped by $30 to $404 for 10 days on Priceline. Costco still lists it at $434.


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## Luanne (Feb 4, 2019)

CalGalTraveler said:


> So if we use Autoslash/Priceline to reserve Advantage or Budget or Ace where there is always an extra fee, we can call Autoslash to get the free extra driver as part of the reservation even though it may not have been reserved as part of Costco's program?
> 
> BTW...just was notified by Autoslash that our Standard SUV rental with Alamo for Maui dropped by $30 to $404 for 10 days on Priceline. Costco still lists it at $434.


Yes, that should work.  I haven't had to call AutoSlash in a long time, in fact I might have just done it all through email.  But they said as long as I was a Costco member I would get the extra driver free.

Hoping our rental for March on Maui will drop as well. 

I just checked our rental for March.  It is stating there will be an extra fee for an additional driver.  I'll have to go check that out.  Dh usually does all of the driving, but I like to know that if I do drive I'm authorized.

Forget that last statement. When I opened up the reservation it does say additional drivers are included free.


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## BDMX2 (Feb 5, 2019)

If you work for a larger company, don't forget to take a look and see if there's a corporate rate that can be used for employee personal travel.  So far Costco rates on any of the companies can't beat my corporate rate with Enterprise for Hawaii in June/July, and I also get a bunch of free extra drivers (something like 9, LOL) and insurance coverage.


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## CalGalTraveler (Feb 5, 2019)

@BDMX2 thanks for the reminder. I always forget to check that. Sometimes it is much cheaper.


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## Tamaradarann (Feb 5, 2019)

controller1 said:


> Yes, that's why they always ask if you are a member of Costco and National as both provide an extra driver free.



We don't believe in drinking and driving, but we both love to drink.  That is why we love Honolulu without a car.  Instead of an EXTRA DRIVER FREE, we wish there was NO DRIVER FREE.  While I am skeptical about the technology at this time, I believe there is a major push with the car companies and also Lyft and Uber to develop self driving cars.  Now that would be a free benefit that I would opt for.


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## controller1 (Feb 5, 2019)

Tamaradarann said:


> We don't believe in drinking and driving, but we both love to drink.  That is why we love Honolulu without a car.  Instead of an EXTRA DRIVER FREE, we wish there was NO DRIVER FREE.  While I am skeptical about the technology at this time, I believe there is a major push with the car companies and also Lyft and Uber to develop self driving cars.  Now that would be a free benefit that I would opt for.



That sounds good in theory but in reality the person behind the wheel, even in an autonomous car, is considered the driver as that person would need to take over the controls in an emergency.  Therefore, that "driver" still must not have a BAC over 0.08.  Sorry.


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## slabeaume (Feb 5, 2019)

I usually go with Costco, but Thrifty wish DHCR was cheaper this time, so I went with them.  I'd be more concerned with who you rent from.  Thrifty had EVERYONE waiting a minimum of 2 hours for a car!  That was this past Sat.  Usually I go with Budget and use Fastbreak and never had a problem.


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## CalGalTraveler (Feb 5, 2019)

I had some very bad experiences with Thrifty and will never use again. Cars are more banged up so takes time to document damage. Once I dropped off a car without the attendant checking and they tried to charge me $50 for a full tank of gas. I now take photos of the gas guage and before/after for dents and gas receipt within 10 miles. They also had some junk fees added.


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## Luanne (Feb 5, 2019)

slabeaume said:


> I usually go with Costco, but Thrifty wish DHCR was cheaper this time, so I went with them.  I'd be more concerned with who you rent from.  Thrifty had EVERYONE waiting a minimum of 2 hours for a car!  That was this past Sat.  Usually I go with Budget and use Fastbreak and never had a problem.


I will often pay a bit more, and not go with the lowest price, to rent from someone I'm familiar with.


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## baf99 (Feb 5, 2019)

BDMX2 said:


> If you work for a larger company, don't forget to take a look and see if there's a corporate rate that can be used for employee personal travel.



Thanks for this @BDMX2. I just checked using my full two week Oahu stay dates and National with my corporate discount is $240 less than with Costco. Wow. I'm not planning to rent for the full stay, but that's really great. The difference would almost pay for the parking fee (discounted for those staying at The Modern Honolulu). BUT, I retired over a year ago and even though the corporate number is still in my National profile I doubt that I can use it. Maybe if I call and ask. I used to rent a lot with them when I was working but not at all since retiring. With no discounts, the National rental would be twice as much. I guess it can't hurt to call National and ask them about it. Maybe they give the corporate rate to retirees. It could happen... Not likely, but it could happen.


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## T_R_Oglodyte (Feb 5, 2019)

baf99 said:


> BUT, I retired over a year ago and even though the corporate number is still in my National profile I doubt that I can use it.


I don't think they care.  For ten years after I left a previous employer, National would still give me the corporate code.  I have a business associate who was using a rental code with Avis more than 20 years after he left that organization.  

The only time I ever had a rental company care about details of a code was one time when I tried to use a good that was for insurance rentals.  In that case the reservation boldly stated that to rent the car I needed to bring proof that the rental was a replacement for an car that was being repaired.


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## SmithOp (Feb 5, 2019)

I still use my company discount with Hertz, 8 years after retiring.  When booking it asks if the rental is business or pleasure, I always pick the latter and get the discount.

I’ve only been challenged once by a guy at a local edition site, just happened to still have one of my old business cards in my wallet, that was good enough.

I’m surprised they haven’t changed the CDP code after all these years.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro


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## T_R_Oglodyte (Feb 6, 2019)

SmithOp said:


> I’m surprised they haven’t changed the CDP code after all these years.



Why should they?  The more rental volume there is using the code, the more leverage they have in negotiating rates using the code.


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## clifffaith (Feb 6, 2019)

Discount Hawaii has been our go to company for years. When we turned the car in today at Lihue, and I prompted Cliff to see if there was a discount available for turning it in Tuesday instead of Saturday since we had cut our trip short due to Dad's situation, the gal said to him "blah blah $600 blah blah $250 discount". I was not about to deal with it then, but either he never looked at the confirmation paperwork I handed him (I sit outside with the luggage, he goes in to the counter) and let them charge him $600 for a car rental that was supposed to be less than half of that, or the company decided we'd voided the one week contract and we got charged a very high daily rate for 3 days. Once we get Dad settled at home with hospice I'll figure out what the real story is, and I'll also check to see if we were charged at Kahalui our reservation price or something different.


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## Tamaradarann (Feb 6, 2019)

controller1 said:


> That sounds good in theory but in reality the person behind the wheel, even in an autonomous car, is considered the driver as that person would need to take over the controls in an emergency.  Therefore, that "driver" still must not have a BAC over 0.08.  Sorry.



I am not talking about the current autonomous car technology which is useless.  We just visited a booth at a technology show where Lyft is recruiting for software personnel to work with their Engineers working on driverless technology for their service.  A driverless Lyft service would have to be one where there is NO driver and one would be picked up and dropped off by the driverless car.  No license required by the customers.  Perfected; That would be a car that I would buy.


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## T_R_Oglodyte (Feb 6, 2019)

Tamaradarann said:


> I am not talking about the current autonomous car technology which is useless.  We just visited a booth at a technology show where Lyft is recruiting for software personnel to work with their Engineers working on driverless technology for their service.  A driverless Lyft service would have to be one where there is NO driver and one would be picked up and dropped off by the driverless car.  No license required by the customers.  Perfected; That would be a car that I would buy.



5 reasons why autonomous cars aren’t coming anytime soon



> PITTSBURGH (AP) — In the world of autonomous vehicles, Pittsburgh and Silicon Valley are bustling hubs of development and testing. But ask those involved in self-driving vehicles when we might actually see them carrying passengers in every city, and you’ll get an almost universal answer: Not anytime soon.
> 
> An optimistic assessment is 10 years. Many others say decades as researchers try to conquer a number of obstacles. The vehicles themselves will debut in limited, well-mapped areas within cities and spread outward.


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## Tamaradarann (Feb 6, 2019)

T_R_Oglodyte said:


> 5 reasons why autonomous cars aren’t coming anytime soon



I am really not in a hurry for the the self driving car, if and when it comes will be fine.  Until then we will primarily vacation in Honolulu our main love which we have done many times in the past without a car.  We have plans for Las Vegas, and New York City which can be done nicely without a car.  Miami South Beach and Chicago are also in our future without a car.   San Diego, San Francisco, New Orleans are other areas we have been to without a car.   Another advantage of the self driving car those too old to drive safely even sober.  Independence of the elderly is a real benefit and concern.


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## cowboy (Feb 6, 2019)

In regards to using Auto Slash I have had good luck with securing lower rental costs thru them in the past and have not had any problems until this trip where I booked the rental car thru Priceline for a car with Alamo on the Big Island and thru Advantage on Maui. Both of these rentals were prepaid thru Priceline. With Alamo, when I returned the car they charged me a $100.00 rent tax surcharge. When I got to Maui I looked at my contract and it states that the rent tax surcharge is included. I called the local number for Kona Alamo and was transferred to someone not local who said she could not help me but would refer the overcharge back to local Kona Alamo to have them contact me. I tried to tell the person checking the car in that the charge was in error but got nowhere and due to time constraints I waited until arrival in Maui to contest. I still don't know the outcome.

With my rental with Advantage on Maui I went to the normal area for rental car pickup and no Advantage van. After inquiring of an airport personnel I was told to go to the center island about 500 yards back past where I had started to wait about 20 minutes for a pickup van that took me about a mile off the airport site to a downtown location where it took about an hour to get a car that was different than the one I had a prepaid reservation. When I got in line there were two people at the counter being waited on and two people in front of me in line. In the wait time, 4 people came in with complaints about the car they had just rented and were asked to come to the front of the line ahead of us that were in line. This I can understand, but there should have been someone to resolve their problems other than the two agents that were there for new arrivals. When I finally got to an agent, a new agent that had opened up a new line, after going thru the sales routine and charging my credit card  $200 deposit which he said  would be returned to me if the car was returned and everything was in order, he gave me the keys to a car, that, I later found out was different to the one I had reserved and prepaid for, when I got to the car. By this time I was so mad and frustrated that I got into the car to go back to the airport to pick up my wife and luggage rather than go back in and go thru the hassle all over again. I am still in the smaller SUV and am to return it back to Advantage tomorrow. We will see what happens then. 

My point is watch out for these rental agencies. I don't know if these were honest mistakes or something else to make more profit. When I was at the Advantage counter I felt like I was in a 3rd. world country like Mexico instead of the United States.


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## Luanne (Feb 6, 2019)

cowboy said:


> In regards to using Auto Slash I have had good luck with securing lower rental costs thru them in the past and have not had any problems until this trip where I booked the rental car thru Priceline for a car with Alamo on the Big Island and thru Advantage on Maui. Both of these rentals were prepaid thru Priceline. With Alamo, when I returned the car they charged me a $100.00 rent tax surcharge. When I got to Maui I looked at my contract and it states that the rent tax surcharge is included. I called the local number for Kona Alamo and was transferred to someone not local who said she could not help me but would refer the overcharge back to local Kona Alamo to have them contact me. I tried to tell the person checking the car in that the charge was in error but got nowhere and due to time constraints I waited until arrival in Maui to contest. I still don't know the outcome.
> 
> With my rental with Advantage on Maui I went to the normal area for rental car pickup and no Advantage van. After inquiring of an airport personnel I was told to go to the center island about 500 yards back past where I had started to wait about 20 minutes for a pickup van that took me about a mile off the airport site to a downtown location where it took about an hour to get a car that was different than the one I had a prepaid reservation. When I got in line there were two people at the counter being waited on and two people in front of me in line. In the wait time, 4 people came in with complaints about the car they had just rented and were asked to come to the front of the line ahead of us that were in line. This I can understand, but there should have been someone to resolve their problems other than the two agents that were there for new arrivals. When I finally got to an agent, a new agent that had opened up a new line, after going thru the sales routine and charging my credit card  $200 deposit which he said  would be returned to me if the car was returned and everything was in order, he gave me the keys to a car, that, I later found out was different to the one I had reserved and prepaid for, when I got to the car. By this time I was so mad and frustrated that I got into the car to go back to the airport to pick up my wife and luggage rather than go back in and go thru the hassle all over again. I am still in the smaller SUV and am to return it back to Advantage tomorrow. We will see what happens then.
> 
> My point is watch out for these rental agencies. I don't know if these were honest mistakes or something else to make more profit. When I was at the Advantage counter I felt like I was in a 3rd. world country like Mexico instead of the United States.


Sounds like another reason not to use Advantage.  It's come up at cheapest several times with AutoSlash.  I checked their reviews on Maui and they were not good.  So I've opted to pay a bit more for a company I know, and one where I am a member.


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## CalGalTraveler (Feb 6, 2019)

Advantage depends on the airport. It also is advisable to sign up for their frequent buyer program so you can get through the line faster. We have had good rentals some places and bad in others.


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## Luanne (Feb 6, 2019)

CalGalTraveler said:


> Advantage depends on the airport. It also is advisable to sign up for their frequent buyer program so you can get through the line faster. We have had good rentals some places and bad in others.


That is why I checked the reviews for the airport where I would be renting.  Maui reviews were not good.


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## clifffaith (Feb 6, 2019)

clifffaith said:


> Discount Hawaii has been our go to company for years. When we turned the car in today at Lihue, and I prompted Cliff to see if there was a discount available for turning it in Tuesday instead of Saturday since we had cut our trip short due to Dad's situation, the gal said to him "blah blah $600 blah blah $250 discount". I was not about to deal with it then, but either he never looked at the confirmation paperwork I handed him (I sit outside with the luggage, he goes in to the counter) and let them charge him $600 for a car rental that was supposed to be less than half of that, or the company decided we'd voided the one week contract and we got charged a very high daily rate for 3 days. Once we get Dad settled at home with hospice I'll figure out what the real story is, and I'll also check to see if we were charged at Kahalui our reservation price or something different.



Looks like I need to go to Yelp and Trip Advisor to warn folks about Advantage at Lihue. And lesson learned to triple check the paperwork. We had a $205 reservation through Discount Hawaii at the Lihue Advantage. Cliff declined their insurance at least twice (our own USAA probably covers us, and in any case using our Amex card does), but did not look at what he signed. Sure enough he got char


clifffaith said:


> Discount Hawaii has been our go to company for years. When we turned the car in today at Lihue, and I prompted Cliff to see if there was a discount available for turning it in Tuesday instead of Saturday since we had cut our trip short due to Dad's situation, the gal said to him "blah blah $600 blah blah $250 discount". I was not about to deal with it then, but either he never looked at the confirmation paperwork I handed him (I sit outside with the luggage, he goes in to the counter) and let them charge him $600 for a car rental that was supposed to be less than half of that, or the company decided we'd voided the one week contract and we got charged a very high daily rate for 3 days. Once we get Dad settled at home with hospice I'll figure out what the real story is, and I'll also check to see if we were charged at Kahalui our reservation price or something different.



So I guess it's time to put a warning review on Yelp and Trip Advisor. Our $205 Discount Hawaii Advantage rental at the Lihue airport did indeed become $600. Cliff declined their insurance twice (our USAA insurance, as well as using AMEX to pay for the car covers us), but then did not look at what he signed. SOBs added $200 in collision damage insurance and another $56 for something called "RSP". Don't know if we then paid additional taxes on the $256, but bill was just over $600 and we got a $250 refund for returning it 4 days early. I don't blame him because I could see myself signing without looking if I'd declined something twice. I'm sure they count on the fact that after waiting 30-40 minutes in line folks are in a rush to start their vacation and don't review what they are signing. Expensive lesson learned.


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## Pathways (Feb 6, 2019)

Luanne said:


> That is why I checked the reviews for the airport where I would be renting. Maui reviews were not good.



Rented last month in Maui OGG from Alamo as they had the best reviews and a good price.  Wife refused to get in the car due to the dirty seats, (she was right).  Brought two more by us - no dice.  We looked at another - all were TERRIBLE!  Then the lot gal said wait just a minute, I have one you'll like, and I said I will come with to look at it. She stopped me and refused to allow me to go with her.  She went to the back of the lot, and drove up with a Ford Escape.  Low and behold, she was right, it was great!


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## bobpark56 (Feb 9, 2019)

We are trying something new (for us) this year. We have booked an off-airport Enterprise rental on Maui through Costco...22 nights in Sep-Oct, $574 for an intermediate car. Seems like a reasonable deal. We shall see how it turns out. We (or I) just have to catch a taxi for the short ride to Enterprise to pick up the car. I think the "I" idea will work best...coming back to the airport after getting the car to pick up wife & luggage. Then reverse the process when returning the car.


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## T_R_Oglodyte (Feb 9, 2019)

bobpark56 said:


> We are trying something new (for us) this year. We have booked an off-airport Enterprise rental on Maui through Costco...22 nights in Sep-Oct, $574 for an intermediate car. Seems like a reasonable deal. We shall see how it turns out. We (or I) just have to catch a taxi for the short ride to Enterprise to pick up the car. I think the "I" idea will work best...coming back to the airport after getting the car to pick up wife & luggage. Then reverse the process when returning the car.


Probably feasible, but a small caveat.

I live in the Seattle area, and one time when I rented a vehicle at a downtown Seattle location, to avoid paying the tourism concession fee I had to prove that I was either a local resident or had been in Seattle for at least 24 hours prior to the rental.  The Seattle area fee is hefty - with the fee added it's more expensive for me to rent a car locally for $35/day than it is to rent from a SeaTac area facility for $20/day.


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## Tamaradarann (Apr 5, 2019)

Luanne said:


> Sounds like another reason not to use Advantage.  It's come up at cheapest several times with AutoSlash.  I checked their reviews on Maui and they were not good.  So I've opted to pay a bit more for a company I know, and one where I am a member.


Thanks for the advice about Advantage on Maui.  AutoSlash has just come up with a better price than I had for Maui.  I will let it go and pay the additional.  I don't need another headache, while on vacation.


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