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Rental car to tow a trailer?

nakman

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Anyone have any experience renting a car to tow a trailer? I am looking at flying to a faraway land, renting a car, picking up a trailer, and then pulling the trailer back. I would prefer to rent a fancy F150 or something, rather than a U-Haul, as I really don't need to haul anything. I just need a 2" receiver hitch, round 7 plug, and ideally a brake controller... I'll just stop at HF for a new drop hitch and ball. Has anyone here done such a thing?
 

SteveH

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I don't know of any rental car places that allow trailer towing, even with tow-capable vehicles (such as an F150).
 

Jameson

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Woodland Park, CO
Yes - none of the regular rental cars allow you to tow with their vehicles. I found out that the commercial truck rental places do allow it... but have different rules in terms of what size truck you have to rent. I ended up with a 3/4 ton diesel RAM form Enterprise Truck Rental which was the smallest they would allow me to tow with (I think it was a RAM 2500?). It was a basic strip down truck but was comfortable enough. Coming from the LC you really will appreciate the gas mileage! Filling up with DEF was a bit of a different experience. Here was what I paid below:

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sno bored

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A bunch of years ago I was road tripping and my transmission broke down in Great falls Montana. Guy said it would be over a week to just get parts. I decided to rent a truck and trailer to bring it home. I had to rent a large U-haul truck to pull the trailer. I was like you and thought I could just rent a normal pickup and trailer. I don't remember what size truck, but it was pretty big.
 

mcgaskins

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I buy a lot of cars out of state, and through all the mental gymnastics I typically find shipping it is the safest and sometimes even the cheapest option. I recently shipped a Cruiser from Austin to Denver for $800, and when you add the cost of the flight, a hotel, gas, and meals it only saved about $200 - not counting the time or wear and tear. If I was going to be renting a truck and pulling it on a trailer, it definitely would have been more expensive than just shipping. Also if something goes wrong in transit, it's on the shipper not you, so I almost always end up shipping.
 

Notyourmomslx450

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Enterprise Truck Rental.
I have a 3/4 ton rented to tow the 80 to Rubicon
 

Shuksan

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How far away of a land?
 

Jameson

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I buy a lot of cars out of state, and through all the mental gymnastics I typically find shipping it is the safest and sometimes even the cheapest option. I recently shipped a Cruiser from Austin to Denver for $800, and when you add the cost of the flight, a hotel, gas, and meals it only saved about $200 - not counting the time or wear and tear. If I was going to be renting a truck and pulling it on a trailer, it definitely would have been more expensive than just shipping. Also if something goes wrong in transit, it's on the shipper not you, so I almost always end up shipping.
100%. I've paid to ship two vehicles... both were under $900
 

nakman

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this isn't another truck, but it's a RV camping trailer. Coming from Ohio... shipping was $2700 to my door... I might reach out to Aaron here.
 

DaveInDenver

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Grand Junction
Sounds like Tim is buying a trailer and needs a vehicle to tow it home. Shipping, not sure the economics but if not I've done Enterprise truck rentals a couple of times and can say it was relatively painless.
 

Woodsman

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Hey Tim, where in Ohio is it located, how large is it and how soon do you need it back ? While I usually have my cargo trailer behind my F350 when I come out to Denver, I sometimes make trips out without my big trailer.
 

mcgaskins

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this isn't another truck, but it's a RV camping trailer. Coming from Ohio... shipping was $2700 to my door... I might reach out to Aaron here.

That makes sense! I haven't used it personally, but maybe post up in Mudship which sounds like it could be useful here:

 

Jenny Cruiser

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X2 on how big is it? It's likely no help since you'll probably be taking I70, but I'm four hours SW of Cincinnati.
 

gr8fulabe

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I buy a lot of cars out of state, and through all the mental gymnastics I typically find shipping it is the safest and sometimes even the cheapest option. I recently shipped a Cruiser from Austin to Denver for $800, and when you add the cost of the flight, a hotel, gas, and meals it only saved about $200 - not counting the time or wear and tear. If I was going to be renting a truck and pulling it on a trailer, it definitely would have been more expensive than just shipping. Also if something goes wrong in transit, it's on the shipper not you, so I almost always end up shipping.

Curious why you think something going wrong would be on the shipper?
 

mcgaskins

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Curious why you think something going wrong would be on the shipper?

If a vehicle is damaged in transit, the damage is usually covered by the shipper with a cargo insurance policy. If you fly and drive it home and something bad happens, that's on you or your personal insurance.
 

gr8fulabe

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If a vehicle is damaged in transit, the damage is usually covered by the shipper with a cargo insurance policy. If you fly and drive it home and something bad happens, that's on you or your personal insurance.
Cargo insurance only happens if someone (you) pays for it. Otherwise you get pennies per pound at the most, for regular shipping. You have to request, and pay for, insurance separately if you want it. You would need to read the back of a truck bill of lading to know exactly what a company offers without paying for a better policy.
 

Stuckinthe80s

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About 5 years ago me and a couple of buddies rented an F-150 to pull a 16' enclosed trailer with our motorcycles in it on a road trip. I don't think we even discussed or even thought to discuss the towing with the insurance company. Things may have changed since then but maybe not.
 

maxpowerzz

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I bought a camper out of state and used Uship. I was able to get it delivered from Oklahoma to Denver for around $800 and also fully insured through the shipper. You put out your job and different drivers bid, I got a semi-retired cop who towed on the side for extra $. It helped him pay for his big f350.
 

nakman

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Can't believe no one has said it. Uhaul, they're also some of the cheapest rentals right now.
I've looked on line at their quotes, and they start at $1500 right now... maybe I'm doing it wrong? Need to go from Columbus, OH to Denver, sometime around October 22nd.
 
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