SUnpass-Thrifty Car Rental

[lsmommy]

Renting a car through Thrifty. I gather their weekly Sunpass fee is 52.95 max. We are going from Fort Lauderdale to Marathon, and then Key Biscayne so will need the SUnpass but don't think it will be near $50 in tolls.

 

How does it work if I opt out of the Thrifty Sunpass option and buy my own transponder. Is there a way to turn off the Transponder in the car and make sure my transponder is used?

[HUNKY]

You can disable the Thrifty transponder and use your own. You can also not use the toll roads! There are multiple roads without tolls. I suggest using the Waze app and set it to avoid toll roads.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[jeffbrig]

Renting a car through Thrifty. I gather their weekly Sunpass fee is 52.95 max. We are going from Fort Lauderdale to Marathon, and then Key Biscayne so will need the SUnpass but don't think it will be near $50 in tolls.

 

How does it work if I opt out of the Thrifty Sunpass option and buy my own transponder. Is there a way to turn off the Transponder in the car and make sure my transponder is used?

 

I can't believe rental car companies are still pushing this racket. $53 just to have a transponder, plus any tolls, is simply ridiculous.

 

A sunpass mini transponder is a whopping $5. To activate it, you have to pre-pay a minimum of $10. You set up an account and be sure to enter the license plate of the car you're using (this is just in case your transponder doesn't read correctly, so the charges will find YOUR account and not the rental agency's). After your trip, you can request a refund for any unused balance.

 

Read more here:

https://www.sunpass.com/rentalcar

 

Interestingly, daily charges vary WIDELY between rental agencies. Thrifty (which you mention) and Dollar are probably the worst. If you opt-in to a transponder, they charge $10.50 daily for the duration of your rental, capped at $53. If you don't opt in, but go through a toll, they hit you for $15 per instance, up to 7 times. Plus tolls, in all cases.

 

On the other hand, Avis/Budget/National/Alamo/Enterprise charge a $3.95 daily fee, which is MUCH more reasonable. Avis and Budget charge it for each day of your rental, automatically. National/Alamo/Enterprise only charge it for 24-hr periods in which you actually incur a toll. By far, this is the most reasonable approach.

 

Up to you to decide if it's worth spending vacation time getting and setting up a transponder. When comparing car rental companies, consider the fees above, as well as the option of getting a transponder. As I mentioned, the mini transponder is $5, but is single use - you can't move it between cars. If you travel to FL frequently, and want to keep a transponder for future use, the portable transponder costs $20.

[Capt_BJ]

all your questions can be answered here: https://www.sunpass.com/rentalcar

 

short answer, yes if you buy your own transponder (I recommend the $20 version as it will be reusable) this will 'override' the one in the rental (which actually does not have a transponder anyway) .. you can order a transponder on line and have it in your hands b4 you get here. There is a very nice APP for registering the rental's tag and you can monitor your account usage. (it is recommended you not wait to buy a transponder until you get here as activation CAN take 24 hours .....)

 

are you locked into thet Thrifty car? Cuz if you read everything on the page I linked you'll see that Thrifty is at the top of the list for most expensive program for handling electronic tolls at $10.49 a day every day of the rental, up to $52.49 a week ..... UGH

 

compare National for example: $3.95 a day, charged ONLY on days you actually encounter a toll ..... hit a toll you are charge $3.95 and this covers you for the next 24 hours (plus the toll amounts) ... up to a maximum of $19.75 per rental period ..... much better deal IMO

 

I always encourage renters to look at this page b4 choosing a rental if spending time in the greater Miami area or if driving thru Miami/Dade County to the Keys ....

 

**********

Jeff and I were typing the same reply at the same time .....

 

*********

 

So far as just avoiding the toll roads .... to get from Lauderdale to Marathon without using the 'turnpike extension' you would take 95 to it's end just south of downtown Miami then take US 1 to Homestead .... stop lights and heavy traffic most of the way. Expect this to add an hour or more to your drive. You'll see south Miami tho!

Edited January 19, 2017 by Capt_BJ

[jeffbrig]

You can disable the Thrifty transponder and use your own. You can also not use the toll roads! There are multiple roads without tolls. I suggest using the Waze app and set it to avoid toll roads.

 

If someone is driving to the keys and wants to avoid tolls roads (FL turnpike), they're going to spend a lot more time in traffic. You either have to ride the western edge the long way around Miami (add a half hour), or take I-95/826 to then surface roads (extra hour, minimum).

 

The turnpike extension to Homestead / Florida City is by far the fastest and easiest way to get to the keys.

[jeffbrig]

Jeff and I were typing the same reply at the same time .....

 

Great minds think alike! :D

[HUNKY]

Difference between FLL and Marathon at rush hour 15 minutes. Cheapest always wins!

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[Capt_BJ]

Difference between FLL and Marathon at rush hour 15 minutes. Cheapest always wins!

 

huh?

[lsmommy]

Thanks for the replies, good to know that the transponder will over ride the rental car, option. Also good to know to register the rental car plate#.

 

 

I will be in Florida next week, so I will pick up a transponder then and have an account set up for when I am back in March and renting a car.

 

 

The rate I got with Thrifty's is almost $200 less than any other rental I have found, so I am ahead even if I pay the $53. We are in Florida once a year so it will be useful.

[oakrad]

how do u disable the Thrifty transponder ? i read where people have bought the sun pass and still got charged by thrifty , im renting from thrifty and would to buy sun pass if its going to work and not get charged by thrifty.

[loanshark]

If you purchase a Sunpass, it will not override the car company's transponder unless you keep their transponder "shielded"....

 

Please make sure you know how to do this before you assume that your transponder will override theirs.

 

For what it's worth, I have an upcoming reservation with Alamo, and read that they use "Toll by Plate" instead of transponders, meaning the toll gantry takes a picture of the license tag as opposed to reading a signal from a transponder. If you have your own transponder in this situation, your transponder overrides the toll by plate.

[oakrad]

well i still like to know how to block this transponder , have yet to find out how to disable or block it, read a lot of info about toll costs and how to get around them but still have not seen any post on how to do it with thrifty rent a car besides getting a sun pass

[jeffbrig]

The rate I got with Thrifty's is almost $200 less than any other rental I have found, so I am ahead even if I pay the $53. We are in Florida once a year so it will be useful.

 

$200 less? Wow, how long do you have the car? Rental cars are usually quite reasonable here. I just plugged a 1 week rental mid-March (3/15 to 3/22) into Costco Travel, and found Alamo for just $275 (tax incl) for a fullsize.

 

Not trying to pry, just making sure you found a fair rate...

[jeffbrig]

well i still like to know how to block this transponder , have yet to find out how to disable or block it, read a lot of info about toll costs and how to get around them but still have not seen any post on how to do it with thrifty rent a car besides getting a sun pass

 

A portable transponder is disabled by placing it in an RF shielded bag. You recieve one when you purchase a portable transponder. The other format is a think plastic piece stuck to the windshield - not removeable (without destroying it). Fortunately, most (all?) of the rental cars use the "toll by plate" feature of SunPass. In that case, your transponder reading, or having the plate # registered to your SunPass account, is what overrides the rental company from getting the bill.

[lsmommy]

$200 less? Wow, how long do you have the car? Rental cars are usually quite reasonable here. I just plugged a 1 week rental mid-March (3/15 to 3/22) into Costco Travel, and found Alamo for just $275 (tax incl) for a fullsize.

 

Not trying to pry, just making sure you found a fair rate...

 

Just a week, but I got a great rate through Travelocity for $150 Canadian. Costco is $257 US which comes to about $350 Canadian.

 

I will call Thrifty and try and find out if they use the plate method of if the cars have a transponder. Sounds like over riding a transponder is not a guarantee so might not be worth getting buying one.

[Kristi1357]

We purchased the portable Sunpass transponder a few years back. Great purchase! We travel to Disney alot, as well as cruise. It's very easy to log in and put the rental vehicle information in online. Highly recommend this if you travel to Florida fairly often.

[Capt_BJ]

if you read the sunpass/rentalcar link I provided it talks about how fleet toll works and even identifies the company Thrifty uses ....

 

American Traffic Solutions (PlatePass All-Inclusive Tolling):

[lsmommy]

if you read the sunpass/rentalcar link I provided it talks about how fleet toll works and even identifies the company Thrifty uses ....

 

American Traffic Solutions (PlatePass All-Inclusive Tolling):

 

Does this mean Thrifty does not have a transponder in the car, and in theory getting your own transponder should work?

[HUNKY]

Capt BJ - I was saying that the difference at rush-hour using a toll road and the non-toll roads was only 15 minutes. To me it does not seem worth the hassle of the transponder and the tollroads.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[oakrad]

i did read about the pass and what thrifty uses ,seems to good to be true thats it that easy to give the rental car plate number that i would think that thrifty already has registered with sun pass and u can put it over in ur name for a day , week or how long u rent car, would think it be blocked by sun pass or thrifty , but i will give it try.like i said read before how someone get charged by thrifty when they had they own pass.

[Capt_BJ]

there's also a new thing

 

http://www.paytollo.com/pt_home

 

***************

 

like i said read before how someone get charged by thrifty when they had they own pass.

 

a couple of points to ponder

 

- how sunpass worked a few years ago and how it works today are different

 

- without getting too technical: sunpass goes thru a series of steps to 'assign' the toll

1. Did I see a transponder? Yes - done assign the toll to the transponder account No - electronically read the tag

2. Is the tag registered to a transponder? Yes - assign the toll (this is why it is IMPORTANT to buy the $20 version and use the APP to register the tag of the rental. I ROUTINELY go thru tolls without my transponder in the car, but because the tag is registered in my account the system knows where to assign the toll. I have 5 cars on my transponder: my 3 and both kids. The transponder is usually in the kitchen!) N0 - is the tag 'fleet registered'? For a rental this is always YES (major companies anyway) and the toll is passed to the fleet manager system who deals with it.

 

3. if the tag was not registered then what happens depends on where in the state you are. In an electronic only area (like greater Dade County) the state sends a once a month bill with a SMALL service charge; ignoring these bills results in a ticket. In an area like Orlando, which is NOT all electronic tolls, you get a ticket for a toll violation. Note the rental company NEVER gets a ticket as they have all their cars fleet registered.

 

 

 

the toll by tag (picture) is a backup for the transponder in case it 'burps' and as I mentioned, it works. HOWEVER if you have a personal but non functioning transponder in a rental AND failed to use the app to register the rental's tag to your account .... BOOM you get zapped. Also note that I see a bunch of cars around with the old style transponder (about the size of a pack of cig's) that used a battery and beeps and flashes lights. This transponder was discontinued and is no longer read by the Florida system for more than a year now. There was a free replacement program now long over.

Edited January 21, 2017 by Capt_BJ