Car rentals

[tupper10]

We'd like someone to recommend a reputable car rental company with decent cars, no bald tires etc. which we could get for Christchurch and Tauranga, New Zealand. Thanks for your help.

[Globaliser]

Don't specifically know if they're in Tauranga, but in Christchurch you could certainly try a couple of dodgy companies called "Hertz" and "Avis" as a starting point. ;)

[Flipper133]

There are actually quite a number of Car Rental coys in New Zealand that have very good rates. As I understand it, because there is no MV industry in NZ, there is little or no tariff on imported vehicles. Thus there is a huge variety of vehicles on the streets (mainlyJapanese) and these second tier car rental companies can obtain their stock very reasonably. I and some of my colleagues have used them a number of times and from my experience their cars are all roadworthy, comfortable and reliable.

 

Downside is that not very many service Tauranga.

Try a Google search

cheers

[aussiedisneyfan]

We rented our car in Taurange through http://www.rentalcars.co.nz/. They were great, waiting at the pier for us and we just left the car at the pier when finished. Good prices too.

 

Another CCer recommended them to me.

[mochuck]

Hertz, Budget, Thrifty, Avis, Europcar. Just google the company and NZ. Alternatively google rental cars in NZ

[tupper10]

We know about larger car companies but they won't meet you at the dock which is a problem. We heard some people had problems with Pegasus cars but I guess you didn't - so we will try them. Thank you.

[infohound]

We know about larger car companies but they won't meet you at the dock which is a problem. We heard some people had problems with Pegasus cars but I guess you didn't - so we will try them. Thank you.

Thrifty cars in tauranag will i think meet you at the dock, give them a try.

[tupper10]

With everyone's suggestions we booked two rental cars to meet us at the dock. One in Christchurch and the other in Tauranga. We used two different car companies since only one company would meet us at dock at Christchurch - that was New Zealand rental car company. They had very good rates as well - their web site is http://www.rentalcar.co.nz. We used Pegasus in Christchurch which is the same web site but not the same company for some reason. I don't know why. Pegasus does not meet you at the pier in Christchurch you have to take a bus to pick up your car. Avis, Hertz etc. also won't meet you at the pier. They were also much more expensive. Now all we need is good map! ;)

[Kiwi Kruzer]

Pegasus does not meet you at the pier in Christchurch

 

In Christchurch you dock at a container wharf and no one is allowed through to meet you.The port uses a shuttle to take you through the gates and into the village of Lyttleton.

 

No problem in Tauranga as they are almost at the gangway.We have been there a couple of times and on each occassion they had rental cars lined up and waiting to rent on the spot,but they can all be taken up quickly, so best to have one reserved.

[infohound]

In Christchurch you dock at a container wharf and no one is allowed through to meet you.The port uses a shuttle to take you through the gates and into the village of Lyttleton.

 

No problem in Tauranga as they are almost at the gangway.We have been there a couple of times and on each occassion they had rental cars lined up and waiting to rent on the spot,but they can all be taken up quickly, so best to have one reserved.

Watch out for some of the unusual NZ road rules, we have a few unique to NZ that often catch out visitors, especially the give way to traffic turning right in fron to you. I will explain:

 

If you are going down a main road and want to turn left into a side road, but ahead of you is a car coming from the opposite direction who wants to turn into the same side road as you [he will be turning across your path] then you must give way to him. UNLESS THERE IS A CAR COMING ALONG BEHIND YOU WHO IS GOING STRAIGHT AHEAD ON THE MAIN ROAD. Got the idea.

 

So you need to be able to watch where you are going, check if the car in front is going to go left or wait for you to turn first [this will depend on him being able to see [guess] what the car behind you is going to do, you need to know what the car behind you is doing cos this will have an impact on whether you can turn into the side road first, or after the car who is in front of you turns. Of course a lot of drivers dont indicate when turning so this really helps, the car behind you decides to turn left as well [after you had looked in the mirror and thought he was going straight ahead] so now the guy in front of you who is wanting to turn down the same side road as you has seen the car behind you intending to also turn so he now thinks HE has the right of way and hey presto, CRUNCH. This happens a lot to KIWIS so visitors beware.

 

Another rule we have here is that you must park only on your side of the road, this means you are facing the direction of travel. In the UK you can park facing any direction as long as other road rules are met [yellow lines].

 

Also dont be surprised if when entering a roundabout, you see a car to your right also entering the roundabout signalling a left turn, this may not mean he is going to turn down your road but most likely this means he is going straight ahaead [so dont pull out in front of him or else, yes you guessed CRUNCH.

 

Cars are often also in the left lane of two lane round abouts and are taking the RIGHT turn, so dont be in the right lane on the round about [we have quite a few 2 lane round abouts] and try and take the straight ahead exit, or else, yep, youve guessed it, CRUNCH.

 

Aparaently one third of all camper vans hired by one of the big companies [MAUI] come back with damage, so it might pay to take that extra cost damage excess policy on the car.

 

Its still a great country but just be careful on the roads.

[Kiwi Kruzer]

....and of course our traffic lights.

Beware of people trying to run the red light:mad:

[tupper10]

I am going to print out your replies so I can remember all of this. I wasn't planning on driving but having our sons drive us around (they are in their mid 20's). I guess I will just be white knuckling our trips.:o

[cluso]

Hi,

Make sure you know what you are covered for before you go. Most US insurance companies and credit card companies (like AMEX) will not provide any coverage in NZ and Aus. You have to buy the local insurance. Also, the driving age is a big factor--under 25 and over 70 sometimes are no-nos. Have fun. :p We will be there in Feb 09!

[Globaliser]

You have to buy the local insurance.

IME, liability insurance will normally be included in the rental, so that's the big issue out of the way. You only have to think about things like CDW/LDW/TP.

[JAKE3337]

We are looking at renting a car in Tauranga and it is on a Saturday. The only company that I can find is Pegasus. I am concerned about the insurance. You can't purchase any additional coverage if you are in an accident unless you rent for 4 days which means you are responsible for up to $2812 in damage. Has anyone rented from Pegasus and did you experience any problems? It could really put a damper on your vacation if someone hits you or something hits your windshield and you have to pay $2800. Any suggestions would be appreciated. We are a group of 6 travelling and want to go to Waiotapu Thermo Wonderland.

 

Thanks

:)

[MMDown Under]

I wouldn't hire a car with such a large excess.

 

The only time our daughters didn't pay extra to reduce the excess (too much of a hurry), they rolled the car.

 

I'm sure Kiwis will know of other car rental companies, where you can pay to reduce the excess.

[Aussieflyer]

A quick look shows that Hertz is available in Tauranga - you can purchase excess reduction through them.

[Aussieflyer]

Sorry - there is a post above about the major companies (Didn't read that far up - oops).

[JAKE3337]

Thank you. I have contacted Hertz and just waiting for confirmation if they have a 8 seater van available on the Saturday. Although they don't offer dock pickup and are 6km away, I feel better that they offer $0.00 deductible insurance for $30. I will just have to take a taxi there and they have after hours drop offs. Hopefully it works out as Thrifty is not open on Saturdays so I won't have any other options.

 

:)

[DavidandPaula]

No one has mentioned the joys of narrow bridges that abound in NZ.

 

Basically first come has right of way but do not assume that the approaching car is a local driver who has manners. You might just meet up with a tourist (probably an Aussie) who is in a bit of a rush. You could finish up sitting in the middle of the bridge waiting for someone to give in and reverse of the bridge.

 

David

[Aussieflyer]

Was that an aspersion on Aussie drivers and/or tourists??? We found the worst roads were the supposed main highways which carried lots of traffic (and trucks) driving very fast but which were narrow, winding and had their fair share of pot holes/ broken edging.

[Aquarians]

No one has mentioned the joys of narrow bridges that abound in NZ.

 

Basically first come has right of way but do not assume that the approaching car is a local driver who has manners. You might just meet up with a tourist (probably an Aussie) who is in a bit of a rush. You could finish up sitting in the middle of the bridge waiting for someone to give in and reverse of the bridge.

 

David

Kia ora i Rotorua,

I think you may have been misinformed. There are few one way bridges on tourist routes, and where there are they are clearly marked to show who has right of way. Incidently, the drive from Mt Maunganui (Port of Tauranga) to Rotorua is under an hour and there are no one way bridges on the main route.

Aquarians

[Aussieflyer]

Aquarians

Don't get me wrong - I was sticking up for Australians - Rotorua and the area around is a magical place - I have only been there once but have plans to return soon. The road we found a bit stressful was the main road to Auckland, though it may have been improved by now - the trucks were a bit scarey!

[JAKE3337]

Kia ora i Rotorua,

I think you may have been misinformed. There are few one way bridges on tourist routes, and where there are they are clearly marked to show who has right of way. Incidently, the drive from Mt Maunganui (Port of Tauranga) to Rotorua is under an hour and there are no one way bridges on the main route.

Aquarians

 

 

I am glad to hear this as I was starting to get a little worried about the drive. Thanks, this makes me feel better.

 

Angela :)

[tupper10]

I was quite concerned reading one of the posts since we are using Pegasus to rent our car In Tauranga. I contacted them and we do have the collision insurance for the day and full insurance which is confirmed. We are also renting the car for only one day which is a Saturday. As I recall new people took over this franchise which are all individually owned since people on these posts had problems with the cars and I was also going to go with Hertz/Avis and do the taxi thing. I would check them out again. They are very responsive to emails.