Originally Posted by
exerda
We went with AurigaCrown for a recent trip to Spain. Automatics were about 1/3 what Hertz and Avis wanted for them. Very reasonable rates IMHO; we paid something like €130 for 3 days' for a mid-sized automatic--and that included the full damage waiver (paint + glass + tires was €20 on top of the rental rate) + collision insurance. They did charge up-front for a full tank of diesel--at basically the pump price, too, around €70--but refunded that when returned full.
They happened to be the first place I found which had automatics (no, my stick-shift skills are too rusty for refreshing abroad) and weren't €300+, but I can't say anything bad about the experience with them and would rent from them again.
Thanks. No AurigaCrown in BCN for me, though.
I decided to go with National (Atesa) after leveraging the low rates I found with Goldcar into a "beat rate" through AutoEurope (if you find a lower rate and call AutoEurope, they often will beat it). Once I had to pay Goldcar's daily surcharge to drive into France, they weren't going to be any cheaper than National.
I've certainly learned a lot about finding cheap automatics in Spain from this experience. With Spain often offering the cheapest airfares to Europe these days, I suspect others will benefit from the info.