Car Rental in Brazil
Aug 26, 2011, 3:37 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2011
Posts: 1
Car Rental in Brazil
Hi Folks,
First off, apologies if this is miscategorized. I am planning a honeymoon trip in late November to Rio and Buzios and am planning on renting a car. I have some experience driving in Brazil, so I am familiar with the drivers and the general dangers and road conditions. What I am trying to determine, however, is the type of car to rent.
I am very much intent on keeping my bride safe, and therefore am prioritizing renting a car with air bags. I have yet to find a website that explicitly tells me whether a car is equipped with airbags - not wikipedia (in English or Portuguese) not the car rental agencies, no general forum talk, nada. The closest I get is this page (in Portuguese) http://budget.com.br/ and even that doesn't specify if the models come equipped with this basic safety measure. It's pretty frustrating.
So, does anyone have experience on this front? Any pointers, suggestions, etc?
Thanks for the help.
-TJR
First off, apologies if this is miscategorized. I am planning a honeymoon trip in late November to Rio and Buzios and am planning on renting a car. I have some experience driving in Brazil, so I am familiar with the drivers and the general dangers and road conditions. What I am trying to determine, however, is the type of car to rent.
I am very much intent on keeping my bride safe, and therefore am prioritizing renting a car with air bags. I have yet to find a website that explicitly tells me whether a car is equipped with airbags - not wikipedia (in English or Portuguese) not the car rental agencies, no general forum talk, nada. The closest I get is this page (in Portuguese) http://budget.com.br/ and even that doesn't specify if the models come equipped with this basic safety measure. It's pretty frustrating.
So, does anyone have experience on this front? Any pointers, suggestions, etc?
Thanks for the help.
-TJR
Oct 24, 2011, 12:39 am
#2
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: The Castro, San Francisco, California
Programs: UA, DL, AA, Aegean Air, Cal Alumni (go Bears!)
Posts: 594
Most have airbags
Hi Folks,
First off, apologies if this is miscategorized. I am planning a honeymoon trip in late November to Rio and Buzios and am planning on renting a car. I have some experience driving in Brazil, so I am familiar with the drivers and the general dangers and road conditions. What I am trying to determine, however, is the type of car to rent.
I am very much intent on keeping my bride safe, and therefore am prioritizing renting a car with air bags. I have yet to find a website that explicitly tells me whether a car is equipped with airbags - not wikipedia (in English or Portuguese) not the car rental agencies, no general forum talk, nada. The closest I get is this page (in Portuguese) http://budget.com.br/ and even that doesn't specify if the models come equipped with this basic safety measure. It's pretty frustrating.
So, does anyone have experience on this front? Any pointers, suggestions, etc?
Thanks for the help.
-TJR
First off, apologies if this is miscategorized. I am planning a honeymoon trip in late November to Rio and Buzios and am planning on renting a car. I have some experience driving in Brazil, so I am familiar with the drivers and the general dangers and road conditions. What I am trying to determine, however, is the type of car to rent.
I am very much intent on keeping my bride safe, and therefore am prioritizing renting a car with air bags. I have yet to find a website that explicitly tells me whether a car is equipped with airbags - not wikipedia (in English or Portuguese) not the car rental agencies, no general forum talk, nada. The closest I get is this page (in Portuguese) http://budget.com.br/ and even that doesn't specify if the models come equipped with this basic safety measure. It's pretty frustrating.
So, does anyone have experience on this front? Any pointers, suggestions, etc?
Thanks for the help.
-TJR
Most legacy auto brands have airbags in Brazil now...i.e. Ford, Chevy, VW, Fiat. I am not sure about the Korean cars such as Kia or Hyundai.
One way to check is to go to the manufacturers websites to see. Airbags will be listed under interior "seguranca." They do not use a Portuguese word. They use the English term "Air bag." Try www.vw.com.br; www.ford.com.br, etc... You can probably get a list of 8-10 likely models that rental companies purchase for their fleets. For instance, the Ford Fiesta Hatch has "air bag duplo" listed on the site, which means one each for driver and front passenger.
The trip from Rio to Buzios is an easy one and should not be problematic for you unless you start out on a Friday afternoon.
Boa Viagem!
Nov 1, 2011, 9:55 am
#3
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: DCA
Programs: FB Gold Privilege
Posts: 413
I rented in Brazil and went to Buzios in May. Great destination.
I went with 5 people and reserved a full size with Avis. Received Chevy Vectra 2.0. I believe this is rebadged Opel Vectra. This car came with 80,000km+ and no air bags. It started falling apart towards the end of our trip. Also, make sure you have cash once you get out of the airport, when you go to Buzios you go over this super long bridge that requires a toll. Then there are a couple more tolls before you get to your destination. I found my Garmin GPS to be extremely helpful in Brazil.
I went with 5 people and reserved a full size with Avis. Received Chevy Vectra 2.0. I believe this is rebadged Opel Vectra. This car came with 80,000km+ and no air bags. It started falling apart towards the end of our trip. Also, make sure you have cash once you get out of the airport, when you go to Buzios you go over this super long bridge that requires a toll. Then there are a couple more tolls before you get to your destination. I found my Garmin GPS to be extremely helpful in Brazil.
Last edited by fjord; Nov 1, 2011 at 12:45 pm