And if anything at all happens -- a minor (or major) accident, a car breaking down and blocking a line for even a few escalating minutes, etc., etc. -- you are toast.

Heartily agree.

I know a lot of people on here are beating the "stay at LAX" drum. If it were me, and the choice were between a hotel in Anaheim and a hotel near LAX, I'd do the latter. However, if it were me, and the choice were between a free place to stay with a family member or friend and a hotel at LAX, I'd choose the former, and I'd plan to leave at about 6:30am for a 7:45am arrival at the rental car office, an 8:00am arrival at my departure terminal, an 8:05am baggage drop, and through security by 8:15am for an 8:42am boarding call. Might even get a little lounge time in there.

HOWEVER--

I am:
a) a fast driver
b) outfitted with the best apps to judge traffic and find the best route (I highly suggest using Waze)
c) Usually these days renting from Hertz, who has frequent shuttles to the airport more often than the value outfits
d) 1K, so last-minute changes if things go south are easy (knock on wood, I've never missed a flight)
e) Have PreCheck via NEXUS and know how to check to make sure I will have PreCheck before I leave for the airport
f) Usually flying alone or with at most one other person who has similar qualifications
g) Pretty comfortable with this type of risk to save a few bucks and/or get an extra few minutes of sleep ;)

If you do not fit all of those criteria, then you will want to adjust your plan accordingly (either leaving earlier than I would or staying at the airport). Given that you don't have status anymore (according to your profile), you should at least allow good chunk of time longer for security than I would. If you're risk-averse, then perhaps allowing two hours for the drive is worthwhile, but I would personally rather get an extra hour of sleep (especially since I would probably not be falling asleep until midnight or 1am at the earliest).

And again, if the choice is between hotel in Anaheim and hotel at LAX, go for the latter. Have the stress of the time crunch and rental car return the night before, not the morning of.

Just my $0.02. :)

Any chance you could fly out of SNA?

SNA to LAX transportation options
 

We will be arriving at SNA on a Saturday morning at 10:05am and have a 2:55pm flight out of LAX. (Not my choice - using miles for this trip) We do not want to risk using a shared shuttle service and taxis are pretty pricey. There are 4 of us traveling together and basic options are narrowed down to these: PrimeTime Private Van service, ExecuCar Express (owned by SuperShuttle) or a rental car. Any opinions / experience on which service would be the most reliable?

Rental car is last resort as we don't want to eat up valuable time checking in and out at rental counters and are totally unfamiliar with either airport other than passing through - never as a destination.....

SNA to LAX options
 

We will be arriving at SNA on a Saturday morning at 10:05am and have a 2:55pm flight out of LAX. (Not my choice - using miles for this trip) We do not want to risk using a shared shuttle service and taxis are pretty pricey. There are 4 of us traveling together and basic options are narrowed down to these: PrimeTime Private Van service, ExecuCar Express (owned by SuperShuttle) or a rental car. Any opinions / experience on which service would be the most reliable?

Rental car is last resort as we don't want to eat up valuable time checking in and out at rental counters and are totally unfamiliar with either airport other than passing through - never as a destination.....

I've used Blackcarla.com for this. Last I knew they were also a division of one of the Los Angeles metro Supershuttle franchisees. Occasionally I've even found coupons for them on the web.

(800) 414 2144

Avoid anything related to PrimeTime.

Check www.shuttle2lax.com, it has always quoted me a lower price than the individual companies do. I believe I spent about $90 (inc. tip) last time on a car from Newport Beach to LAX. The car was operated by one of the major companies but I forget which one.

If you have almost 5 hours that is PLENTY of time to take a shared van from one location to the other. The drive would take about 40 minutes without stopping on a Saturday morning - any time I have shared a van it has been 2 other stops at most (usually one at one of the Disneyland hotels). As long as you don't check luggage you should be fine. I usually leave about 2 hours before my flight to get from Newport to LAX if I am being dropped off and have never missed a single flight.

Update: I just saw that this question was posted twice, here and under the LA subforum - should we merge?

Thanks for the quick reply. I meant to delete this post after I saw the LA subforum but got side tracked with a phone call after I posted in the LA forum.
Checked with shuttle2lax.com, and they only allow up to 3 passengers for car service; their express shuttle would be about the same price but it may have up to 1 additional stop. We will be checking bags as we are going to the South Pacific for extended vacation, and I am really concerned with the amount of time we will have, so I am looking for the quickest way to get from SNA to LAX. At this point I am leaning to a private shuttle such as the ones Supershuttle and PrimeTime provide and are all in the same price range.

On a side note, how does one merge threads? I think this topic would be better served in the LA subforum......

In that case see the previous comment about "PrimeTime" from Craig6z. That service is horrible and SuperShuttle is slightly better.

PrimeTime may or may not show up at the designated time and their dispatch will be unwilling and unable to help in the event they don't. They will refuse to refund your prepayment (with the tip you prepay up front) in the event they do not show up on time - meaning you will also have to dispute the charge with your cc company AND pay for a more expensive taxi ride.

Supershuttle may not show up at the designated time but at least their dispatch will be more forthcoming with information. This is more of a recent occurrence though (has happened twice actually before I gave up) and seems to have started when I moved from a city near Anaheim to NB. You might have better luck since they have a very heavy airport presence and you would basically be repositioning a ride from a smaller airport to a larger one.

If you have 4 people, you can take a taxi. It will be about $90~100 split 4 ways.

Shuttle is only marginally cheaper but it will take you on a tour of all the neighborhoods and waste your time.

Yeah, with 4 people I don't understand how shuttle enters the discussion being that cab fare is per cab not per person. Tip the driver.

Secondly, there's plenty of time for a rental car. Maybe even designate your driver, have him drop off the other three for airline check-in, drive in a circle to give them time to do that, then have one of them do the same while you check-in. Then return the car. Not necessary, though.

If you do use ExecuCar, I will add that I like their service. Because the van is dedicated to your party, there's no relentless circling, trolling for more fares.

They use Honda minivans that are clean and the drivers are usually very courteous.

Not saying this is the best option, but, I wouldn't provide any negatives for it as I would with PrimeTime Shuttle.

The cab fares I have managed to get online are showing anywhere from $120 - $135 (plus tip) SNA - LAX. And considering it is my wife and 2 of our "adult" kids, guess who gets to pay for the whole thing?

Yes, but when the 4 people are yourself, your wife, and 2 "adult" children, there is no splitting 4 ways - dad gets to pay it all. :D And the quotes I've been able to get online for a taxi are in the range of $125 for the trip plus tip.....

Wouldn't even consider a shared shuttle. I am torn between a private shuttle for $90 - $95 depending on the company and a straight shot to LAX from SNA or renting a car for 1/2 that cost and the hassle it would entail.... :confused:

This. It's not much hassle.

For whichever company you rent from, join their frequent renter program for free. If you use Hertz, National, Avis, Budget, or Thrifty in conjunction with their associated frequent renter programs, your total time from leaving baggage claim to driving off the lot in your car should be less than five minutes, including time to pack all of your stuff in the trunk and get situated (your rental contract should be taken care of ahead of time with them). If you use Alamo, it should be only another minute or two (if there's a line, use the kiosk instead of waiting in line), and if you use Enterprise, allow another few minutes as their salespeople are slow and treat you like you've never rented a car before (explaining everything in excruciating detail). I would skip Payless, Advantage, and Fox, as you could encounter long lines with those companies, and there really isn't a way to skip the line like with the majors.

For return, you can either drop your family off first and go back and return your car or just return with everyone and all ride the bus together. At LAX, each rental agency has its own offsite rental office, so just make sure to have the address of your particular company's office so you know what to plug in your GPS or phone. Plan on about a 10-minute bus ride from your return location to the LAX departure terminal; the buses will take you right to the departures curbside drop-off area for each terminal.

It really is quite painless and definitely worth saving $40-50 over a shuttle, and you have more than plenty of time.