Where can I rent a BMW?
 

Do any of the car rental companies rent BMWs?
I'd like to try one out. I am thinking of buying one, and taking European delivery to try it out on the Autobahn.

U can rent cars like that in Beverly Hills At Budget. A few other places in the area do so.

Of the national rental car companies, I think Budget has the most "prestige" cars, but I believe the selection varies by station (e.g., very strong in LA).

[Dagnabbbit - I hate it when that happens - NWCOTW slipped his post in while I was writing http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/redface.gif]

The BMW dealers themselves in the area might know where to rent one, or they may be able to handle it internally themselves.

Good luck!
Greg

[This message has been edited by greg99 (edited 06-24-2000).]

One nice bit of caution should be mentioned here. Many insurance companies do not cover "exotic, prestige, off-road etc) in case of an unfortunate circumstance. It is strongly suggested you check with your insurance carrier, credit card company or purchase the unbelievably expensive add-on insurance.

Exotic cars and motorcycles etc are easy to rent in Hawaii for mega-$$$$. They also were in many LAX car rental stables a few years ago.

I would go to your local BMW dealer - they will 'rent' you a BMW for a Saturday or so.

Or even better go to a BMW drivertraining in the motordrome in Imola, Italy:
http://www.bmw.com/bmwe/services/drivertraining/

Regarding BMW on the Autobahn: Every BMW goes max. 250 Km/hour (155 miles/hour)! However, any good technician can release this 'stop' (at the Zuendverteiler) in a matter of seconds or minutes.

I noticed from your post that you're from S.F. There is a newer National Car Rental office on the corner of Mission and Van Ness in the city.

It appears that they rent BMW's, as they lot full of more unusual rentals - Cariolets, new VW Bugs etc. Just read in USA Today (Friday) that the new 3 series convertible is the best of all time, however, the 2001 is suppose to surpass even the 2000.

Enterprise Rent a Car used to carry a lot of prestige cars (Mercedes E-Class, BMW 3 and 5 series, Land Rovers, Lexus, Infiniti), but they seem to have moved away from this a bit, but you might want to check with them.

In Europe Hertz offers a variety of models at numerous locations, not just in Germany. I've rented different models; from the 320td in NCE to the 728i in BCN, and the prices for an oblong weekend weren't too bad neither!
PS! For the more prestigious models you have to book direct as they'yre not listed online.

Thanks! Lots of good info - I found the Beverley Hills one, and the San Francisco one. I will probably rent in the San Francisco area. And I had not even thought of Budget - but now I know.

I have res with Avis for a 5 series in Rome this August about $455 for 5 days inclusive tax and insurance.

alka12: I am not really sure what you mean by 'taking European delivery', but be aware that there are significant differences between the specification of BMW's & Mercedes for the German domestic market, the European market and the US market.

Nick

In Miami, Exotic Car Rentals will rent you anything from a BMW Z3 to a Porsche 911. They are just a few minutes from the airport, near all the other car rental companies.

BMW (and so do Porsche, Mercedes, VW: in Scandinavia also VOLVO, in France I know Peugeot has, Renault probably too) have a special export divisons for European pick-ups of car going 'overseas'.

They will guarantee you that the technical specifications meet the standards of your country - they too can/will arrange proper car-papers, the (european) duty-free-allowance, insurance and plate (#) and shipping (they offer also a tour of the manufacturing facilities).

Yes, the factory tour is an attraction. We would get a 7% discount on the price - and hopefully the Latinpass bonus will come through for our tickets to Germany by October. Apparently if we order now, the car would be part of the September production.
They have confirmed that they will arrange the shipping etc, so we just have to drop the car off at one of the ports.

rudi - VW stopped euorpean deliveries for US custoemrs a couple years back as at the time most of the US models were made in Mexico. Now the Golf and Passat come from Germany but the program has not restarted.

Mercedes no longer gives a discount on their european delivery program. still get a nice tour and hotel package though.

this is the case for US spec cars so for other it may be different still.