tm978275

Hi all, I've browsed through this forum whenever I had a travel related question for years now, and it's never disappointed.

So I'm getting married in July and we're going on a 2+ week honeymoon to Europe. We're flying into Munich, renting a car and basically visiting a few friends/family in between the actual honeymoon. Long story short, I currently have a reservation for a BMW M440 convertible, but I'm trying to figure out what they have in their fleet. Cost isn't that major of a concern, within reason. The current reservation I have is a bit over $2k.
I was looking at the Porsche 911, but not only is that around $5k, but the mileage restriction would likely screw me. Does anyone know if they have any Porsche Caymans in their fleet? S4 convertibles? Any thoughts would be appreciated.
BMW is a nice car and all, but we have a 5 series at home, so I'd rather try out something different.

offerendum

Everything connected with Porsche is incredible expensive. I wouldn't pay for it as I'm not s big Porsche-fan and think BMW is with comparable engine the better car.
Apart from that, there are 2 different booking types at Sixt. If you book the exact model, you get exactly what you booked. There is for example the M5, 911 GTS (there is a big difference between a small 911 and a Turbo), M8 and G-Class (worst car - highest price)). Then there is also: or similar. To my astonishment, they also offer this for a 911 convertible. So it may be that you get a BMW or Mercedes instead of a 911. You have to be careful. In the range up to €2000, everything seems to me to be "or similar", so you can often choose what you want on the spot.
Do you have luggage? Then a 911 would indeed be "sporty".

tom tulpe

Taycan and Panamera. Everything else (e.g. BMW M850, BMW M8, Audi S7) is not guaranteed ("or similar").

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tm978275

Thanks for the info. So my current reservation is a guaranteed M440. They also have the 4-series convertible or similar option, which is like $600 cheaper. Does anyone have any experience with what they have that is similar? I just don't want to find myself with a 420, that engine leaves a lot to be desired.
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tm978275

Okay, thank you. My reservation right now is actually a M440 convertible guaranteed; the other option is a 4 series convertible or similar. What are the likely similar models in that class? It's tempting because it's $600 cheaper for the rental, but at the same time, I'd rather not end up with a underpowered 420 or something.

RetiredATLATC

We picked up a BMW M850 Convertible from MUC for our trip to Berchtesgaden and were extremely pleased with it. I believe it came with 2100km for our 7 day rental.

tm978275

That sounds like an excellent trip!

That's the thing that baffles me; a 1 week rental comes with 2100km, yet a 16 day rental gets 2960km. We're going to Vienna, then down to Marseille, then back to Munich...that'd be cutting it close for us.

RetiredATLATC

Don't forget to get your vignette (not sure if it was just before or just after entering Austria). Weirdly Google Maps tried sending us into Austria, to then almost immediately leave again, when going to Berchtesgaden.

We've been 4 or 5 times to that area now and are pretty familiar with the back roads off of the A8

tom tulpe

You need to check whether South of France is allowed for that kind of car. Italy certainly requires specific authorisation.
And you'll need to find a good place to park in Marseille.

FLYGVA

I am moving this thread to the Sixt forum, where I get more attention and additional information.

FLYGVA
co-moderator Germany Forum

offerendum

That's the usual way in my eyes, especially if you stay at the Kempinski.

Leyland1989

If you want to drive a Porsche 911 or Cayman, I would recommend the factory backed (run by Porsche finance) Porsche Drive Rental Programme.
It's actually cheaper than Sixt's Porsche fleet if you include the basic insurance.

https://customer.drive.porsche.com/de/en-GB

demue

I was there at MUC just a few weeks ago and car wise, most are BMWs or Audi's in the above mid-size range and ignoring the mix of electric cars.

Porsche wise I saw some Taycan, some Macan (SUV), but no 911s. One Maserati Levante (SUV) IIRC. At the top end there were a few BMW 850, though couldn't tell if coupe or convertible. Tons of X-something BMW SUVs. I didn't see a single true S/RS type Audi though except for some cars having S-line trim package (but not the ompf under the hood).

Not too many coupe/ convertible on the lot on a Fri afternoon (4pmish) though many cars may have been rented out already for the weekend. They definitely had BMW M440i convertible as I was offered one for an extra 70€ per day over my 3-series reservation, I passed though.

I think at the moment you are booked into the best possible car category for what you seem to desire (spunkier engine) vs. price and a guaranteed model. If the included kilometers are not enough or tight, I'd rather pay extra 6-7€ a day for unlimited mileage than 0.61 cent per extra km later on.

As someone mentioned already, make sure you can take the car to the South of France as not all higher value cars are permitted everywhere. Book the cross-border driving add on, ~30€ one time charge for the full rental period, it's a must.

offerendum

That would be a good deal. I have now booked an M5 (wanted to try out the “old” one they still have) and each additional kilometer costs €1.19 and unlimited kilometers something around €50 per day. Still better than the single kilometers, but not as good as 6 - 7 €, you pay a few more kilometers.

demue

The more specific and "exotic" the car that you book, the more expensive all the add-ons get as well. Plus, you won't be able to get full coverage with 0€ deductible from Sixt either and will be stuck with a few thousand Euro risk insurance wise though you may have some extra personal insurance that covers excess (though usually limited amount). Also, make sure that if you use your own insurance that they cover a car of such value as many credit card car rental insurance supplements have limits on that. Max I have seen is 75k Euro and that won't cut it by a fair margin for an M5 that is loaded.

Personally, I would not take an M5 to the south of France and a place like Marseille, only if Sixt permits it, but your call. Make sure you park in a secured garage as this car is a prime target for theft even in Germany.

Speed wise, in France and Austria, you can't do much with all that power and a BMW M440i will be plenty fast to get into serious trouble. I understand the excitement, but if it really tickles your fancy, assuming you can make it work timing wise, I'd do something like BMW M440i for the trips from MUC via France / Austria and then when back in MUC return the car and get the M5 for a weekend or 2 days or so and drive in Germany on the Autobahn. Saves a lot of money and still you'll be able to enjoy the car(s). YMMV.