Camaro Rentals and Other Performance Rides You Want to Rent

After renting cars for over a dozen years I’ve come to have very specific expectations about the whole rental car experience. I expect the car to be clean and get me to my destination in relative comfort. What I don’t expect is an exciting driving experience that I would want to share with everyone. Please understand I’m not unhappy I just don’t normally equate fun-to-drive with your average rental.

Rental car companies have real performance cars

I understand that car rental companies such as Avis, Budget and Hertz also include in their fleets rental cars that you do want to drive. These cars include models such as the Nissan 350Z, Ford Mustang and Chevy Camaro. Avis calls their special car class Cool Cars while Budget has the Budget Street Fleet and Hertz has its Fun Collection.

The challenge to renting one of these special cars will be finding an available car for your destination. Rental cars companies typically have limited numbers of these cars in their fleet. Which means don’t expect to be able to rent a Camaro right at the rental car counter. Chances are one won’t be available when you want it. But don’t worry renting a performance car isn’t that hard but it will take a little planning because rental car companies usually make these types of cars available in areas where they are most popular.

Finding the rental you want

What worked well for me was to start with the rental car company sites and their car guide section. I’ve been interested in trying out the new 2010 Camaro. I narrowed my choice to Avis Cool Cars and Budget Street Fleet since they carried both the Camaro LT and Camaro SS (the V8 version). Avis offers the Camaro in over sixty cities throughout the U.S. including Atlanta, Miami and Los Angeles. My travel plans for the next month included a trip to Los Angeles so I booked the Camaro SS.

When I finally got behind the wheel of the Camaro rental I was pleasantly surprised to find this was no stripped down car. The Camaro completely lived up to the buzz. Renting a higher-end car does come with a premium rate. But I think the higher rate was more than offset by the drivability of the car. If renting a Camaro or other performance car sounds like an option then remember to book early because these cars are definitely in demand.