Zipcar review...

Steph and I used Zipcar earlier today and, though perhaps because of expectations, I was extremely impressed.  If you don't know what Zipcar is, or how Zipcar works, here you go:

I picked up the Zipcar - named Sonia - around 11:30a from the corner of New York Ave. NW and 7th Ave. NW (we were already near the Convention Center, so this was planned).  The car was a Volvo S40 which, as Steph said, is a "car we like".  The car was clean, worked well and, aside from my inability to figure out the wipers, was perfect.

Zipcar works well for the city dweller because (a) you hate parking your car in the street (read: are petrified that you will never see your car again) and (b) you need your car so infrequently that it doesn't make economic sense to keep one, pay for a full tank of gas, take care of it and shell out for insurance.  Additionally, the only time I have ever wanted a car in DC was when I was running late or when I needed to get groceries.  

Speaking of economic sense, the Volvo cost me $11.25 an hour. I drove around 40 miles during the three hours I had it and it cost me a total $33.75.  That's all I had to pay. I think this is exceptionally reasonable given the risk of letting some stranger drive a car.  Especially when you consider the time savings over taking the Metro for just a bit more (the same trips would have cost Steph and I around $20 dollars using Metro and there is no way that we could have done anywhere near the number of things we did). I shudder to think what taking a taxi everywhere would have cost.

There is one downside that I wish would change.  The system works on reservations and, though flexible if you need more time, doesn't appear to be flexible if you use less time.  For instance, if I had been done with my errands today at 1:00 pm, I still would have been charged for all three hours.  Thus, planning and knowing exactly how long your errands will take seems to be an essential part of the service.  I lived in fear of returning the vehicle late as the fee for a late return is fairly steep ($50)!  Budgeting an extra half hour is advisable.

Zipcar certainly isn't for the daily commute - that would be cost prohibitive - and the one downside is that you need to be a planner.  For it to be economically viable, you need to save your errands for one occasion.  All things said, it is a well run, excellent service that I will be using for the foreseeable future.

If you live in New York, Philly, DC, Boston or Chicago, click the link below to get free driving credit with Zipcar: