Renting and Using a Car in America

We have rented a car many times in different parts of the world, from Mexico to Sri Lanka, from Morocco to Iceland. While planning our trip to Western America, we determined our route to include long vehicle trips. By American West I mean the western United States. Before you go Car rental in America We have done a lot of research on driving and driving in America, I have explained in detail what we have learned and experienced in this article, I think it will be useful for those who will travel to America. 

Requirements for Car Rental in America

What you need to rent a car in America: new chip driver's license and a credit card open to international purchases. If you have these two, you can easily rent a car in America, you don't need anything else.

Where Can You Rent a Car in America?

America is a car rental paradise! I'm not exaggerating, there are hundreds of companies, large and small, that provide car rental services. It is quite difficult to choose among these. For this reason, we use the vehicle we will use in America in 180 countries. Rent a car service provider Yolcu360 We rented through. 

We easily listed the companies that offer vehicles with the features we need on Yolcu360's Turkish website. We were able to see the cost of the vehicle we would rent in Turkish Lira and pay in Turkish Lira without getting confused with USD and EURO prices. Unfortunately, most travelers do not get wiser until something bad happens to them, but when we had a problem/trouble during the car rental process for which we paid a lot of money, one of our important selection criteria was to have a guest center where we could get Turkish service 7 hours a day, 24 days a week. Our last and most important selection criterion was that it was a reliable company and that we could find a contact person. We rented a 13-day car through Yolcu360 without experiencing the slightest problem, and we started our journey with peace of mind. 

How Are Car Rental Fees in America?

While researching how to rent a car in America, we came across dozens of vehicle options on the Yolcu360 website. Since the number of vehicles in America is high and gasoline is affordable, the vehicles usually rented are vehicles that we do not normally have the chance to use in our country. For example, Ford Mustang is one of the most preferred vehicles for car rental in America. 

The situation was a little different for us, we chose a vehicle considering the following criteria; 

• Having a 4×4 as we will be using rough roads
• It has an automatic transmission due to its ease of use, most of the vehicles in America are automatic anyway.
• It was important that the service provider was an international company (Budget, Avis, etc.) to be reliable.

When we considered all these, we chose Jeep Compass. The total amount for 13 days of car rental (with February 2024 prices) was 24.390 TL. So it came to a figure of 60 USD per day. It is possible to find lower class vehicles for much cheaper. 

Rental Vehicle Receiving Process

Information about the vehicle we rented through Yolcu360 was sent to us by e-mail. One day before our trip, we called the guest center to confirm whether there would be any changes in our trip. I liked this very much, it gives confidence to have "someone's hand on us" while traveling. 

Since the beginning of our route was Los Angeles, we picked up our vehicle from the Budget office at Los Angeles Airport.

When receiving the vehicle;

• Our reservation information, driver's license and passport were requested. New chip-enabled Turkish driver's licenses are valid in America.
• We were asked if we wanted insurance, we received a limited insurance package. It cost around 13 USD for 107 days.
• 250 USD was blocked on our credit card. Generally, everyone's concern is whether this blockage will remain or not. We have never had any problems with this issue so far, but if we had, it would have been to our advantage that the company we rented from is an internationally reliable company and that we can easily reach Yolcu360.
• We received the warehouse full and delivered it full. 
• We were asked whether we would use the toll roads, we stated that we would not. If we were to use it, there is a device similar to HGS in the vehicle, they activate it and your passes are reflected on your credit card. 

We loved our vehicle so much that we named it Duldul. We crossed deserts, snowy mountains, rainy hills with him. 

Rental Vehicle Delivery Process

At the end of 13 days that were very enjoyable for us, we delivered the vehicle to the Bugdet office again. The delivery part was shorter and easier than the pickup. The vehicle was checked, whether there were any accidents or missing items, the fuel level was checked, and this took about 3 minutes. When we returned the vehicle without any problems, the credit card blockage was removed immediately. 

Driving in America

There are some practices that you need to pay attention to when driving in America that are different from Turkey, I felt the need to specifically mention them;

• If you rent a car in America, you must comply with the traffic rules, you do not have the luxury of bending them. Sleep anywhere in the world if possible!
• In America, the units of measurement are different from ours. Miles are used instead of kilometers and gallons are used instead of liters. These changes make your job a little more difficult while driving. 
• 1 gallon equals 3,78 liters and when buying gasoline, pricing is done per gallon. With April 2024 prices, the price of a gallon starts from 3,5 USD and can go up to 6-7 USD depending on the state and the distance of the gas station from the city. On the Google Maps application, you can see how much USD a gallon of gasoline costs at which gas station, and you can decide where to buy gasoline based on this information. 
• 1 mile equals 1,6 kilometers. All speed limits and distances on the roads are displayed in miles. The speed limit is generally 60-65 mph, I think we've seen 80 mph at most. It is useful to follow the limits as you will have to bear the penalty if you do not comply with the limits. You can see the speed limit of the road you are driving on in the Google Maps application.
• We have not come across constant police calls in America. But at some point, if you are found to have violated the rules, the police car chases you and makes an announcement for you to pull to the right. We have never come across it, I hope no one does. If you encounter such a situation, you need to open the windows of your vehicle and wait for the police with your hands visible on the steering wheel. Do not reach for the glove box or anything like that.

• If you see a "STOP" sign in America, you must come to a complete stop, not slow down a bit and say "let's continue". Make sure you bring your vehicle to a complete stop. 
• In America, traffic lights are not right next to where you need to stop, like in our country, but across the street. It takes some time to get used to this, but once you get used to it, it becomes much more useful. 
• When turning right, if there is no different warning sign, you can make a controlled turn even if the red light is on. As long as you pass by checking pedestrians and other vehicles, there is no problem. If there is a stop sign or other warning, then you have to stop by all means. 
• When you come to the crossroads, there is no light and you see a “STOP ALL WAYS” sign; The right of way goes to the person who comes to the four-way intersection first. Anyone coming from any direction has the right of way according to the order of arrival, but since it is quite difficult to keep track of this, things progress a little bit according to their arrival. 
• Especially on highways, if possible, do not use the rightmost lane because this lane is often the turning lane and if you enter here, you have to turn. When you see a sign saying "Right lane must turn right", move left immediately. 
• On some highways, there is a "Car Pool", a fast lane, which will allow you to get rid of traffic congestion and those who will turn right. However, in order to use this lane, there is generally a requirement of at least two people in the vehicle. You can see the person limit by following the signs. 
• If you are going to park your car on the roadside, there are rules you should pay attention to. Firstly, you cannot park your vehicle where the pavement is painted red, it is prohibited. Secondly, if you are going to park on the streets, especially in the city, pay attention to the time restrictions in the parking lot, parking may or may not be free for certain hours. Otherwise, you may experience problems such as paying a fine or having your vehicle towed. 
• Do not think that the roads in America, the land of opportunities, are very good. The asphalt may be bad in many places, including highways, so I recommend that you do not choose a vehicle that is too close to the ground.

After all, America is a road trip country. It is a magnificent country for car travel, with its delicious coffees at on-road facilities, motels that are engraved in our minds from American movies, huge cars, huge trucks, and roads full of magnificent views. 

Umarım deneyim ve önerilerim işinize yarar, sizin de önerileriniz veya sorularınız varsa yorumlara ekleyebilirsiniz. Amerika’da araç kiralama ve kullanma videomuz da ilginizi çekebilir.

We would like to thank Yolcu360 for supporting us on our Western America journey…