Written by Tingwei Deng
Welcome to UCI, I hope you had a great summer break! Are you ready to embrace your academic life here in the city of Irvine and your new life in the United States? When you land in LAX after a long flight, you might realize that Irvine is still an hour drive away and there’s no public transport connecting Los Angeles and Irvine (Actually, there are some, like Metrolink, but it’s not that convenient and there are no trains at night). You would probably wish you had a car or knew someone with a car who could take you to UCI. When you arrive in Irvine and want to do grocery, you open google maps and realize that the nearest shop is several miles away. It would take you almost one hour by bus, but it’s just 15 minutes if you drive there. Wouldn’t you wish you could have a car? Yes, it would be really inconvenient if you don’t drive in California. However, you might plan to have a car later or even don’t have plans for buying a car, and the best option would be to rent instead!
I’m going to tell you how to rent cars in Orange County. Here I’ll talk about Enterprise, Zipcar and U-haul. Each of them has its own features and you can decide which one you would choose based on your needs.
Enterprise Enterprise is a car renting company in the states and it also has business in Canada and Europe. I recommend this one because Enterprise has car rental locations at airports or train stations in large cities. If you take flights or trains to another city, Enterprise would be a good option. Also, if you plan to take a road trip, which means you might need a car for several days or more than a week, choosing Enterprise would be a good deal. There are many other car rental companies, you can also check them online and choose whatever is best for you. Here, I’ll use Enterprise as an example to tell you the steps for renting a car.
- Before you rent a car, you should meet the following requirements:
- Meet the minimum age requirements.
- Have a valid driver’s license. (Check our summer email for information on getting a driver’s license)
- Open an account on the Enterprise website. Check the nearby car rental locations and car availability.
- Go to the car rental location and do the paperwork. Remember to check the condition of the car you rent, like whether the car is damaged or not. If you don’t report the damage, Enterprise employees would consider it your fault and funds will be needed. Also, the price varies depending on the type of cars, the duration, and where you return cars.Enterprise would charge you additional money if you return your car in another rental location. And small fees might apply. For more information on the rates, please check Enterprise’s website.
- After you finish using your car, you can choose any car rental locations to return your car.
Tip: To be safe, I would recommend buying car insurance, though it’s optional. I don’t think you would like to pay a great amount of money if any accidents happen.
Zipcar Zipcar is a membership-based shared car company. And Zipcar actually has several pick up locations on the UCI campus, which are shown below.
- Open an account on Zipcar website. (You have to fulfill all the requirements) You have to pay for the membership and also application fee. Zipcar provides student discounts.
- You will get your membership card within a week. Add some money into your membership card.
- Go to Zipcar website or Zipcar app. Log in and make a reservation. Check the availability of cars and car types, and how long you will need the car.
- Now you can go to the pickup locations and pick up your car. The rates vary, for more information, you can check : https://support.zipcar.com/hc/en-us/articles/220676347-Hourly-Daily-and-Overnight-Rates
- Before you return your car, please remember to refill gas to the original level, otherwise, you will be charged for the gas use. Also, remember to take your belongings before you return your car, this is a shared car and Zipcar doesn’t have the responsibility to keep your own stuff.
U-haul U-haul is used to rent trucks and cargo vans, and you might need it for moving big furniture. There are two pick up locations near UCI, as shown below.
The renting process is similar to renting cars from Enterprise, and the website is: https://www.uhaul.com/Truck-Rentals/Pickup-Truck/
Welcome to UCI again! Hope you enjoy your life in Irvine! Zot zot zot!