Rental car/SUV cargo size question

[Quattro Pete]

Need to rent a vehicle for a few days for 3 adults, 1 toddler, and some luggage: jogging stroller, 3 carry-on bags, plus some smaller kid stuff.

Looking at various car rental sites, they show a full size car (ford fusion, nissan altima) can handle 3 suitcases while a mid size suv (like toyota rav4) can only handle 2 suitcases. How can that be? You would think you cold stuff more things in an suv as you could pile things up in the back. Comparing our own 5-series and the q5, we can definitely stuff more into the q5.

Anyway, trying to decide what would be better (full size car or smaller suv) to rent to make sure it all fits.

Thanks.

 

[JayhawkRoy]

I would price minivan first. However, be aware some rentals like Nissan Quests are smaller than the Dodge Caravans or Grand Caravans. We did use a Nissan Quest to fit five people and luggage mostly comfortably on a one week trip. I would think that a minivan would be a better choice than an SUV, and possibly cheaper.

 

[Old Mustang Guy]

We have an Acadia that we road trip with four adults. Also rented one once when we flew. It would give you much more comfort and space than a small suv. Sometimes you can upgrade when you get the car for not much more. We had reserved a sedan when we got the Acadia rental.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Fyi, renting a full size car or a smaller suv is half price of renting a minivan.

We won't be doing any long distance driving... mainly just around town, so comfort isnt that important. It just needs to fit our stuff.

 

[SatinSilver]

The RAV is based on the Corolla platform. A Camry has a large trunk if you want to save some bucks versus renting a larger SUV. I'd prob get the larger SUV.

 

[AirgunSavant]

Problem is you can get cheap rentals but on minivans they skin you badly compared to a full sized car.
Around $500 a week.
As far as the Fusion, my car is similar and no way would I rent one of those for your payload. Here Impalas
are half the price of a minivan or SUV- Hertz was $189 a week last time using ABN or similar discount services online.

 

[4wd]

Myself & colleagues travel packing large "spinner" cases - with an SUV we can stand them on edge like the United Dreamliner does the 22" size ...

 

[Dave Hess]

Minivan seems to be what you need.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Why do you guys think we needa minivan? We only have 3 carry-on bags, not 3 check-in bags. I know we could easily fit all that stuff in our Q5 without having to remove the rear shelf. And it is not a large SUV.

 

[bubbatime]

Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Fyi, renting a full size car or a smaller suv is half price of renting a minivan.


I'd ONLY get a minivan in that scenario. There really is no comparison in storage space.

If you rent via their web page, they will charge you extra for the "privilege" of renting a minivan. Call ALL the rental places in your area direct, tell them you cant afford the minivan but could really use the extra space and ask if possible they could upgrade you from a mid size for the same price. 8 times out of 10 they will. Heck, my wife rents a compact about once a week and they "upgrade" her to a full size, large SUV, or mini van just because they have an abundance of cars or that is all they have.

If you call direct and ask nicely you can get what you want sometimes.

I rented the super cheapest car I could for a week once (like $7 a day) and they gave me a mini-van.

Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Why do you guys think we needa minivan? We only have 3 carry-on bags, not 3 check-in bags.


You said jogging stroller, kid stuff, and bags. With kids, space is a premium, and you usually pack more stuff than you realize.

 

[fdcg27]

Personally, I prefer a trunk to an open cargo bay, since in an accident the contents of the trunk aren't going to be thrown at the passengers while with an SUV or Minivan they might be. An open bay loaded beyond the window blind cover level also displays your possessions nicely for potential addict thieves window shopping a garage or lot.
Just food for thought.

 

[Pop_Rivit]

On our last Texas/Colorado trip our Equinox easily handled 2 large suitcases, 2 bags with bathroom sundry items, 2 cases of wine on the way to Texas for friends, 3 cases of wine by the time we left Colorado that we purchased in Texas and Colorado, a cooler with water bottles, and two adults. When the rear seat is moved forward there is a lot of room in the rear, and there is still plenty of room for an average size adult in the rear seat.

 

[Nate1979]

Does the RAV4 have a 3rd row with little bitty storage behind when the seats are up? I know in our Subaru Forester the storage space would be no problem with the stuff you describe.