Where to rent 4wd vehicle UT, CO, AZ

[julieroggow]

<p>We are planning a trip to Utah and Arizona. Most of the guide books say a 4wd vehicle is required for a lot of the back country trails we'd like to travel on. We will be flying in to Grand Junction, CO, then immediately heading in to Utah (Moab, first stop). I can find lots of car rental companies renting SUV's but none (except $200 per day Thrifty shows a 4wd). Since we will be gone for 2 weeks, $200 per day is out of the question. Any suggestions?</p>

[Carl Stone]

<p>Sure, bring your own 4WD, or pay the prevailing rate to rent one. These rental companies aren't stupid, they know very well what the risks are in renting a 4Wd vehicle, and that knowledge is reflected in their rental rates. HTH :o)</p>

[bob_sunley]

<p>Look here, but I doubt you will find inexpensive 4wd rentals anywhere.<br>

http://www.moab-utah.com/</p>

<p> </p>

[acjtucson]

<p><em>Don't forget that most car rentals do not cover any problems that arise when you drive off pavement. That being said, I have rented SUVs 3 or 4 times from Las Vegas and drove out to the Racetrack at Death Valley with no problems whatsoever..If you could change your flights to Las Vegas, you may find a cheaper rental rate.</em></p>

[david_henderson]

<p>The problem is ( or has been for me) that most of the "consumer" 4wd models are parts of ranges that also include 2wd vehicles and non switchable 4wd models and the rental companies refuse to commit to providing a particular vehicle type and model. The one exception I found when booking a 4wd vehicle out of Denver and Las Vegas a few years back was Hertz. They, at that time, had a separate category for 4wd and would happily rent a 4wd Explorer at sensible rates and they always performed well enough over some difficult terrain in Utah and especially Colorado. </p>

<p>You have to be careful with them though; First the small print will tell you that off the metalled road you're on your own, rescue-wise and finacially. Second the vehicle may have street tires not the big chunky things you might expect, so you have to be very slow over the sharp stuff. </p>

[Ian Taylor]

<p>I did that trip. We drove about 2500 miles in a rented Subaru Forester that we picked up in Phoenix. It was fine for the backroads we did. I think it was about $50/day.</p>

[julieroggow]

<p>Ian,<br>

What car rental company did you use that rented 4wd vehicles?</p>

<p>Julie</p>

[Ian Taylor]

<p>It was just Hertz or one of those big ones at the airport. I think we did it through Expedia.</p>

[zml]

<p>FWIW: All SUVs I rent from National/Alamo are 4WD models. Toyota Highlander, various Chevy/GMC models, etc. They tend to run $300-$400/week + insurance if you need it, but the prices are all over the map so shop around. YMMV of course. Keep in mind that car rental companies may ban off road driving so read your rental agreement!</p>

[bob_flood1]

<p>I may be a bit late on this thread and maybe no one will read this but ....<br>

Mr Henderson's comment about tires is very important here. If you only plan to use a high-clearance 4WD on dirt & gravel roads, you should be able to get by with street tires if you are careful - don't expect them to take freewheeling abuse, but if driven gently they will work.<br>

But if you plan to go truly off road, meaning into the desert vegeation, you MUST have offroad tires and prefereably 2 spares. The risk is to the sidewalls, and offroad tires have reinforced sidewalls. I bought a 4WD pickup for my department last summer (one a several) thru my company's vehicle purchase department, and they failed to specify offroad tires among all the other offroad options we wanted. 3 of the 4 tires went flat the first day it was used, all with holes in the sidewalls. Cactus, yucca, aloe, etc are very good at poking holes.<br>

If you do only roads and use street tires, take care where you turn around - you can get into cactus and yucca right at the roadside.</p>