The Hertz Corporation has its eyes set on a greener future for the rental car industry, but has admitted that there is no magic bullet to achieve this.

“There is not a single solution to the green issue,” Hertz International president Michel Taride told e-Travel Blackboard.

In Sydney for the announcement of Hertz’s acquisition of Ace Rental cars and alliance with Apollo Motorhomes, Mr Taride said “the move to electric cars is not a simple process”, but added that the elements required for its success “are all converging”.

Read the full article at Travel Blackboard

We are all aware that private vehicles are significant contributors to greenhouse gas emissions globally. OK…possibly not quite as high as the agriculture sector (why NZ introduced the FART TAX!), but significant all the same.

Since many of us are not yet ready to ditch the wheels and put on a pair of rollerblades, we have to do our part in reducing these emissions while still enjoying the freedom and pleasure our cool little free relocation cars or campervans gives us without the guilt trip of killing the planet.

Also, being a green tourist does not only apply to getting around. It means so much more.

Here’s some ideas that will not only help save the planet, but will help save your wallet in the process: (more…)

For all our new or prospective relocation drivers, here’s a little bit of info on how to request a standby car or campervan on transfercar .co.nz and transfercar.com.au.

Step 1: Register as a driver.

• Remember to sign up for email alerts for specific routes you are looking for or just to hear what new vehicles are being listed daily.

Step 2: Log in to transfercar.com.au or transfercar.co.nz and look for the relocation car or campervan that suits your destination.

• Be aware that the dates specified are the earliest and latest pick up and drop off dates  and you are given a certain amount of days between these dates to drive the vehicles.

(more…)

Here’s a great checklist for backpackers! Handy if you are new to the backpacking scene! Pity they don’t have a box that includes requesting a free transfercar car or campervan for the trip around New Zealand or Australia!

It’s the event of the year for many hard core party goers! People come from all over the world to witness a gathering of extraordinary musicians and some of the hottest and heaviest artists in the world today.

Melbourne, Goldcoast and Sydney are all sold out with Sydney planning its second event. Auckland tickets won’t last long as many will be lining up to see the 34 bands banging out their tunes on the multiple stages within the venue.

For all our Transfercar drivers, keep an eye out for our free relocation cars and campervans heading to event locations around this time!

Transfercar’s suggested itinerary:

• Request a relocation vehicle in advance for both journeys there and back if you can

• Have a 5 day holiday cruising in a free car or campervan as you travel to and from the “Big Day Out” near you

• Arrive at destination – Drop off vehicle

• Taxi to the event – Taxi to your hotel (SLEEP)

• Take your new transfercar home/or fly/bus/train if you are feeling a bit jaded!!

Links to the full lineup:

Auckland Fri Jan 21 (MT SMART STADIUM Maurice Rd Penrose. Gates open 11am) Lineup

Gold Coast Sun Jan 23 (GOLD COAST PARKLANDS Smith St Southport. Gates open 11am) Lineup

Sydney Wed Jan 26 & Thu Jan 27 (SYDNEY SHOWGROUND Showground Rd Sydney Olympic Park. Gates open 11am. Event closes midnight) Lineup

Melbourne Sun Jan 30 (MELBOURNE FLEMINGTON RACECOURSE Epsom Rd, Flemington, Melbourne. Gates Open 10.30am) Lineup

Adelaide Fri Feb 4 (ADELAIDE SHOWGROUND Rose Tce Wayville, Adelaide. Gates Open 11am) Lineup

Perth Sun Feb 6 (PERTH CLAREMONT SHOWGROUND Graylands Rd Claremont, Perth. Gates Open 11am) Lineup

The Toyota Hybrid is hailed as an eco-paragon. It is a very responsible car and classified by the US government as the “most fuel-efficient car sold in the US”.

Celebs like Cameron Diaz and Leonardo DiCaprio drive it. Not because it is a typical jet-set car, not because it is pretty or the flashest set of wheels around. No, you drive this car because you make a statement with this car: Your conscientious and aspiring a better way of life.

The New Zealand bound ‘green’ traveller rents a Hybrid. Because is the right car to rent when you’re environment friendly. It is the right car for your budget too. The rental companies confrim you’re doing -again- the right thing: “…fuel efficient Hybrid” “…eco friendly green car…” “…saving on fuel costs..” “…minimising the impact of car travel on the environment..”.

And with New Zealand’s green and clean image, surely you are not going to rent or buy anything other than nature’s friend, the Hybrid? And, if relocating rental cars, you sure as hell are not going to relocate any car but a Hybrid car. Right?

Right. So, bearing all this in mind, how would a responsible eco and budget friendly car like this fare against a big bad polluting BMW?

Let’s find out.

Last Sunday Top Gear screened on Prime. And in this episode the Top Gear Team drove a Toyota Prius and a BMW 3 series around the track. The outcome was…different.

In March this year two correspondents from the English newspaper The Sunday Times took the Toyota Prius and a BMW 520d for a spin. Not a lap around the track like in Top Gear, but an 877 k’s spin to Geneva.

The result is, to say the least, interesting.

Toyota Prius versus BMW 520d

The moral of the story? It’s not what you drive; it’s how you drive it. So, if I was that ‘green’ traveller looking for a responsable way of cruising New Zealand, I’d be renting (or relocating!) the biggest baddest BMW that I can get my hands on. That’s all-’right’ for me.