Car Rental Options, Oh My!

Are you traveling to Bath from Heathrow? If yes I would get a car at the airport for the best opportunity for an automatic. Last year we traveled as 4 adults, each having a carry on sized suitcase and backpacks as personal bags. Compact SUV’s worked for us in Ireland & Scotland. Think Toyota Rav 4 sized. I don’t think you will have trouble finding fuel.

The Vauxhall Insignia is a basically a Buick Regal. 4 doors. Trunk should be fine for 4 carry on pieces of luggage.

Gasoline in England is not called gas it’s called petrol.

Use Google Maps to view where petrol stations on your routes.

Carry tap cards. Debit and CC’s.

cheapest fuel is often at supermarkets, and the very cheapest is at Costco (with a membership card and credit card with PIN). Everywhere that sells petrol will also sell diesel. In most places E5 and E10 and diesel will all be on each pump. E10 (10% ethanol) is standard unleaded, E5 (5% ethanol) is premium - you won't need that if you don't rent a supercar or something expensive.

usually, except sometimes at Shell or some others, diesel in the UK has a black hose. Unleaded has a green hose. But check carefully.

You serve yourself and either pay at the pump or go inside and pay. If it is under £100 you can tap inside. You need a PIN for pay at the pump. There are few completely unattended pumps, mostly at Costco and some Asda.supermarkets..

My 5 seater Honda Civic can hold 2 medium checked bags and nothing else or 2 or 3 smaller bags and some computer bags etc. Just proved the 2 suitcases picking up friends at the airport - there was zero extra room (but I could squeeze in one coffee mug.)

As for petrol vs. diesel, many more Europeans than Americans have diesel cars. There was a big government push to increase their sales, and they get better mileage. Just be absolutely crystal clear what kind of car you have when you rent it, and also be very deliberate about choosing the proper pump at the station. The two fuels do not mix, and using the wrong one ruins the engine and your holiday! One issue with diesel is that it smells, many people wear disposable gloves when they fill their tank.

Are you traveling to Bath from Heathrow? If yes I would get a car at the airport for the best opportunity for an automatic. Last year we traveled as 4 adults, each having a carry on sized suitcase and backpacks as personal bags. Compact SUV’s worked for us in Ireland & Scotland. Think Toyota Rav 4 sized. I don’t think you will have trouble finding fuel.

Andrea,

We don't feel we want to get off of an overnight flight and attempt to drive on the opposite side of the road to somewhere we've never been before. So, we will take the coach to Bath and pick up a car there the day before we begin our next journey.

Thank you for that information on the vehicle, I was looking at the Compact SUV as an option. Good to know the size and that it held your luggage.

"The Vauxhall Insignia is a basically a Buick Regal. 4 doors. Trunk should be fine for 4 carry on pieces of luggage.

Gasoline in England is not called gas it’s called petrol.

Use Google Maps to view where petrol stations on your routes.

Carry tap cards. Debit and CC’s."

Claudia,

Thank you for the vehicle information, that is helpful. The UK Enterprise website listed the options as Diesel and Gasoline, so...? LOL
Great tip about Google Maps! I hadn't thought of that at all. Our CC is a tap card, so there's that worry gone, thank you!

"cheapest fuel is often at supermarkets, and the very cheapest is at Costco (with a membership card and credit card with PIN). Everywhere that sells petrol will also sell diesel. In most places E5 and E10 and diesel will all be on each pump. E10 (10% ethanol) is standard unleaded, E5 (5% ethanol) is premium - you won't need that if you don't rent a supercar or something expensive.

usually, except sometimes at Shell or some others, diesel in the UK has a black hose. Unleaded has a green hose. But check carefully.

You serve yourself and either pay at the pump or go inside and pay. If it is under £100 you can tap inside. You need a PIN for pay at the pump. There are few completely unattended pumps, mostly at Costco and some Asda.supermarkets..

My 5 seater Honda Civic can hold 2 medium checked bags and nothing else or 2 or 3 smaller bags and some computer bags etc. Just proved the 2 suitcases picking up friends at the airport - there was zero extra room (but I could squeeze in one coffee mug.)"

Nigel,

Thanks for the information. I'll have to check if my Costco card will work in the UK, I never thought of that.
That's helpful to know about the diesel, but honestly, Green Pump is Diesel here, so that should be confusing enough, right?
Okay, Honda Civic is off the table. Thanks!

Thanks, Phred. In our area the only diesel vehicles are semi-trucks and big ol' pickup trucks. Not all gas stations have diesel.

I'm no longer worried, thanks so much everyone!

There is an app & website www.petrolprices.com which you can use to find the nearest / cheapest fuel to any location.

Pay at the pump is done by phone apps in general at branded petrol stations (Shell, BP etc) rather than cards which is common at supermarkets. Probably not worth getting into that, just pay at the counter.

We rented a car for four weeks driving around S. Wales and England in 2017 and loved it.

We rented a diesel car and had no issues with finding fuel. Diesel is cheaper.
The types of cars available for us were very different from what we drive in the USA.
Also, you will want to keep all your luggage in the trunk (boot) when out touring. Be sure the car has a big enough trunk, many are very small.

YES, get an automatic and a nav system unless you for sure have access to a gps or google maps for your personal navigator.

Also, tips for driving on the left. CONCENTRATE at intersections, that is where your US driving tendencies may pop up.
My wife always reminded me STAY on the LEFT.

Don't speed, there are lots of speed cameras. I thought I was doing good, but later got a ticket in the mail for going 35MPH in a 30MPH zone. Cost was 40 pounds plus admin fees.

You will find that it takes longer to get from point A to point B, especially in Southern England or anywhere near London.

With a diesel, we didn't have to fill up much, and never had to fill up in an unattended station.
We used credit cards just fine.

In Bath, consider staying at the Brooks Guesthouse, a great central location, have fish and chips at the nearby Scallop Shell Restaurant.

We stayed in Keswick and did three nights in the Lake District. Mother Nature is great.

Last September we reserved a Ford Kuga (Escape) or similar automatic through Enterprise. It is considered an intermediate SUV. We were given a Hyundai Tucson. There were four of us and if we each had had the same sized suitcase we would have had issues. As another stated, your chance for an automatic is best when picking up at a larger facility like Heathrow. We haven’t received a diesel fueled vehicle in years. Find someone with a newer Escape or Tucson and see if your luggage will fit.

For payment, few places swipe cards any longer. It’s either insert for chip, or contactless. There are plenty of petrol stations. All the ones we used were manned. Most stations will have each, diesel, E5, and E10. Ask when picking up the vehicle which type fuel it takes if they don’t tell you. There will also be a sticker on the inside of the gas cover or on the gas cap itself.

In Chester a few years ago I couldn’t get the Costco pump to accept any of my Visa cards. It did accept my Costco membership card not the CC. The Costco worker used his personal CC so we could get gas and we just gave him cash. Back then, UK Costcos we’re still using AmEx. Things have changed since then and the pumps are supposed to accept Visa, MC, and AmEx. Costcos are not as common in the U.K. as they are in the states.

geovagriffith: Thanks for your help. I'm definitely concerned about having the luggage out of sight, which is why I'm concerned about the descriptions stating 2-3 bags. To find one that holds more (according to the website description) I'd need a full size SUV, which I don't want to drive on country roads.

We are booked at 2 Crescent Gardens, which is right by Brooks. I'm so excited for this trip, I've waited my whole life for this.

“Diesel is cheaper”. Not any more I’m afraid. This is probably due, in part at least, to the government changing policy from “Diesel good” to “Diesel bad, because suddenly not green enough. Buy petrol fuelled cars if we can’t persuade you to buy electric”. The fact that they’ve now removed incentives to encourage the purchase of electric cars is, I suppose, neither here nor indeed, there.

Motto 1: Get a petrol consuming car.

Motto 2: Don’t inadvertently fill your petrol fuelled car with diesel. This is very bad for all concerned but especially the car.

Handy hint: you’ll have to pump your own fuel, check your own tyres and wipe your own screen (unless you pay for a full car wash). The filler cap on modern day cars will remind you what fuel you are supposed to be pumping into it). If completely stumped in a fuel station don’t be afraid to ask locals for help or advice. Generally folk are eager to help, and most approachable!

Oh yes, the Insignia should give you plenty of room for your carry ons.

Good luck and have a great trip!

Ian

P.S. in my fairly extensive travels I have yet to stumble across a nudist filling station. This is unsurprising as where would you keep your credit cards and keys? (Don’t answer that!).

I would love your help with our car rental decisions. We will be renting a vehicle in Bath, traveling to Salisbury, Stow-on-the-Wold, Conwy, and Keswick, returning the car at Penrith.

Hi Maryellen, I have no advice to give you about rental cars that others haven’t already given you. But I just want to let you know for future reference that if you would like to quote from another comment in your response, you can set it off like I have done here. To do so, you first copy the phrase or sentence you want to quote, then tap the bold quote marks (located to the right of the globe at the top of this box). A shaded box will appear. Just tap that box and hit paste, and the phrase or sentence will be filled in there. It will then look like the one here. 😊

Thanks for the tip about how to quote- I had been wondering how that was done

A shaded box will appear. Just tap that box and hit paste, and the phrase or sentence will be filled in there. It will then look like the one here. 😊

Well , Learn something new every day ! I was also unaware of this technique , Thanks , Mardee

You're both welcome. :)

I understand not wanting to drive just after landing, but you should know that the vehicle options will be much more limited in Bath, both for automatics and sizes of cars available.

I understand not wanting to drive just after landing, but you should know that the vehicle options will be much more limited in Bath, both for automatics and sizes of cars available.

This is known as The Anne Sacoolas Gambit.

I understand not wanting to drive just after landing, but you should know that the vehicle options will be much more limited in Bath, both for automatics and sizes of cars available.

This is known as The Anne Sacoolas Gambit.

Intriguing! I'd love to hear the story behind this.

(Look at me, doing the fancy quote thing!)

Unfortunately it’s not a nice story and isn’t related to flying. An American woman drove out of a US military base here on the wrong side of the road, and killed an oncoming motorcyclist. Either her or her husband or both are rumoured to be spies of some sort and it has proved very difficult to bring her to justice.

Supermarket fuel is not always cheapest
I can be cheaper at small independents who buy their fuel on the spot market

Pre-Covid, in 2018, I rented an automatic from Enterprise in Bath and returned it to Banbury to take the train to York. It was seamless, convenient, and any extra charge was minimal. I made it very clear that my ability to drive off their lot was contingent on having an automatic and they delivered. I was relieved to learn driving on the left on the peaceful roads outside of Bath and not upon leaving Heathrow airport. A Qashqai (similar to a Rogue) should suffice for the four of you. Try one on for size here.

"This is known as The Anne Sacoolas Gambit." - Only by you. Her incident has nothing to do with flying or car rentals.

Anne Sacoolas was working in the UK at an air force base at the time. She had not flown in that morning, she had not rented a car and made a very tragic mistake when turning off the base.
So it is a total red herring to this thread. IMHO it is an insult to Harry Dunn (the 19 year old motorcyclist she sadly killed) to call it a "gambit."
At least justice did finally prevail, and she now has the suspended prison sentence which anyone else would have got. Any of us could have made the same mistake driving in the other's country, and would have expected to receive the same sentence.
The story at the time, and I am not sure if it is true, is that within the base, they drove on the right hand side of the road, as it is a slice of American soil within England.

Pre-Covid, in 2018, I rented an automatic from Enterprise in Bath and returned it to Banbury to take the train to York. It was seamless, convenient, and any extra charge was minimal. I made it very clear that my ability to drive off their lot was contingent on having an automatic and they delivered. I was relieved to learn driving on the left on the peaceful roads outside of Bath and not upon leaving Heathrow airport. A Qashqai (similar to a Rogue) should suffice for the four of you. Try one on for size here.

Thank you for this, I will be sure to make it equally clear. I really appreciate your reply.