Recent leasing experience

My experience was not recent, but I was happy with the program. The thing to know about pick-up and drop-off was that you were making an appointment to meet a specific person and a specific car at a specific time, so showing up late was frowned upon.

Janet,
Our last lease was three years ago. It was fine, just like the previous three. We picked up at Orly and dropped at CDG. Very fast! You are the first driver of the car, so car manual is in it, mandatory safety triangle, breathalyzer, florescent vest--all intact.

Pick up options are limited since this is one company, TT, that handles the cars for both Renault and Peugeot, even if the contract comes through Renault USA, AutoEurope, or another entity. For example, in Paris there was only CDG, Orly, and Porte Maillot. You may need to pick up in Toulouse or Bordeaux.

We cracked the windshield, called the insurance, took it to a local village body shop near the in-law's home, shop owner talked to insurance, and fixed it. The check went straight to the shop. We paid nothing.

I prefer Renault to Peugeot but I think my husband likes both. Some of the larger models are six-speed. I prefer 5-speed, so tend to stay with the smaller models, nothing over a Megane.

I believe we may have saved money because the highest level of insurance is included. You have to compare the cost with full insurance included. Furthermore, as you know, there are always charges tacked onto the Europecar/AutoEurope rental bill at the end. So it's hard to calculate centime for centime.

There is an Eastern European car made by either Renault or Peugeot and offered on the websites. Nigel warned me off this brand due to car test results. So we stuck with Renault or Peugeot.

Do you know the name of the Eastern European car? We got stuck with a Korean car that was just awful last time we rented; we felt lucky it didn't just disintegrate on the road and it was noisy and rough. Want to avoid lemons.

I think Bets is referring to Dacia, which has a partnership (or is now wholly owned) by Renault.

we have leased a citroen twice, in 2015 and 2014. for about 25-30 days both times. we had no problems both times. we organised it in Australia. both times we picked it up in one city and dropped in in another for little to no extra cost. depends on the deal at the time. this was great as it allowed no back tracking. and far less price than hiring.
the only concern I have when doing it was 'if' the car is damaged and can not be driven, then it could delay your travel, as you 'own' the car and that is different from hiring a car. read the fine print for more details on this.

we get in early to organise the lease as they have limited numbers. our lease car came with french 'red' number plates, which shows that the car is 'leased'.

one of the reasons we like to lease is we can get an automatic for a very reasonable price.

hope this helps.

Yes, Dacia. Thanks Kim.
I mentioned the issue of a disabled car once on the Forum and several others said the car would be replaced. Not having any experience beyond a windshield replacement, which took half a day, I don't know what exactly would happen in case one had a serious accident that rendered the car unusable.

The red plates do irk us a bit as it's a flashing sign that we are visiting from abroad, but most of the rental cars are easily spotted, too, as they are registered in the department with the lowest auto plate taxes and have the department number on them; they just aren't red.

bets, I mention the car 'replacement issue' as the fine print shows how much they will and won't cover. if it was a rental car they would no doubt try and give you another one ( if one was available) but as a lease car there are very specific things that they will do ( at least from what I have read) this may or may not be OK with your travel plans and its worth reading to make an informed decision. eg: they will pay for some accommodation costs, while your car is being fixed. but how long will it take to get fixed?
thus far we have been very happy with leasing , but then nothing has gone wrong. fingers crossed!

Most of the time it will just be two of us, but for one week there will be four and we will have moments when we need to haul all the luggage. Anyone have recommendations for cars that are not 'too big' but also have ample luggage space? (I know, I know)

for what its worth we've had a citroen c4 hatch (twice) and I don't think the luggage area would hold enough for 4 adult suitcases but 'maybe' if the luggage was in soft sided bags and was stacked up?? depends on how big your suitcases are?
perhaps look for more of a ' station wagon' style . after driving a c4 for about 6000 klms , for memeory, in various countries we found it a good size for highway travel and not too bad for parking and navigating the narrow streets.( being front wheel drive, it had a hopeless turning circle) I would not want to drive something much bigger though. On one of our trips we dropped the c4 at paris airport, without any problems. we are looking at doing the same next year. the drop off point was slightly away from the terminal and the staff transported us there at no cost.

I hope this might give some sort of guide