best option for a car in Italy for a year

I believe that France's "short-term leasing" program (e.g., through Renault) tops out at 6 months and costs about $3,000 for that period, plus delivery fees if you want to get the car in Italy. Buying and re-selling a used car has been a pretty common choice for Australians, who are known for their long travels. For advice on dealers, see Road Trip Europe; I'm sure their resources could be useful for cars, as well as vans and motorhomes.

Just in case, have you looked into the issues with staying longer than 90 days?

@Michael: Yes, we have an appointment with the Italian embassy to get visas, we know the documentation we must produce for the visas, and we know about the international driver's permit to be street legal.

What will be your legal status in Italy?
- Resident with permit to stay (permesso di soggiorno)?
- Non resident student?
- Illegal alien?

If the long term leasing costs are what you say ($24/day), that would be almost $9000 (€6,000) for a year. For that price I would buy a car. With €5k-6k you can probably buy a 6 or 7 year old small compact car (like a Fiat Panda or Punto) with less than 100,000 km on it. Even if you donate it, instead of selling it, you still save money over leasing at $24/day.

If you are not a resident in Italy, you will be registering the vehicle with the Motor Vehicle department (ufficio PRA=Publico Registro Automobilistico office) as Escursionista Estero. There are some bureaucratic steps required to buy and register a vehicle with the PRA (resident or not), therefore I suggest you engage the services of one agency that will do the paperwork for you for a fee. I've always done so even when I was living there, because Italy is a bureaucratic nightmare and they'll drive you crazy and waste a lot of your time.

An agency that does the car ownership transfer paperwork for you is called in Italian: AGENZIA PRATICHE AUTO (most driving schools also do that). You can find a ton in any city, you can search one online or on any phone book (not sure how your Italian fluency is, but maybe some will have some knowledge of English). Speak to them first when you are there, then find a vehicle to purchase on any website.

Unless you have money to waste I wouldn't buy a new vehicle for a year. The depreciation on a new car is very high on the first year (even in America), so it would cost you more. Anything between 4 to 7 year old will be a good car and won't depreciate much when you resell it a year later.

6-9k euros plus gas, insurance, upkeep, and any fees for documentation would buy an awful lot of bus and train tickets. Just saying!

I'm so jealous I could die, would love to do what you're doing, but Roberto is the resident expert here.

Great idea Nellie, if Gary wants to spend his year in Valparaiso, Indiana, instead of Italy. This dealership does feature work-class service and the map shows there is Pesto's Italian Restaurant just down the street. Maybe Pesto's has a 1-year meal plan, has anyone eaten there?

Larry, thank you for a much better reply to Nellie than I could craft! Since this topic has sprung back to life after a long hiatus, I am pleased to report that we are now in Italy. The cheapest car deal we could arrange is a monthly rental with Hertz, which is hassle-free compared to the other options and significantly cheaper than the European "lease/buy-back" plans. To Angela's earlier post, we have traveled with ease in Europe before without a car, using trains, subways, and busses. This stay is different: we are living up a hillside from a small village. We are avid bicyclists but the hill up to our place is intimidating. Going carless is an option we would love to try in an urban setting, but we are out in the boonies.

Thanks Gary, I hadn't even noticed that Nellie had brought this thread back to life after several months. Please share a little about what you're up to up that hillside. Are you working, taking the year off, fleeing American justice, or what? Lessons learned about how to really "get to know" Italy and Italians? Certainly do enjoy your year!

And thank you again, Larry! I wish I could say I was fleeing justice or something as interesting, but living here is just something we decided to do when we retired. Then we retired, and here we are. I am flattered that you want to hear of our experiences, and the best way to do that is to point you to our blog at www.carmengary.blogspot.com. I hope you check it out and still find our little adventure interesting!

I would be more interested is finding out which visa you applied for, how many hoops did you go through, and any other tips you might have for a long term stay.

I advise you to check your driving licence validity in Italy. The concession that allows you to use a "foreign" licence + International Driving Permit only applies to tourists, and usually has a time limit. I don't know the exact rules for Italy, but here in Switzerland the limit is 6 months, after that you have to get a local licence.
If you are lucky, there is an agreement which allows you to hand in your foreign licence in exchange for a local one; but this usually only applies to licences from other European countries. US licences are often not exchanged because the driving test is regarded as too easy.
If you are unlucky, and they do not accept your licence for an exchange, you have to take a driving test.

It would be wise to double-check.

My friend's company transferred him to Brussels for a couple of years.

He just took his Lexus LS with him--with Memphis, TN license plates. Everywhere they went, people were asking them about Elvis.

The sold the car as they moved back home--for a very strong price.