Anybody has any good experiance with rental companies in Italy that rent automatic transmisssion cars? Last year I had a reservation in Messina, paid extra for auto and they did not have an auto when I picked up the car. I had a hard time driving a stick on the Italian roads and traffic.
Thanks
Posted by
Tilburg, Netherlands
2829 posts
Hertz has some "model guaranteed" offers. Europcar has a large lot at Malpensa airport as well. That is indeed my tip: rent from one of the big ones (Sixt, Hertz, Europcar) at MAlpensa Airport, where they all have larger fleets than on city locations.
Posted by
OP
dana point, ca, usa
29 posts
Thank you. I will try that.
Posted by
point pleasant beach, nj, usa
646 posts
on our recent trip to Italy, we reserved an automatic through Hertz. pick up at the Florence airport was a breeze. Be warned that it is more expensive.
Posted by
New York, NY, USA
11294 posts
The following is just an assumption, but most of the people wanting automatics in Italy are probably Americans (Europeans drive manual transmissions). So, to increase the likelihood that there will be an automatic for you, pick up the car at a place Americans are likely to be renting and returning: major airports, big city train stations, and the like. In other words, if renting in Sicily, I'd go to Palermo or Catania (either their downtowns or their airports).
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
16235 posts
Rental car companies tend to favor models that can be easily re-sold in the used car market. That policy is true for all car rental companies in any country. Automatic cars don't sell well in Europe, therefore they keep as few as possible in their fleet. They also tend to be available only in large more expensive models.