Convertible - with kids - your 2 cents

[MotherOf2Princesses]

My Disney trip is the last week of October. I'm looking at short term car rentals for off site visits like Sea World.
I have never rented a convertible and thought my girls would have a blast riding in one. My girls will be 6 (booster seat) and my oldest almost 9.

I'd like to know what its like to ride in the back seat with the top down. Is it too windy for kids. I even thought about a Mustang.
And what rental company would you use around Disney.
Thank You!

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

We rented convertibles a few times, starting when our kids were 4 & 7. Last time they were 6 & 9. If you asked them, you'd get different opinions.
First time, my older ds said, "OMG! You are the best mom ever!" and loved it every time. Younger ds, who I admit has a few issues sometimes over-stimulated at minor things like noise (loud music, toilet flushing, etc.), felt it was too much wind. We let him have his 'blankie' and he was fine.

We gave them both sunglasses and chapstick.
Last time we flew out of Tampa and rode the whole way with the top down. It was really nice.

Now they're 12 & 9 but I haven't been able to find a decent price for our last few visits.

eta: I would rent from whatever company gave the best price.
Also if the booster seat has a velcro pillow for the head, remove it. Ours flew out on a highway and it wasn't safe to try to retrieve it.

 

[jlewisinsyr]

Having owned a convertible as well as rented one, I can tell you, over 30 MPH, sitting in the back seats suck with the top down. Additionally, there is very little trunk room with the top down (if any at all) and minimal with the top up with the exception of some of the newer hard top convertibles that require more trunk space for the roof (ie. Volvo C70).

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

Our convertibles were always Sebrings. It had a decent trunk size and we had no problems with storing luggage for our family of 4. Then again we aren't big packers either.

I probably would feel differently if we had gotten a PT Cruiser or VW Beetle; their trunks are smaller than most suitcases.

You won't know til you try.

 

[TheWog]

We did just what you are trying to do to go to Busch Gardens. We rented a Mustang from Hertz at Shades of Green. They came and picked me up at CBR and dropped me back off. DS was 9 at the time and loved it. We drove to the Tampa area and back with the top down and with no complaints from him in the back seat. Since you are just going site to site trunk space is a nonissue as you are not transporting luggage. So I say go for it. I signed up with the Hertz program (it's free) to guarantee I could get the Mustang and it worked just fine. The rep told me they brought it over from the airport for me. This was in 2006 and the cost was about $70 a day. Go for it and have fun! Hertz (they rent Fords) also offers AAA discounts and others as well. www.mousesavers.com will help with discount codes.

 

[jlewisinsyr]

...(they rent Fords)...

Hertz rents a lot more then Fords and the mix has changed considerably over the years with the fleet being less and less Ford exclusive.

There is also no guarantee for any specific vehicle, although Hertz claims guarantees on Prestige and Fun Collection (they do not on any other rental), there have been numerous reports where the guarantee has not been honored with basically a shrug of the shoulders.

 

[lurkernj]

We rented a convertable on vacation once and it was awesome (in Hawaii)!! The kids were 8 and 11 and would bring towels along to use as capes. They had their own little superhero skit going on in the backseat. My very practical DH also loved the opportunity to have his "midlife crisis" for a week. I believe it was a sebring and could fit a decent amount of luggage, although it doesn't sound like that's an issue with you. Just don't leave anything valuable in it. In hawaii, lots of convertables apparently get broken into, so we left nothing inside (except the kids towels) and the doors unlocked or the top down.

 

[TheWog]

Hertz rents a lot more then Fords and the mix has changed considerably over the years with the fleet being less and less Ford exclusive.

There is also no guarantee for any specific vehicle, although Hertz claims guarantees on Prestige and Fun Collection (they do not on any other rental), there have been numerous reports where the guarantee has not been honored with basically a shrug of the shoulders.

While you are correct that they rent more than Fords, they do still rent Fords. OP was inquiring about the possibility of a Mustang. I hadn't been aware of other rental agencies renting Fords in the area (at least not when I did my checking) and I didn't mention that Hertz would rent other brands because of the Mustang request. My experience with Hertz and being a member of their program is they would guarantee you a particular model which they did for me. Whether real world experience on a particular day would match that experience is always subject to being situation and condition specific - i.e. someone didn't return your convertible back when due and no others were available then there is a problem, but it is likely possible they will get what they request. and we are not sure of how many vehicle specific reservations were fulfilled without any problems.

 

[jlewisinsyr]

While you are correct that they rent more than Fords, they do still rent Fords. OP was inquiring about the possibility of a Mustang. I hadn't been aware of other rental agencies renting Fords in the area (at least not when I did my checking) and I didn't mention that Hertz would rent other brands because of the Mustang request. My experience with Hertz and being a member of their program is they would guarantee you a particular model which they did for me. Whether real world experience on a particular day would match that experience is always subject to being situation and condition specific - i.e. someone didn't return your convertible back when due and no others were available then there is a problem, but it is likely possible they will get what they request. and we are not sure of how many vehicle specific reservations were fulfilled without any problems.

Yes, they do still rent Fords, but while in the past they were a subsidiary of Ford, they no longer are, so their vehicle mix is much, much more diversified. Although I understand your experience is such, I think its important to lay out the possibilities to the OP, which is despite someones best attempt, they may not get what they want, and Hertz has been reported more and more frequently of not having the guaranteed vehicles.

I'd recommend everyone to visit Flyertalk for more "real-world" experience then this site.

 

[MotherOf2Princesses]

Unfortunately I can't seem to find a Mustang or basic convertible available for my dates 10/25-10/30 with Hertz.
Alamo has a convertible available. 3 days for $175.84, 4 days $243.33, is this a good rate?