Opinions please: Take the Toad or Rent a Car?

[JCJRSmith]

We are going to the Fort in June from here in lovely Mechanicsburg, Pennsyltucky. We have a 27 foot Jayco motorhome and we had the Saturn Ion equipped so we can tow it behind the MH. So here is the situation:

Do we tow the toad to the Fort and get less miles per gallon on the 900 miles each way or do we leave the toad at home and rent a car once we get to the Fort to use around the Orlando area? I do have about a metric butt-load of American Express points saved up so we can use that for discount on a rental.

Here is our thinking on it. Leaving the toad at home means slightly better gas mileage with the MH on the way there and back. Additionally, when we are towing, SWMBO rides shotgun and I do all the driving - not a problem but we take more frequent breaks along the way. Leaving the toad at home means we will share the driving, and less wear and tear on my everyday vehicle.

 

[BigDaddyRog]

Leave the toad...take more beer.

 

[LONE-STAR]

You need to figure how much gas you will really save and if leaving it home is cost effective.

 

[TheGreatGonzo]

Another factor is how many days you will actually need a car while there. You may be able to rent for just a day or two and save more that way.

 

[nascar-j]

I've done this math before when I'm deciding if I should take my 5er to Branson for the weekend or get a hotel room.

For your trip to WDW- It's 1800 miles round trip. If your MH gets 9 mpg solo and 8mpg w/ toad, here's the math.

1800 miles at 9 mpg= 200 gallons at $3.25= $650.00
1800 miles at 8 mpg= 225 gallons at $3.25= $731.25

That's $81.25 for a rental car.

If you get really bad mileage, here's the math.
1800 miles at 6 mpg= 300 gallons at $3.25= $975.00
1800 miles at 5 mpg= 360 gallons at $3.25= $1170.00

That's $195 for a rental...

If you get a good discount with your CC points, looks like the toad stays home. And you get to share the driving...

 

[wrongagain]

we rent a car instead of towing.
to me not having to deal with the toad is worth it.
not to mention buying and insuring a vehicle that I would only be using for a toad.
since I prefer to drive big cars and pickups and dont want to tow a huge vehicle around, it is just easier.

 

[bradisgoofy]

Towing is for the golf cart trailer.

 

[PrincessNana]

We've been debating this for our trip in July. We've decided that it would be cheaper to rent a car for a couple of days to take the grandkids to Universal studios and bring our golf cart to use at the Fort. We're staying for 10 days and the golf cart rental would be more than a car rental.