Summer is the time of the year when people embark on lengthy road trips to visit scenic destinations, spend time with distant family and enjoy adventures. If you are planning road trip, you are probably weighing the pros and cons of taking your own vehicle versus renting a vehicle. Here’s why you should make the trip with your own ride.

Spend Wisely

There is no sense spending money on a rental vehicle when you have an automobile of your own in your garage. The typical rental vehicle costs between $50 and $100 per day. Why spend that money on a vehicle when you have already paid to purchase or lease your own vehicle? Spend the $100 you would shell out each day for a rental car on niceties you can enjoy during your trip. Wouldn’t it be nice to enjoy fine dining each night of your expedition? Or perhaps you would like to load up on keepsakes and souvenirs at shops along the travel route. You can even use the money you save by taking your own vehicle to stay in an upscale hotel that offers comfort, luxury and safety.

Driving Your Own Vehicle is Safer

You know your own vehicle inside and out. You have it regularly maintained and repaired when necessary. You know how the controls work. The seat is adjusted exactly to your liking. The odds of making a mistake while on the road and causing an accident or getting a speeding ticket are much lower when you are driving your own vehicle. If you rent a vehicle and get a speeding ticket, you will likely take a defensive driving course to have the points removed from your driving record and keep your auto insurance rates in check. The bottom line is that you are much more comfortable and safe driving your own vehicle that you have grown accustomed to over the years.

Consider the Many Unknowns of Rental Vehicles

You know exactly who has used your vehicle in the preceding days, months and years. The same cannot be said of rental vehicles. If you were to drive a rental vehicle during a long road trip, you would be subjected to an automobile that could be in poor condition. You have no idea how the previous drivers used the vehicle. Perhaps they slammed on the brakes over and over again. Maybe they used drugs in the vehicle and traces of those substances are scattered across the seats and floor mats. Perhaps the previous driver took the vehicle on a joy ride in which he zoomed through turns at high rates of speed and wore most of the tread off the tires. You are taking a gigantic chance by paying to drive an automobile a previous renter might have used and abused in the preceding hours, days and weeks.

Renting a Car Chews up Your Valuable Time

>

Think of all the time and effort required to rent a vehicle. You should research local providers, find the best rate, pick out the right vehicle for your long trip, get a ride to the rental office and eventually return the vehicle. You will have to inspect the vehicle, coordinate insurance, fill out paperwork and verify that your card was properly charged. These tasks take up plenty of time. If you are like most people and work 40 or more hours per week, you are protective of your free time. Don’t waste it with the bureaucracy involved in renting a car when you have a perfectly good vehicle of your own that will get you to your destination without a problem.