Why own a car when you can share one?
Vancouver likes to share cars, but which car share company do we prefer?
We take a look at the pricing structure of the big car share companies and weigh up the pros and cons of each.
Owning a car is a drag. You’ve got to insure the thing, repair it when it breaks down, and spend a fortune on it at the gas station. If you want to park it anywhere you’re gonna need a bank loan, and they are just so bad for the environment. If you’ve outgrown your Compass card and you want to show your friends and family around Vancouver. You are going to need some wheels. But why own when you can share. Vancouver is the car share scheme capital of the world and here we compare the big four.
Before you start you will need a BC driving license and a credit card. Each car comes with a gas card inside which you use to fill up, and they give you a fob or card that opens up any of their fleet.They all come with basic insurance and you can buy more from each company if needed. If you return the car late/forget to fill up when its low/leave a mess expect to pay excessive fees. Likewise you must check each car before you open the doors for damage otherwise they could charge you. If you drop it off in the wrong place too it will be towed at your expense. All the fleets are GPS tracked.
We compare Vancouver’s car share companies.
Zipcar
Zipcar have some pretty swanky new autos knocking around as well as a large fleet of Vans in the down town core. Their website is easy to use and you access each car with a card that you hold on the windshield. The cars come with 200km free and they range from $9-$20 per hour for their sports cars. You must drop them back where you found them but you can take them up to 15 minutes before your booking. There are not that many cars outside of down town Vancouver. Yearly membership is $35 and they have fleets in every major city, Europe too!
Modo
Modo are everywhere. There is a Modo every hundred metres it seems in Vancouver. It is a co-op, so you can either own a share of a car (and get cheaper rates of $4 an hour with a $500 down payment), or pay the reasonable rate of $8 an hour to rent one. Some of the fleet is a bit older, but the cars are everywhere. Monthly membership is $5. The first 200km are free, and you have to return your car to the place where you found it. No bother if you take the car a few minutes early they just adjust the booking.
Evo
Unlike Modo and Zip, Evo lets you drop the cars off anywhere in the home zone. They come with bike racks on the roof that can also take your skis and snowboards. They are expensive at $14.99 an hour or $0.41 a minute and their locations always change as they are moved about by the members. There are no monthly or annual fees and the cars all look the same. Evo are great if you want to take one to the airport as they have the one-way options.
Car2Go
Similar to Evo and absolutely everywhere in Vancouver (just count them as you walk around) Car2go’s can be dropped off anywhere in their home zones. They are the same price as Evo and can be booked using their app. They also have a larger car for luggage but the small 2 seat smart cars are economical, and can be parked 2 to a space. They can be driven one way to the airport too and left anywhere in their home zones. You also get free time added for filling them up with gas.
Tikki Tikki pick: MODO – easy to use, cars located everywhere, cheaper than the rest, and great customer service.
Are you looking for things to do in Vancouver? We review 5 drives each less than an hour away from Vancouver that will impress your guests from out of town.
Which Vancouver car share company do you think is the best? Let us know below
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