I’ve heard the horror stories about UHaul (and experienced one myself), so they’re right out. The other major choices around here are Penske and Budget, neither of which I’ve used. I’ve done some guessing on dates/times and Budget comes in about $50 cheaper and also lets me use the truck for 3 days, where Penske wants it back that day. But I’ve never used Budget for anything. So are they any good? Any problems/horror stories? How about Penske?
I used to work for Budget in another city and I can tell you that your experience will depend largely on the attitude and customer service skills of the local franchise owner/manager. It varies alot! The rental agreement will be similar to what I’ve worked with and here are the things to look out for:
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Budget will charge you extra if you keep the vehicle longer/use more miles/don’t refuel than your agreement states. These extra charges should be listed on the contract so you are aware of them in advance. Make sure the rental agreement is correct, and check the vehicle’s gas and mileage before you leave (make sure it matches your contract).
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There is alot of fine print on the back, including some exceptions to what is covered by insurance etc. and additional policies. It is a good idea to read it through before you leave. Most of the awful customer experiences I’ve seen involved misunderstandings of the rental agreement. I’ve also seen staff be unclear when verbally explaining the agreement.
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Definitely confirm your reservation a few days before.
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Ask beforehand how much of a deposit/pre-authorization they will need on your credit card. It varies, and if there isn’t enough room on your card they may refuse the rental.
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Get a Budget employee to do a walk around inspection of the vehicle with you before you leave. Make sure all scratches etc. are noted and keep a copy of the inspection sheet.
Other than that it should be fine. The things I’ve mentioned here are standard practise at most locations. In the three years I worked for Budget there were only a handful of “horror story” situations and they were all avoidable by better communication at the beginning of the rental. If you have specific questions feel free to email me.
Here’s an earlier thread on renting moving trucks. From reading that, the ratings on epinions.com, and my own experience, I’d lean towards Penske.
Short version of my story: Ryder (Budget) truck broke down, got the big run-around between Ryder, the repair center, and the towing company. Result: no truck swap, no towing to destination (120 miles away), and we didn’t get the truck back until a week later.
I understand Penske has the newest trucks of the three major rental firms.
Something else to think about is that gas is really expensive right now, and these trucks typically burn a bunch of it. I drove a smallish U-Haul pulling a trailer with a car on it from OKC to Houston (about an 8 hour drive in a normal car) and visted just about every gas station along the route. I swear I could stare at the gas guage as I was driving and watch it move.
So, you may wanna see if each company publishes the gas mileage of their trucks and go with the most fuel efficient one. Whichever truck you choose, though, just know that the amount you pay for the truck will probably pale in comparison to the amount you’ll spend in gas.
When i moved from Maine to Vermont a couple of years ago, i rented from Ryder, specifically from their commercial line, ironically because U-Haul were a bunch of morons and didn’t hold the truck i had reserved, and had no others available
so i ended up with a 24 foot Ryder, more than enough room to hold my single room of stuff and able to swallow my 13 foot kayak without a hitch, heck, if i had a ramp, i probably could have driven my Neon into the truck ;), and it had one of those cool hydraulic lifts at the back, as well as a side door, as a side benefit, it was a diesel, so the 300 mile round trip barely scratched the tanks, the only drawback to the truck is that it was a slushbox (automatic tranny) and i hate slushboxes, but if it had a manual, i wouldn’t have been allowed to drive it, because apparently you need a commercial licence to drive a 24 foot truck with a manual
this truck was as close as i came to actually driving a “big rig”, and it gave me a new appreciation for what truckers have to deal with being surrounded by “four wheelers” (cars), it had a massive blind spot, the brakes were touchy and grabby (a limitation of air brakes) and it handled like a whale made out of bricks
i was amazed at the number of four-wheelers that would tailgate me in my blind spot, and cut in front of me too closely, apparently the average driver doesn’t realize that these big trucks cannot handle well, OR stop on a dime, it’s basically like trying to bring a small house to a stop, if i hit them, they’d probably end up being squished like a bug, yet the idiots kept cutting me off and tailgating, i almost wish there was a remote control for the hydraulic lift, deploy it when someone’s tailgating and watch them back off…
sorry, off on a tangent there, what i’m trying to say is try to get a diesel, not only do they make a cool “diesil-ey” motor sound, but they get great mileage and they have gobs of torque, perfect for hauling heavy loads
wanders off simulating a chugging diesel motor…
I’d love diesel, if they happen to have em.
I can’t be the only one who sings Six Days on the Road while they drive the truck, can I? 
Oh, and just to help (if it matters at all), we’ll probably get the smallest (10’?) truck. Though looking at Penske’s website, the 15’ one is cheaper. WTF? I was thinking about getting a tow thing for the car, but it’d cost more and we’d need a bigger truck, so I figure we can just get some Line of Sight radios for about $50.
It’s been about a year since I last rented a Ryder, but I was unpleasantly suprised to find that the small truck doesn’t include a ramp. The larger trucks usually have a nice aluminum ramp that stows under the cargo area.
If you need a ramp, you might want to call ahead and check to be sure the small truck has one.
DO NOT rent from U-Haul.
I rented from Penske based mostly on price. Note, by the way, that prices fluctuate wildly—book a truck but keep checking back, and if the price goes down, book another and cancel the first. They claim that you can always rebook for the lower price later, but don’t think you can just go to them with a printed-out website as “proof” of a
later price; you actually need to rebook it when it’s at the lower price.
Aside from a little bit of stress over the rebooking thing, I was very happy with the quality of service at Penske, and the truck drove like a station wagon. It was great. Also, the people at the Midway Penske were happy to just drive me to Midway Airport (only a few blocks, but still) rather than let me walk or call a cab.