Ever since I started researching this forum for ideas, I kept seeing a lot of suggestions to rent a convertible. We originally were not going to rent a car for our trip, but have decided to rent one for 3 days. We reserved a convertible since we thought it would be nice to cruise in style. Lately, I have been reading posts where people are reporting break-ins. Someone also mentioned that it%26#39;s mostly ';touristy'; cars that get broken into. Is this true? I know not to leave anything in plain sight or put things in the trunk before leaving the car, but this has me a little worried. We plan to visit the North Shore beaches, Pearl Harbor, Diamond Head and other attractions. Should we ditch the convertible idea and just rent a compact car?
Rent a Convertible?
No, keep the convertible. You%26#39;ll be glad you did.
Potential thieves will know you are a tourist, convertible or not. You%26#39;ve got the right idea....keep your valuables with you and not stashed in the car. Theft and break-ins are not as big a problem as you might conclude from reading this forum. Ther%26#39;re real but take appropriate caution, watch where you park, and you should be ok.
Rent a Convertible?
Get the convertible! Especially if you%26#39;ll be driving around the island. We rented one and were so glad we did. We even kept the top down when we parked th car anywhere, we just made sure not to leave anything in it. We never had any problems.
FYI - The only way to open the trunk is with the key/remote. There%26#39;s NO other way. No button inside the car or anything. Unfortunately we locked the keys in the trunk and thankfully the rental agency had a spare key to come open it for us. Otherwise they would have had to have a key made.
on my island I%26#39;m the biggest anti-convertible advisor, but on Oahu, I say YEAH it is so much more fun to drive one outside of Waikiki. In Honolulu, we put the top up, too much exhaust fumes to crawl down the streets following buses, etc..
If you were not going to drive a lot, only from Point A to Point B, I might say get a hardtop, but the sad truth is the Oahu car thieves are experts at all kinds of break-ins and as was said you cannot fool them into not recognizing a rental car. For security, follow the advice already given diligently.
ENJOY! I got mine on Priceline and was very pleased with the rate.
Oh, and don%26#39;t forget to sunscreen yourself or you%26#39;ll get burned, including your ears. For my part I preferred to wear a hat with visor.
Hi KamaainaK,
Any reason why you wouldn%26#39;t recommend a convertible on Big Island?
We were thinking of doing so...
Hi Kirsty,
none of the Big Island experts would, reasons being:
1) Safety and practicality
this is a more rugged island, with all the lava and hills, more suited to pickup trucks than anything else (but sedans work fine). We have the highest accident rate per capita of the state and if you do get knocked off the road in a convertible you are less likely to survive.
Two tourists died recently driving a convertible; the accident involved three vehicles, in two there were survivors or a chance of surviving, but the convertible drivers were DOA because with top down and your car flipped over off the side of the road ... it%26#39;s not pretty.
2) rural road conditions
We have a great many large trucks, trucks carrying lava cinder, tree trimmings, lava rock on road that gets spit out of truck tires back at whoever%26#39;s following, following exhaust, herbicide spraying along the highway, trucks full of chicken manure ...
3) need for A/C -- it is so hot that I run my A/C at all hours, including night and in winter.
4) fitting in, on Oahu and Maui they%26#39;re everywhere. On a recent drive across island I drove for four hours and did not see a single one.
While I did rent a convertible for a week here before I moved here, we were glad to trade it in; it was not fun like I thought it would be.
Oahu has this wonderful highway right next to the beach feel, reminds me of driving Pacific 101. On our island, the major highways don%26#39;t follow the coast with a few exceptions. Due to our lava terrain they are mostly inland and when you drive through lavaland the heat is intense, you don%26#39;t get the cooling ocean breeze.
oops, I forgot to mention the danger of falling boulders. Our main route across island cuts through deep gulches where rocks frequently fall on the highway ... if one ever hits my car, I%26#39;ll be glad not to have top down or soft top!
Thanks so much for your advice, I%26#39;ll certainly opt for a more ';practical'; option now (cheaper too probably!).
We%26#39;re also staying on Maui, Oahu and Kauai and are planning to rent a car on each island - are there any of the other islands where we should opt for ';practicality'; over ';fun';?
Thanks again,
KirstyEm
The Big Island is the most rugged and has the most open highway where you%26#39;ll travel highway speeds ... and we are undergoing construction like no other neighbor island (more open land), thus more trucking. Also no other island has the ragged sharp lava that we do.
Kaua%26#39;i and Maui from what I gather these days, you won%26#39;t be going too fast on those crowded roads ... I would try the forums for those islands, I%26#39;m not knowledgable enough about them to advise you there. It%26#39;s my impression though that convertibles are car of choice on Maui ... for tourists.
If you are super concerned about someone breaking into your rental, ask the rental agent if they sell some sort of protection/coverage for it. Many rental car companies offer what is called PEC - personal effects coverage - where they pay to replace what was stolen out of your car. You also may want to consider damage waiver - it will cover any damage the theives inflict on the vehicle. I buy it for peace-of-mind.
Hope that helps!
YES, get the damage coverage ... I passed on it, and after I met someone there who was dealing with a smashed window, I realized how dumb it was for me to try to save a few dollars.
We rented through Priceline, which gave us Alamo. I don%26#39;t recall any offer of personal effects coverage, but perhaps it was an option and they didn%26#39;t mention it.
btw, do inspect your car well. We refused the first one they gave us, because we would have been there an hour marking all the dings and scratches on the chart. (It%26#39;s HOT in that parking lot and no fun standing there inspecting.) They then offered us our pick of four other cars, so that was fine.
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