Autoblog

FlightCar offers free airport parking in exchange for renting out your car

John Neff — Sun, 24 Feb 2013 17:00:00 EST

Filed under: Etc.

Three young entrepreneurs from California have come up with an idea that could earn you free parking at the airport. What's the catch? You let them rent out your car while you're gone.

The start-up, called FlightCar, is the brainchild of three barely out-of-high-school business-minded individuals. The idea is to realize the possible synergy of people arriving for a flight with a car they need to put somewhere, and people arriving on a flight who need to rent a car.

The benefit to the car owner is that his or her vehicle is whisked away from the airport upon their arrival and then given back to them at the curb upon their return, free of charge. The car is cleaned and gassed up to pre-trip levels, and the owner even gets a gas card worth at least $10.

How about the renter? That person, who in this case wouldn't be a renter so much as a member of a car-sharing service (like ZipCar or RelayRides), gets a vehicle to use while in town at a much cheaper rate than a normal rental car. One example given by Boston.com, which published an article on the start-up recently, was a Volkswagen Touareg that FlightCar could rent for $30/day, compared to a BMW SUV from Avis that cost $210/day.

FlightCar is still in its infancy and only operating at the San Francisco International Airport, but that shouldn't dissuade you from participating as either a renter or owner. Each car is covered by a $1,000,000 insurance policy for liability, comprehensive collision and theft, and renters must even meet eligibility requirements. The company also only accepts cars with less than 150,000 miles that are model year 1999 or newer. Plus, the selection looks more interesting than what's offered at your average rental car counter, including a nice 2003 Mercury Marauder that's available to rent next week.

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FlightCar offers free airport parking in exchange for renting out your car originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 24 Feb 2013 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Translogic checks out Austin's impressive infrastructure

Jeff Sabatini — Sat, 04 Aug 2012 12:57:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Technology, Videos

Too often, discussions about how best for people to get around crowded urban environments turn into an argument, with cars pitted against bicycles, highways versus public transit and improving commute times challenging pedestrian safety. But not in Austin.

In this latest episode of Translogic, our sister publication looks at how the Texas capital has embraced multimodal transportation, choosing "all of the above" rather than picking any one idea on which to hang its transportation strategy. With as rapidly as the city and surrounding region has been growing - now boasting some 1.2 million residents - the need for forward-thinking transportation planning is acute.

From wide, pedestrian-friendly sidewalks to bike lanes, car sharing to public charging stations and light rail, Austin seemingly has it all. The city isn't sitting still, either, promoting such ideas as bike lockers in office buildings with shower facilities to encourage two-wheel commuting, and getting ready to launch a bike sharing program next year. Federal money to develop a high-speed bus system will further enhance Austin's transportation alternatives.

Scroll down to watch the full Translogic episode and see what they're doing to Keep Austin Weird... and green.

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Translogic checks out Austin's impressive infrastructure originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 04 Aug 2012 12:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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OnStar vehicles now ready for car-sharing through RelayRides

Autoblog Staff — Wed, 18 Jul 2012 14:16:00 EST

Filed under: Technology, GM

Nothing like a little rental income to help make the monthly payment on the Caddy, huh?

General Motors, which said last fall that it reached an agreement with RelayRides to make people's personal vehicles available for car sharing, is doing just that. Tuesday, GM said that owners of cars equipped with the automaker's OnStar navigation service can rent out the vehicles to RelayRides subscribers. Through the service, RelayRides members can now use their smartphones to unlock participating GM vehicles. Subscribers can also get access to the cars by replying to certain text messages. GM says its vehicle owners may be able to earn "hundreds of dollars per month from their idle vehicles."

RelayRides debuted its peer-to-peer car-sharing service in Boston two years ago and took the service nationwide earlier this year. GM reached its agreement with RelayRides last fall, saying at the time that all GM vehicles built after 2010 and equipped with OnStar would be ready for the service.

Continue reading OnStar vehicles now ready for car-sharing through RelayRides

OnStar vehicles now ready for car-sharing through RelayRides originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 18 Jul 2012 14:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Translogic tackles how Parisians share transportation

Jeff Sabatini — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 15:11:00 EST

Filed under: Etc., Europe, Technology

This week, our sister site Translogic heads off to Paris to check out the Vélib' bike-sharing and Autolib' electric-vehicle sharing programs.

Vélib' boasts 20,000 bikes and 1,800 stations throughout the city, where anyone with a credit card can check out a bike on the fly. More exciting is the EV-sharing program, which uses Pininfarina-built Bollore Blue Cars that are available to subscribers for rental at rates ranging between €9 (around $12 USD) and €16 per hour (@ $21). The program was launched in December 2011, with 250 cars and 250 stations, and though it has faced some problems, the number of cars is expected to increase to 3,000 by next year.

Click past the jump to watch the full episode.

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Translogic tackles how Parisians share transportation originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 20 Mar 2012 15:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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GM, RelayRides using OnStar to open up peer-to-peer car-sharing

Autoblog Staff — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 18:02:00 EST

Filed under: Car Buying, GM

General Motors has formally established its first-ever car-sharing gig by signing a deal with peer-to-peer specialist RelayRides. GM's head of business development initiatives, Bob Tiderington, remarked:

We could stand on the sidelines and watch or we could choose to participate and try to make it into a favorable business model, which in this particular case, we have.

General Motors intends to adapt its OnStar tech to facilitate peer-to-peer car sharing through RelayRides. With OnStar in their vehicle, owners wishing to join the RelayRides car-sharing program will no longer have to install a separate device that allows entry and use of the vehicle.

When the peer-to-peer scheme kicks off in early 2012, all General Motors vehicles built after 2010 and equipped with OnStar will be peer-to-peer-ready, says Tiderington. That's approximately 1.7 million vehicles that could transform into peer-to-peer automobiles overnight, at least in theory.

The breakthrough here is that RelayRides will no longer have to equip participating vehicles with an add-on device that lets a renter access it with a membership card. With OnStar, the service can be turned on with no more than a couple of movements and clicks of a mouse.

Continue reading GM, RelayRides using OnStar to open up peer-to-peer car-sharing

GM, RelayRides using OnStar to open up peer-to-peer car-sharing originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 06 Oct 2011 18:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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New kit enables you to rent your car out with an iPhone like Zipcar

Jeff Glucker — Fri, 27 May 2011 13:30:00 EST

Filed under: Etc., Technology

Getaround Car Rental System - Click above for high-res image gallery

A new startup called Getaround is looking to jump into the car rental business by following a similar path laid out by Zipcar. Getaround is a bit different, however, because the fleet of rentals are comprised of customer-supplied personal vehicles. This is peer-to-peer car rental, and we're intrigued.

Getaround co-founder Sam Zaid states that vehicles in the United States sit idle for an average of 22 hours every day. By signing your car up for use as a rental vehicle, you (and Getaround) can turn an idle situation into one that makes money.

The car sharing system works by creating a network of users that are connected via iPhone app and the Getaround website. Those wishing to rent their vehicles will receive a car kit that sits on the dash. When a customer has selected a car they wish to rent, you locate the car on a map and use your iPhone to unlock the vehicle. That gets you inside the car, where you can have access to a key hidden somewhere on the inside.

Rates vary by car, but the prices we've seen listed on the Getaround website seem quite reasonable. A Mini Cooper will cost you $5.50 per hour, a BMW Z4 can be had for $15 and you can tool around San Francisco in a Tesla Roadster for $50 per hour. The rate structure is a good incentive to keep people from putting serious mileage on your vehicle, but it also provides a fair deal at an hourly rate. Insurance is covered by Getaround thanks to backing from an unnamed provider, and it's full coverage.

Rental fees are broken down so that Getaround takes in 60 percent of the profit while the car owner receives the other 40. If you're interested in joining beta testing of the program, Getaround is currently offering the program to residents of San Francisco and San Diego.

If you don't mind the having to re-adjust your seat every time you get in your own car and you've got faith in your fellow motorists, this seems like a potential win-win situation for those looking to earn a few extra bucks.

New kit enables you to rent your car out with an iPhone like Zipcar originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 27 May 2011 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Zipcar gets Toyota Prius plug-ins ahead of the car's official launch

Autoblog Staff — Mon, 31 Jan 2011 13:33:00 EST

Filed under: Hybrid, Hatchback, Toyota, Electric

Want some data sharing with your car sharing? On Thursday, Zipcar added eight Toyota Prius plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) to its car-sharing fleet. The plug-in Priuses, which are not available for purchase until 2012, will be accessible to Zipcar members in Boston, MA, Cambridge, MA, San Francisco, CA, and Portland, OR. Zipcar's newest additions are part of a broad pilot program aimed at assisting Toyota in obtaining real-world data prior to the plug-ins' 2012 launch. On the flip side, Zipcar hopes to analyze the use of plug-in hybrids and assess the potential for a broader fleet rollout.

Back in 2009, Zipcar teamed up with the city of San Francisco to test a plug-in Prius. That car, which utilized a plug-in conversion kit provided by A123 Systems, offered up to 40 miles of pure electric range. The battery-only range of Toyota's plug-in Prius is limited to 13 miles, but Scott Griffith, Zipcar's chief executive officer, points out that "approximately one-third of our reservations are made for trips equaling less than 13 miles," which implies that those jaunts could be made in a Prius PHEV without using a drop of gas, as long as there's enough time to rechage between rentals.

Like all of the other hybrids in Zipcar's fleet, the plug-in Prius can only be reserved by the hour, with sixty minutes of seat time costing approximately $7.00.

[Source: Zipcar]

Continue reading Zipcar gets Toyota Prius plug-ins ahead of the car's official launch

Zipcar gets Toyota Prius plug-ins ahead of the car's official launch originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 31 Jan 2011 13:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: BMW, Mercedes experiment with upscale car-sharing

Zach Bowman — Wed, 29 Dec 2010 18:39:00 EST

Filed under: Etc., Europe, BMW, Mercedes-Benz

If you think that joining in on the car-sharing party means that you'll be stuck behind the wheel of a low-buck auto, prepare to be amazed. According to AutoWeek, both BMW and Mercedes-Benz are diving into the car-sharing world with programs designed to allow users to experience a slice of luxury without having to foot the hassles associated with car ownership. BMW on Demand will provide drivers with a 1 Series for as little as €16 per hour in Europe (around $21 USD/hr). Those wanting a little more room can opt for a 5 Series for the low price of €23/hr ($30/hr), including servicing and cleaning.

Daimler, meanwhile, is working on a similar program in both Austin, Texas and Ulm, Germany, though that program will serve up products from the company's Smart line. Users can reserve trim levels and colors on line or by phone, use the vehicle for as long as they like and drop it off in convenient car-sharing parking spaces. The time behind the wheel is automatically calculated and the user's bank account automatically debited.

Both BMW and Mercedes-Benz are delving into car-sharing to confront a growing lack of interest in ownership from younger generations and increased traffic in urban settings, even though some research has shown that the use of a single shared vehicle can contribute to the loss of as many as nine to 15 personal cars.

[Source: AutoWeek]

Report: BMW, Mercedes experiment with upscale car-sharing originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 29 Dec 2010 18:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: German inventors build car that comes when you call it

Zach Bowman — Tue, 19 Oct 2010 18:57:00 EST

Filed under: Europe, Technology

Researchers in Germany say they're now one step closer to bringing the ~~nightmare~~ fantasy of unmanned driving to life. A group of scientists have created a vehicle they call the MadeInGermany or MIG. Users can call up the vehicle via their smart phone or iPad and it will automatically chart the quickest and most efficient route to the user's destination sans driver. Using an array of sensors, the vehicle generates a 3D image of its surroundings, helping it to navigate around pedestrians, other vehicles and bicyclists. Should the user decide to take control of the vehicle, they can operate the controls via that same smartphone or other mobile device.

The researchers say that their system will make car sharing more feasible, thereby reducing the number of cars in cities like Berlin by as much as much as 80 percent. Call us skeptical...

[Source: Canoe]

Report: German inventors build car that comes when you call it originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 19 Oct 2010 18:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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VIDEO: Zipcar has $1 billion dreams... and 46 members per car?

Sebastian Blanco — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 14:00:00 EST

Filed under: Earnings/Financials

Zipcar's $1 billion ambition - Click above to watch the video after the break

How many cars do you think Zipcar owns around the world? Did you know it was 6,500?
How big could Zipcar one day become? How about a $1 billion company?

These are two of the numbers mentioned in an interview that CEO Scott Griffith gave to Fortune recently. Griffith also said that, today, Zipcar has about 300,000 members, which give us an average of about 46 members per car. To some of us on staff, that seems incredibly high, and to others of us, incredibly low. Either way, in order to reach the $1 billion goal, Zipcar will need to get to the one million member level, Griffith figures.

Before that happens, Griffith needs to convince a lot more organizations to adopt the Zipcar model. We know about how Zipcar can work for individuals - basically, easy car rentals by the hour - but Griffith is more excited about the behind-the-scenes operations. For example, people need to clean and maintain all 6,500 vehicles, right? The back-end work that Zipcar is doing today to make sure there is time in the schedule for all of these cars to be prepped and ready for customers when they want them will help tremendously as the company begins to add more and more electric vehicles to the fleet. Griffith says it is just a step away from scheduling maintenance to finding time to recharge electric cars:

"Our system is going to integrate very well with electric vehicles, and that's one of the things that governments and universities and corporate partners are very interested in. How are they going to schedule all of this and manage the logistics of having electric vehicles.

The next city to get an electric Zipcar, Griffith said, will probably be Washington, D.C. Watch the video after the jump to learn more.

[Source: Fortune via CNNMoney.com]

Continue reading VIDEO: Zipcar has $1 billion dreams... and 46 members per car?

VIDEO: Zipcar has $1 billion dreams... and 46 members per car? originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 31 Aug 2009 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nissan's plan for electric cars: buy the vehicle, lease the battery

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 14:02:00 EST

Filed under: Car Buying, Hybrid, Green, Nissan

Click above for a high-res gallery of the Nissan Nuvu concept

Remember when you were a kid and wanted that shiny new radio-controlled car from Toys 'R Us? The fine print at the bottom of the package almost always read, "Batteries Not Included." If Nissan's current plans go forward, that little saying may come back to haunt you when Nissan's electric vehicle goes on sale sometime after 2010.

Carlos Tavares, Nissan Motor Co.'s executive vice president for product planning and design, believes that in the not-so-distant future, we'll all be driving zero-emissions cars powered by electrons. When you make your way into the dealership to sign the paperwork, you'll be presented with two forms; one to purchase the car and one to lease the battery. Before we all get too upset about paying separately for our power packs, remember that filling up with gasoline will be a thing of the past as well -- in this particular vision for the future, at least -- so Tavares assures us that the overall cost to the consumer will actually be lower than it is today.

Another possibility presented by Tavares is car sharing, which is already taking place around the world on a very small scale. Instead of owning your own vehicle, you'd merely have access to one, time-share style, that would allow you entry into a garage full of vehicles from which to choose for your particular day's needs. To which we say, yeah... we'll see.

Gallery: Nissan NUVU concept - Live Shots

[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd]

Nissan's plan for electric cars: buy the vehicle, lease the battery originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 14 Nov 2008 14:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Daimler's car2go: Rent a Smart anywhere, anytime

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 16:59:00 EST

Filed under: Car Buying, Budget, Europe, Green, Daimler, Smart, Lifestyle

Click above for high-res shots of Daimler's car2go service

Cars represent freedom, right? Sure, but shouldn't that same freedom be available to those who can't justify purchasing their own car? Daimler thinks so, and has created a new pilot program called car2go that allows subscribers to rent a smart fortwo for just 19-cents a minute or less, depending on how long you need the car. The initial roll-out is taking place in Ulm, Germany and begins October 24. The cars can be reserved at a moment's notice from the internet, a mobile phone or in passing using an electronic chip that's given to the user upon the account's creation. There are no limits as to how far the car car be driven, and it can be parked and relocked wherever the driver's trip ends as long as it's within the city limits.

At the outset, there will be 50 smart fortwo's in use by car2go. For a trial period, only Daimler employees will be able to use the service, but the automaker hopes to expand to all Ulm citizens in the spring of 2009. We imagine the car2go service will expand into other locations based on how successful this pilot program proves to be, but don't hold your breath for smart rentals in the U.S. anytime soon.

Gallery: Daimler car2go

[Source: Daimler]

Continue reading Daimler's car2go: Rent a Smart anywhere, anytime

Daimler's car2go: Rent a Smart anywhere, anytime originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 21 Oct 2008 16:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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