Are you going on an important personal or business trip? Want to drive there, but don’t want to rack up the mileage and put more wear and tear on the family car? Then at this very moment, you are probably worrying about the cost of renting a car. But you don’t need to worry, there are many ways you can save money on car rentals.

Decide what size vehicle you really need. If you are traveling on your own, there’s a good chance that you can get away with renting a subcompact car for your trip. That’s generally the most cost-efficient way to go because the rental and the gas will be cheaper. However, if you will be traveling with a family or co-workers, comfort will be of importance so you will most likely want to upgrade to a mid-size car that can handle the demands of your passengers and ensure a safe comfortable ride to your destination.

Get quotes and ask about specials. Before you decide from what company you plan to rent the car from, get out your local yellow page listings or get online to find the best deals. Then locate a phone number and make a telephone call to get price quotes. Oftentimes, if you explain the reason for your trip and that you are calling around to other companies for quotes, each company will try to under-quote their competitors in order to get your business. Customer service agents do their best to get you to rent from them so be sure and take advantage of this by speaking with a live person first.

Ask if the rental club checks driving records. Many consumers do not know this, but when you give the rental company a copy of your driver’s license and sign the rental agreement and release, you are giving the rental company the right to check your driving record through the DMV. Many rental companies can increase the rental price or refuse to rent you a vehicle if you have multiple tickets or accidents appearing on your driving record. So be sure to ask about this before signing anything.

Learn more about hidden fees and extra insurance. When renting a vehicle from a car rental company, they each will assess small fees to increase the rental rate. Fees like vehicle refueling charges, cleaning fees, late return fees, and extra insurance can really rack up. In many cases, if you have your own insurance policy for your own cars, your insurance carrier will cover your rental vehicle for no additional cost to you for liability and collision. You do not have to purchase the additional insurance that car rental companies sell- these policies are often grossly over-inflated and useless.

Check with your company for corporate rates. If you are traveling for business purposes, the best thing to do is check with your corporate travel or human resource department to see if your company is eligible for any corporate rates with rental companies. Oftentimes, they will be able to provide you with a special code to use or a contact that will allow you to rent a car for a reduced price. You can hold onto this code and use it later for personal use if you wish and save even more.

Like people with other hobbies, many car aficionados would love the opportunity to get together with others who enjoy the same interest that they do. And, in the age of the Internet, forming a classic car club is easier than ever. In fact, starting a club today is a lot easier than starting any kind of club would have been twenty, thirty, or even five years ago. But, first, you have to decide what type of classic car club you would like to form. There are many forums, discussion boards, and the like where people who love classic cars already congregate. So, before you start a club, you first might want to search the Internet to see if one or more clubs of your liking, already exist. If not, then there are a few basic steps that you can take to get started.

Undoubtedly, the easiest way to start your new club is to take advantage of social media. For example, using a platform such as Facebook or Yahoo Groups, you can actually have a club up and running within a day. However, if you choose to use social media, the growth and rules of your club will be largely determined by the rules of the particular social media platform on which you create it. Therefore, if you want to completely set your own rules for membership and operation, the best advice is to start your own classic car club website.

The basics are simple. First, choose a domain name that you like and register it. If you want your club to be local, then append your locale to the name. Next, find an inexpensive but reliable web hosting company to host your website. And, lastly, choose one of the many free content management or membership management software platforms to publish your membership site on. If you are technically challenged, you should have no problem finding a student in your area to help you get your site up and running. Once your site is up, your biggest challenge will be figuring out a way to promote your web site so that people are aware of it. Once people become aware of your site, however, you can look forward to having years of enjoyment with your new community of friends.