Kia Rio - any good?

[Mendip]

I'm heading off to the UK for a month with the daughter in a few weeks and my usual source of a car is no longer available.

I need a car for four weeks and am amazed at the astronomical cost of car hire in the UK. I have found two cheaper paces in the North Somerset area; one does a small hatchback for £200 a week, the other for £240 a week. Both are offering a Kia Rio. That's as big as they offer.

I would like a big hatchback or estate ideally so am a bit reluctant to hire such a small car. I hate driving small cars as I have long legs. I've looked at some pictures on the internet but it doesn't really give a good idea.

I've never heard of a Kia Rio before, but £200 a week seems like a good deal. Are they OK?

Any experience would be very welcome.

[hallelujah]

It isn't just cars, believe me.

You'll be glad you put the hours in in Norway when you see the cost of everything mate!

[Loy Toy]

Are you planning to attend an Ashes Test mate?

Your daughter could cheer on the Aussies.

[Takeovers]

Not a big car. My wife just barely gets the bamboo poles in for Tinikling dance.

[Mendip]

^^ She would as well, the bugger.

I think the only Ashes match suitable for our itinerary would be at The Oval at the end of July... but England will have probably won it by then so it'd be a bit boring.

Maybe we will catch a Somerset game down in Taunton.

[Mendip]

Not a big car. My wife just barely gets the bamboo poles in for Tinikling dance.

That's what I feared. I'll have to Google 'Tinikling'.

[malmomike77]

A rio is a small hatchback.

Why don't you pay your mum as a driver and sit back and relax

[Mendip]

^ She's 87, it's a scary ride.

[malmomike77]

Kia have their own rental business. One is Marsh in Taunton. See if they do a kia creed. Estate for hire

[Stumpy]

I'll have to Google 'Tinikling'.

It's a Filipino stick dance. Actually fun to watch. My daughters did it very well. Katie23 knows.

[DrWilly]

Are you planning to attend an Ashes Test mate?

Your daughter could cheer on the Aussies.

first match June 16th

green if she does.

[cyrille]

She'll need to be either disabled or helping a disabled person.

All other tickets at Egbaston are sold out for the first four days.

Hottest ticket in town.

[cyrille]

Car hire is so expensive in the UK that these days people get on that internet, buy one, drive it for a few weeks and sell it.

A Kia Rio is certainly as good as you can hope for at that price.

[taxexile]

have a look here. i know someone that used this company and had no complaints.

2nd hand car hire for immediate overnight delivery
We offer the best prices on unlimited mileage Driving School Car Hire, with a unique profit share scheme that entitles you to bigger discounts on your next car. If you can find a better price we will not only match it but charge you 10% less.

This list is not all we have to offer, call us to find out what is not yet listed.
2nd hand car hire for immediate overnight delivery - Surepass Car Hire

[katie23]

It's a Filipino stick dance. Actually fun to watch. My daughters did it very well. Katie23 knows.

Yup, I know it. I've danced it a few times, including one on a raft/ boat during a river cruise (Loboc River cruise in Bohol Island). The bamboo poles open & close at a certain rhythm and you'll have to have good rhythm so that your feet aren't trapped by the bamboo poles. For more advanced versions, the music becomes faster or the dancers are blindfolded (I didn't do the advanced version). I've also done the "carinyosa" dance and some Igorot tribal dances (Filipino folk dances) - for school or work programs/ parties. There are probably vids of friends & I dancing the Tinikling & Igorot dances somewhere on FB. Hah!


^not the best or advanced version, but you'll get the idea. The movements are supposed to mimic the hopping motion of the "tikling" bird (buff banded rail).

[PAG]

Size wise, in comparison to Thai models, it seems to sit somewhere between a Toyota Yaris and a Toyota Corolla. Here's a review that might make your choice easier. One thing, yes leg room for you is important, but as you know in the West Country, kerb/car park size is also important. Sometimes worth sacrificing some comfort over compact dimensions.

https://www.drive.com.au/reviews/kia...arison-review/

[helge]

^^ Looks great and "easy" to learn.

The human equivalent to 'planking' in horse showjumping

[Joe 90]

buy one, drive it for a few weeks and sell it.

I concur, you might even make a profit!

I know a man who knows a man who might just might be able to sort you out a stylish "Summer fun " car!

Do it in style !

BTW sold as seen

[Stumpy]

It's the same situation in the states. If you are staying for an extended period of time many just buy a old used car and drive it. When they leave they turn it in and get a few dollars back.

Renting a car is quite expensive in the States as well even with corporate discount rates. It will cost you $50 a day plus gas and insurance.

[cyrille]

It's the same situation in the states.

I've rented in both countries, though in the US it was ​ about 12 years ago.

Car rental was about 70% more expensive in the UK.

[harrybarracuda]

Almost the worst month you could travel, when demand is high.

I'm looking at September/October instead - an SUV literally drops from GBP1257 to GBP257 on the site I'm looking at (Carjet).

[Stumpy]

I've rented in both countries, though in the US it was ​ about 12 years ago.

Car rental was about 70% more expensive in the UK.

I remember being able to rent a full size from Hertz for $19 a day. Now a full size is $80 and up and have mile limitations.

Now a days It's cheaper and faster to just do Uber if bouncing around locally. But long stay one really needs a car to do what they want.

[Mendip]

Thanks for all the advice.

When I last lived in the UK and worked regular offshore rotations I used to always rent a car during my leave periods because it was so much cheaper than buying. I seem to remember getting a Peugeot estate for around 70 quid a week, but a lot seems to have changed since the mid 90s.

Thanks for that comparison PAG. Maybe a Kia Rio isn't the end of the world. My only longish trip planned is to the south coast and that's only a couple of hours.

I'll check out your link Tax, thanks for that. And your idea Mike. Taunton is a bit far but surely Kia have dealerships in Weston and Bristol.

If I was staying for a few months then buying could be an option, but not for just one month I don't think. I would lose a few days at the start and end sorting out buying and selling. Thanks Joe... I'll consider your kind offer next time maybe... once you have steam cleaned the upholstery.

I used to always rent second hand cars from private local garages but these don't seem to exist much any more. There's a couple of places in Clevedon (the Kia Rio places) and not much else. All the others that come up on Google searches seem to belong to the big chains.

Cyrille, I don't think that £200 to £240 a week for a Kia Rio is a bad price... I just wish they offered something a bit bigger for a bit more. I can't be the only person who prefers a bigger car?

Everything seems to be such hard work these days... sorting passports, sorting flights, sorting car hire, sorting legal documents so I can take the daughter out of the country.

And another thing... the bloody cost of everything.

All three of us used to fly over to the UK for around £2500. This time it's cost £3700 just for my daughter and I. Last year we stayed in a small suite in a pub in Dorset for three nights for £525 (which I thought was steep). This year they want £1395 for five nights in the same room... bollocks to that. With car hire, a month in the UK will already be costing around 6000 quid and that's not including food or cider.

I can see why people go for package holidays to Spain.

[cyrille]

I think £200 a week is little short of miraculous.

But yeah, they're a bit small for any adult male not of Mao's proportions.

It's going to be a fairly short trip and there may not be many more like them, so yes, I can understand why you'd want something better.

As you've discovered though, it will cost more.

Quite possibly double, in fact.

So you pays your money and you takes your choice.

And you've always known that's why people go for package holidays in Spain.

[Switch]

If it’s just the two of you, take a look at van hire as a possible alternative? Vans these days are usually well specced, so you don’t lose too much on comfort. Most airports and ferry terminals should have a choice of rental companies.