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What's with Zipcar?
MrMrBen asks: "I've been seeing ads for Zipcar on the subway in NY. I didn't realize that it's actually out there and working. Apparently, you make a reservation on their web site, show up at the car, wave your membership card over the windshield and it unlocks for you. Does anyone know what kind of wireless network they use? Can they track the car while you're driving it? Have people been using zipcars, and what have their impression been? Is this the future of cars for city dwellers?"
flexcar does the same thing in different markets than zipcar, and predates zipcar (barely).
I haven't used one, but I've seen one in Boston. Zipcar has one of these cars located in a parking lot on the corner of Congress St and Boston Wharf Rd. It seems to get used often enough because it's not always in its assigned space. It doesn't seem like a bad idea for people who may not be able to afford to have a car in the city.
Lessee...
The wave-your-card thing isn't very sensitive--I've generally had to actually touch the windshield to get it to register. I think the tech is the same that a lot of companies are using for ID cards these days--a radio pulse, if memory serves, that the cards reflect in a particular way.
Flexcar is a direct competitor in DC now.
The web signup form is pretty slick, They're trying to setup a phone signup as well, but it's not available yet.
I'm a new driver--just got my license this summer. My girlfriend's car is a stickshift, which kind of scares me. I'm in the habit of getting around by bus & bike. Apart from direct utility, Zipcar is giving me a chance to get practice driving every couple weeks.
My second session with with Prius Pam at Alewife, which was fun! People who enjoy riding different kinds of cars might want to get a trial membership just to muck around, particularly once they get the Mini Cooper in.
My wife and I are pretty much the target market for ZipCar. We live in Boston's South End. Our car was costing us $600/month in lease, insurance, parking spot rent, gas, and parking tickets, and we were using it about 4 times a month, so we got rid of it. When we heard about Zipcar, we joined up.
Within a 4 block radius of us there are 5 zipcars, parked in various alleys and parking lots. Prices range from $6-$8/hour and @ 40 a mile. The cars are all nice economy cars (Beetles, Jettas, etc.) The website reservation system works incredibly well, and the people are very nice to deal with. Zipcar even hosts occasional get-togethers around the area (we went to one - an outdoor picnic at the DeCordoba museum - nice and not at all cultish as I expected).
My take on it? Zipcar is a great deal for people who live in a city, especially one where having a car is outrageously expensive such as Boston, San Francisco, or NYC. For many people, an automobile is difficult to give up. But like smoking, once you do you realize how much of your time and money it consumes, and how much happier you are without it - especially since so few people actually *need* a car.
I found a car was more a pain in the ass than anything else (I'm old enough that I no longer tie my self-image to inanimate objects I own), and for those few times when I actually need a car, Zipcar fills the need with a minimum of hassle and at a reasonable price. For longer trips (say, anyhting over 20 miles or 1/2 day) renting a car is cheaper...for now.
The crimes of eBay are a disgrace to it's pig latin heritage!
Zipcar is best for folks that don't want to deal with owning a car and only use it for short periods of time. It's not really cost effective for full day rentals (of course, I'm saying this while I have a full day rental today...). You can rent a car from Avis or Hertz at better rates for the whole day even if you add insurance and gas (which you don't have to pay directly in the Zipcar case). The tradeoff is, of course, that you have to get to a rental car place (the closest zipcar is a block away from my apartment). And deal with gas, etc. That's why, for example, I'm using it today for the wedding... I'm going to be coming home late from the reception, and I don't want to deal with dropping a car off tonight at a rental place, or with parking it overnight without getting a ticket. So, it's worth it to me to pay $15-20 more just for that ($65 vs. $50ish for a rental with gas+insurance).
But, for short trips, like to BJ's (which is far away from any sort of T/public transportation) or for the once a month super-stock-up-on-non-perishables grocery runs, it's invaluable and quite cost effective. Especially here in Mass... I just had two friends pay their excise taxes on their cars. Man, they were complaining for DAYS about that. My zipcar bills for 6 months adds up to their excise tax. Forget about insurance, gas, parking (or parking tickets with on street parking in Boston), maintenance, etc.
With Zipcar, you pay per hour (between $5-8 depending on their cost for the parking space) plus $0.40/mile (with 125 free miles on full day rentals). that's the other thing... long trips even for a short time can add up. And, you're indirectly paying for the gas and maintenance of the car. But, for short trips, it hardly matters. I always estimate costs for my errands by just adding another hour onto my reservation times. Generally, that works out to be a reasonable estimate.
The cars are generally well-maintained, clean, and easy to find. I have 5 cars within a 5 minute walk. :) It makes a huge difference to my quality of life in the city.
Sujal
politics, food, music, life: FatMixx
Sujal
politics, food, music, life: FatMixx
I don't believe they track cars, though I have called them and had them wirelessly unlock my zipcar when my smart card wouldn't work.
This works too:
1) Identify person with car keys
2) Beat holder senseless and steal keys
3) ???
4) JOYRIDE!!!!11!!1
5) Free room and board for the next few years
Donate background CPU time to fight cancer.
We've been Zipcar members in Boston for more than a year, and we're incredibly happy with it. It helps that there's a car that lives right in the parking lot of our apartment complex, but there's other nearby convenient ones too. We've had no problem getting the car when we need it, but it also seems to be gone often enough that we know we're not the only users. The technology they use is great -- works in a way that is almost indistinguishable from magic. And the people are nice and responsive, as are the cars, for that matter. Really, I can't recommend it enough for city-dwellers.
The only problem is that I lie in bed at night worrying that they'll go the way of Kozmo.
In the San Francisco area there's a similar outfit called City CarShare, although if I recall correctly, ZipCar is a for-profit concern; City CarShare is a nonprofit.
I've been a member for a year or so, and I love it. On the rare occasions I need a car, I reserve one via the web and walk a couple of blocks to pick it up. Every month they send me a bill. I don't have to worry about insurance, repairs, parking tickets, breakins, or any of the other car owner headaches. They even take care of gas; when the car is running low, there's a fleet card in the glovebox that lets you fuel up almost anywhere.
The drawbacks are pretty minor: If I need a car on a weekend day, I have to reserve a few days in advance. And the rates are such that if I'm going more than about 30 miles away, I'm better off just getting a car from Enterprise.
But overall, it's great! Since I live in an urban area, I just don't need a car very often, and so I end up saving a lot of money by just getting one for the few hours a month I actually use one.
Hi, I'm one of the engineers at Zipcar. Here are some quick answers to the questions you posted:
Does anyone know what kind of wireless network they use?
We use the CDPD network at the moment. One day, when we get around to it, we'll use GPRS. CDPD is slowish but all our packets are tiny (we use maybe 30kb per month per car), so it's fine for us.
Can they track the car while you're driving it?
For our members' privacy, we don't have GPS in the cars. We can sense the ignition, track the mileage, and keep up with who enters and exits the car, but that's about it. We don't want to know where the members are, and in two years we've only "lost" a car once or twice, so the benefit to us is pretty small. (incidentally, "Do you have GPS?" is the most frequently asked technology question for us.. people think we should have it because it's cool)
Have people been using zipcars, and what have their impression been?
I use it myself and I love it, but I'm biased. See the other replies from our members in this thread.
Is this the future of cars for city dwellers?
We'll see! (I hope!)