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car2go
Category: Hotels & Travel Car Rental Car Rental [Edit]
45 Water StVancouver, BC V6B 1A1
Neighbourhoods: Downtown, Gastown
(855) 454-1002
- Hours:
Mon-Fri 10 am - 6 pm
Sat 10 am - 5 pm
14 reviews for car2go
14 reviews in English
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Review from Veronica D.
Vancouver, BC
3/20/2012 1 Check-in Here
I've used Car2Go so many times it isn't funny. I would say the majority of our experiences are positive.
Some people are jerks and leave trash and muddy up the cars, but that's not Car2Go's fault. Customers are rude and have no consideration for public amenities. Use the sad face on the console to indicate you are unhappy with your surroundings! They are not psychic...
The only problems we've had were once parking down town in a parkade it didn't know where we were and it wouldn't send the signal to end the rental. So we had to get on the phone and wait 15 minutes and talk to them about it. A little inconvenient.
Another time we were parked on a residential street behind West 4th Ave and it wouldn't send the signal either, so after calling and troubleshooting they said lock the keys in the glove box.
These incidents were months and months apart though, so not common.
I think it's only a few of the cars that have problems with the GPS. This has only happened twice out of dozens and dozens of times we've used it.
As for the people complaining the car is not there when they get there, did you ever think someone else was walking to it at the same time? This has happened to us! We walk to a car and find out it's waiting for someone else and they just booked it while we were walking. Book in advance and pay by the minute if you must have that car now.
I use it when I want one way trips of about a kilometre and don't want to wait for the bus, or when I don't want to get a Zip car and walk there and drop it off and walk back. If Car 2 go was combined with Zip car and you could just leave them anywhere that would be awesome too.
I'm glad it's available and would rather have access to it than not, especially when trying to deal with downtown parking. It's not a problem in Car2go. -
Review from Tanya B.
4/30/2012
Overall, pretty good.
Great concept.
Could be greatly improved by adding cars (there certainly are not enough).
Also, the parking situation is becoming an issue. I recently had to pay $28 to have the car "RESCUED" from International Village's underground parkade where there's APPARENTLY no signal. There was a signal when I dropped it off...That really soured me cuz there aren't many spots to park it in Gastown.
Anywhoo. I don't own a car and it's pretty convenient and reasonably priced if you can locate a clean car nearby and can find a place to park it once you arrive at your destination.
I hope to be able to re-review at a later date with a higher star-rating. -
Review from Robin M.
Updated - 3/3/2012
Back in my good books Car2Go.
The cars are still getting junked out from misuse, but the customer service these sweet Texas-accented employees gave me after I had to change all of my credit card information was so excellent that I can't *not* give them back that fourth star.Listed in: No Car? No Problem!
2 Previous Reviews: Show all »
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1/3/2012
I don't know, maybe it's because car2go is so popular, but things seem to have gone downhill a… Read more »
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Review from Alison L.
Vancouver, BC
2/3/2012
Had I written this review 5 months ago, Car2Go would have received a glowing 5 star review. I signed up before the cars were even activated last June, and I spent the first couple of months enjoying the service and telling everyone and their dog about how awesome it was. I think in the first couple of months there was a few minor hiccups, but all was forgivable because for the majority of the time the service was everything that was promised: convenient, cheap and fun to use.
Now I believe that Car2Go is a victim of it's own success. In December they happily donated $22,000 to Canucks Place - a very honourable thing to do, and I'm extremely happy that my $2/year membership fee can go to such nobel causes. What this number really tells me is that there are now 11,000 Car2Go members, primarily in the Vancouver downtown boundary area. The problem with this is that at any given time there is an average of only 200 cars available (that's less than 2 cars for every 100 people who use the service). There is now way more demand than supply.
I think on average, every 1 out of 3 times I go to use the service I have an issue. These issues range from: not being able to find the car I reserved, the battery being dead because the person who used it before didn't turn off the lights, or there is just NEVER a car within a reasonable distance (I usually have to walk at least a km or take the Canada Line to get to one).
The worst bit out of all of this is that I always call the number on the card, and I'm starting to feel like a GIANT complainer about this service whenever something goes wrong...but if they don't know about the issues I guess they can't fix it right? Luckily they have some nice people at their customer service headquarters who will always apologize profusely for the inconvenience, but other than that they usually can't to anything else to rectify the situation except try and find a working car nearby (did I mention there are NEVER any around?). I hate being frustrated with a service that I've elected to use, but they've built this brand and made this promise to their customers and I feel they are failing to deliver. The odd 15 minute driving credit isn't going to cut it anymore.
How about putting some more cars on the road to meet your growing demand? I guess for the time being I can take some comfort in knowing that the decline in service isn't just on part of my own bad luck, because as it looks from other people's reviews, I'm not the only one who is left feeling less than satisfied. -
Review from Kenneth E.
Vancouver, BC
2/9/2012
What a cool concept if i ever need to use these cute little suckers, probably best for DT Van--plus easier to find parking instead of my SUV!
here's whats cool:
--pick up at hundreds of locations all over their zone, which is mostly Vancouver-based, W.41st as the most south, to DT, to westside and Boundary.
--just 35cents/minute, $13/hr, $66/day...the day rate may be on the high side compared to a rental car agency but less hassle & paper work.
--just the initial setup/registration is the minor hassle, a "15-minute" process including verifying w/ ICBC abt your 'clean' driving record.
--drop off anywhere
--includes gas & insurance
--don't have to buy gas until it's near empty; they provide a gas card to fill up when required to do so, and you get a bonus 15min. driving credit
--iphone app (or prob any smartphone) that shows you all the Smart cars available to rent -
Review from Crystal H.
Vancouver, BC
Updated - 1/6/2012
Moments after I wrote the below review I thought I'd give them another try. Very unluckily, the vehicle I reserved was not in the location it said it would be, both on the app, and in the SMS that was automatically sent to my phone. I walked up and down the alleys and blocks, up and over the blocks (it was near a bridge), and then gave up. When I tried to cancel my reservation through the app, I was charged a cancellation fee.
Ten days later, after a phone call and an email, I received a refund and a 15 minute car credit. I appreciate the sentiment, but after that rigamarole, I don't plan on putting it to use anytime soon.
I want to believe that this service works, because people keep telling me that they have great experiences, but alas, another time let down.1 Previous Review: Show all »
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12/10/2011
The idea is great. Getting a membership is very smooth. And more often than not, there are vehicles… Read more »
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Review from Ryan L.
Vancouver, BC
Updated - 2/24/2012
I give them credit for calling me back and at least taking 1/2 of that overcharge away. I look for understanding and common sense in a company, and I feel like I got some of that.
More points to make--they need more downtown parking spots. I want to drive to the Edgewater Casino, and there's no way to park near it--troubling when walking at 3 am with a load of cash.1 Previous Review: Show all »
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2/23/2012
I was charged a full day's rental because the door didn't register as shut all the way. I was… Read more »
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Review from Garth C.
11/16/2011
When I'm not behind the wheels of my own car - The "Climate Changer", you will find me in one of these little smart cars. Do I feel guilty for driving the equivalent of a land tank? No, it's just a great alternative for driving in Vancouver.
But Garth, you have a car, why do you use Car2go?
At $2/year which is donated to charity it's hardly a cost to keep. I'm often in town without my car and it's an alternative to a taxi. I drove from coal harbour to Broadway and Granville for $4 - cheaper than a taxi, faster than a bus.
But don't you have to return the car to where you picked it up?
Nope, park it in a designated spot in town or any street spot that is "Resident Parking Only".
But what if I want to go rollin' in my 5.0 with the rag-top down so my hair can blow?
Well you got a problem and yo I can't solve it.
Car2go is a car sharing service and the process is simple. First you sign-up for a membership with a one time fee for $35. You then call up ICBC and tell them to email your driving record to Car2go, you will get your access card in the mail (or you can pick it up).
Car rental is easy, first find yourself a free car. Normally you can walk to a park spot and they are there, if not check online or use either the iPhone or Android app to locate the nearest free car. Scan your card on the car to unlock then follow the instructions on the screen.
Drive to where you need to go then park the car in an approved spot and you are done, your credit card is only billed for the time you used the car.
It's a great idea, I never know when I'm going to use it but every time I do I think, wow, that was handy. -
Review from Richard D.
Vancouver, BC
12/1/2011
The concept is fantastic, but the implementation is somewhat lacking, so I'm going car2go four stars instead of the five it could get.
On the plus side, this is the first real car-sharing program in Vancouver. The other ones are more like "rental clubs" or something, because you have to reserve in advance, and you have to pick up and return the cars to designated locations. With car2go, you can pick up a car anywhere without a reservation, and drop it almost anywhere. It's like a bike share program, but for cars.
The car2go iPhone app really helps. You can see where cars are in real time, reserve one so you know it's there when you walk to where it is, and you can see if an official parking space is occupied or free.
Now for the downside. You have to wonder who designed the system in the car. You have to turn the headlights off before you take the key out of the ignition at the end of the rental. Otherwise, even If you turn the lights off after you take the key out of the ignition, the lights stay on and the car honks like crazy. Of course, there's a good chance you don't know what the stupid honking is all about, so if you get out of the car and end the rental, the honking stops but the lights stay on. Unbelievably, the car doesn't turn the lights off after a couple of minutes. What is this, 1991 or something?
My wife's first car2go rental was a disaster, because the battery in the car was dead, probably because the person before her didn't turn the lights off in the top-secret car2go approved manner. Unfortunately, there was just enough juice in the battery to start the rental, but not enough to start the car or even keep the in-car communications system going. She spent over 15 minutes at the side of the car, and made three phone calls to support before the rental could be ended and she could leave the car. You get the impression that they haven't really anticipated and prepared for how things could go wrong.
Oh, and bring an ice scraper with you in the morning, and a shammy to wipe the inside of the windshield. All the streaks from previous users wiping the condensation off the windshield make it difficult to see if the sun is shining at a certain angle. -
Review from Peter S.
8/12/2011
$8 to go from the Westend to Main and 30th around noon on a weekday.
Alright!
Sure beats a stank taxi for $13...
and definitely beats the $2.50 bus, skytrain, bus 40 minute gongshow.
All 6'4" of this dork fit pretty comfortably in the Smartcar.
Will update after a few more trips. -
Review from Sara D.
Vancouver, BC
11/16/2011
We use this thing all the time. ALL THE TIME. A lot of the time, it's cheaper than driving and paying for parking. i.e., $4 to drive to granville island, park in designated car2go spot.
I broke my foot in august right when car2go started up, and my boyfriend would get it constantly. Even if we were just going 2 blocks to the pub (awww). Going drinking? Leave it downtown. Going to work? Park it on the street.
A lot of the time we drive to my place late and it's still there in the morning to take to work. It's like our own car. And it costs about a trillion dollars less. -
Review from Marc D.
Vancouver, BC
6/13/2011 1 photo
* SMART idea *
We already have a few car sharing services here in Vancouver, but the issue I have with them is that you always have to return the car to the same spot. That isn't very convenient for certain types of trips. Enter car2go.
This new service lets you pick up any car you see available, wherever it is, and then drop it anyplace else when you are done with your one way trip. (Same model as the BIXI bikes in Montreal) It is kind of like grabbing a taxi, but with the convenience of it being a car you can drive yourself for a lower price than a taxi. It costs 35 cents a minute, but that includes all gas, insurance, etc.
The signup process was a bit of a hassle. After filling out the online form, I then had to contact ICBC to get a copy of my driver's record to show a clean driving history. That was a bit of a nuisance, but once it was done I got my card in the mail from car2go fairly quickly.
This is owned by Mercedes and all of the cars are SMART cars. Convenient little SMART cars (Photo: http://www.yelp.ca/biz...). While they haven't officially launched, there are already cars popping up everywhere - so convenient!
The thing I like the best about it though is that you can drop off the car in ANY legal parking spot that doesn't have a time limit on it - including all of the residential permit zone spots which are normally off limits unless you live in the area. VERY nifty and convenient.
And in reality the 10-15 minute drive around downtown on a rainy day costs much less than a taxi for the same ride. I'm liking it!Listed in: Travel is the spice of life, Cars
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Review from Daniel L.
12/28/2011 1 Check-in Here
Our first experience went smooth booking the car online, which gives you 15mins to use it or you go to the penalty box, it was dark and raining and not very easy to confirm that the car has no dents or scratches. So the ride into the city was more than 1/2 price of a taxi... Now coming out of downtown back home was a big pain as the mobile app wasnt very effective in finding a car close to us, the app needs allot of work. Never the less we found a car after a $5 taxi ride, we could have walked but the downpour won this game.. once again dark and hard to confirm the car was in top shape from the previous driver, but super easy system with minor issues that I am sure they will work out..
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Review from Yao C.
Vancouver, BC
7/16/2011
It was my first time driving alone in Vancouver and I needed a car for a night out. After browsing on internet, decided to try out car2go, which has low starting fee compared to other car sharing cooperations. The registration at their office in Gastown was brisk and I could rent the car immediately. It is a small 2-seater car and very easy to manipulate around, though the clutch is very sensitive and the ride was rather jerky. There were plenty of car supply around the operating zone and I did not have difficulty locating a car, finding a car parking lot and dropping the car off on my first try. The GPS was accurate though it does not have an audio property, so I have to take my eyes off the road to check the screen from time to time. That could be dangerous. On the whole, the experience was not bad, though I really hope they would further expand the operating zone to include UBC. I am sure it would benefit many students and staff at UBC to have such a portable car located on the campus.
