So Zipcar has an hourly/daily fee, but how is this different than renting a car?

I see a whole bunch of differences:

1. I've never been able to get a rental car for under 24 hours...even if I just need a car to do an Ikea run or go to a client meeting in the peninsula. You can rent one for a few hours, but you pay for the full day no matter what.

2. Zipcar rental rates cover the gas, the insurance and the mileage (up to 180 miles/day, I believe) within their fee. No hidden fees. No worries about not having insurance coverage already (which was an issue I always had because I don't own a car - I'd pay an additional $35/day + for coverage and I get some zipcars for $45/day under my business plan)

3. To get the really great deals at the rental agencies, you have to go to the airport or some odd location in Sausalito or the like. Otherwise, you will pay higher $75/day +. Zipcars are EVERYWHERE and are the same price no matter whether they are in SOMA or in the Castro. The price difference comes in if you want to get a really cool car.

4. Speaking of cool cars, they have Mini Coopers, BMW's, Volkswagons, Prius's, etc.! And you don't pay significantly more for the higher end cars...only a couple of more dollars/hour. You can go to a rental agency and *hope* for an upgrade to something cool, but I rented frequently in my past and never received an upgrade to a Mini Cooper. :)

5. And more speaking of cool cars, they have hybrids! The only rental car companies I found that had hybrids were FOX and EV rental - both are off the beaten path and neither offer great 'deals'. Plus, the insurance is a nightmare on these and they require you to pay with a full credit card, not your credit/debit (ran into trouble with that - I totally don't like using credit cards unless it's an emergency).

6. You can get a Zipcar when you want it, usually within 5 minutes...and you will be charged the same exact amount as if you book it weeks in advance. In fact, you can call your cool Zipcar number and book a car as you stand outside of it. Wait for a couple of minutes, then get in and take off. As long as another Zipster hasn't booked it, you are good to go!

7. You don't have to deal with a booking counter. Just a handy web form or call in system. No lineups or grumpy counter people. Kind of like that privilege they give to the 'special' people who rent frequently...you know...VIPs. At Zipcar, EVERYONE is a VIP. You don't have to be rich.

8. Zipcar is a community of people who have the same basic need: wheels when we want them. But it's also a community of people who believe in shared resources toward sustainable living. Because people who use Zipcar know about this system, they take better care of one another - reporting if someone left their wallet in the glove compartment. It's nice to know that I have a connection with other Zipsters.

9. Zipcar has all sorts of partnerships with other organizations that owning a Zipcard allows me to access.

I could go on (and I have!), but it's such a breath of fresh air to be part of Zipcar rather than having to rent from those agencies who just see me as a consumer and a dollar figure.