My brother is planning a one way cross country tour of the US from Charleston, SC to California. He’s 6 ft tall and has some back problems, so he is concerned about comfort. But he is also concerned about mileage and the resale value when he sells the car at the end of the trip. He is leaving from California for a round the world tour. Any suggestions?
Resale value? Why buy a car, just rent one that feels comfortable.
My vote is for renting one and being done with it upon arrival instead of fussing with potential car problems and trying to sell it later.
If he can afford a round the world trip then a few hundred bucks for car rental should be irrelevant.
I would either rent a car or buy a plane ticket. Buying a car would seem to add a lot of complications (what if he can’t find a buyer, sinking money into a repair along the way, CA emissions test problems, etc) while also not saving a lot of money relative to the hassle or the total cost of the trip.
Buying a car for this one trip seems unnecessary. This is the reason rental cars exist. He can rent just about ANYTHING. Tell him to find a comfortable highway cruiser and rent it. Then he can just turn it in at the rental agency in CA and walk away.
Before he buys a car…or rents a car…why not see if somebody needs a car transported across country?
My dad (AKA Captain Cheapskate) and my mom toured the US this way as newlyweds. He found somebody looking to get a station wagon from the east coast to the west. He didn’t get paid, but then he only had to pay for gas, and was pretty much given as much time as he wanted to get it there.
With internet boards like Craigslist, coming up with a scenario like this is probably easier today than it was then.
I agree, WHY??? But if he INSISTS, then a Crown Vic or a Grand Marq…Find one about 6-8 years old under 100K miles, and travel in worry-free comfort with room for ALL your stuff…24-28 MPG on the road, easy to sell at the destination…
How long will your brother spend in Cali before he leaves? It would be surprising if he sold it immediately, unless he is willing to sell way under market value. Also, he must make sure that the car can be registered in Cali. That means that it is 50-states legal for emissions.
Greyhound busses have very comfortable seats for tall people. And a ticket purchased for a certain lenth of time allows any distance or direction.
The next best, but very expensive, is renting, since you will be stuck with a very high “drop-off” charge at the end.
Years ago I toured the US with a $99 ticket from Greyhound; it was good for unlimited travel for a whole year. You can always take a few taxis for local site seeing.