I had to rent a car today because my car is in the repair shop. It seems I need to extend the rent one day, because the part was not available in the shop (it had to be ordered).
I rent a Hyundai Accent from local Enterprise Rent-a-car (across street from the car repair shop). The cost is $34.99 + plus tax. In recent months I thought about getting another car, but after this car rental, I think rent a car is a very viable option for us. We already have a car which I use for daily commute. My wife does not drive often. In case she needs one, I can rent a car for the day, and she can drive the family car. I think in extreme cases, we need to rent 40 (almost once per week) days, it will cost probably $1,500 for car rental. This is about the same as the sum of property tax + insurance cost of a new car (say a $18,000 Hyundai Sonata). Note I did not mention the actual monthly payment or the lump sum cost of the car itself.
Of course, if my wife needs to use car daily, this will be another story 🙂