Having just moved to Sydney earlier this year, we are, unfortunately, carless. While getting a car is definitely on our list of priorities at some point, living so central means it’s not really a necessity for us right now. We’d be lying if we said there definitely weren’t times where we wished we had a car though, out of convenience, sense of adventure or even for mundane tasks like moving. That’s where Popcar comes in.
What is Popcar?
Popcar is essentially like a subscription service for car sharing; you sign up to become a member, then only when you need a car you can hire one by the hour or day. There’s no need to worry about petrol, insurance, registration or anything, it’s all included in the price. You simply hop in and drive.
There are a variety of vehicle styles available, depending on your need. Vans and SUVs are available for times when you need to fit a lot of stuff, like when moving, while city hatchbacks and sports cars are available for times when you just need to get around the city in style. If you’re wondering what kind of sports cars are available (we definitely were), you can get models like the Toyota 86GT and FT86. Pretty sporty.
Want to go surfing, or have a few kids in tow? Popcar also has car options that come with roof racks and child-friendly facilities, so there’s something for everyone.
Our experience with Popcar
We had a Popcar for the weekend, and it was honestly so much fun. This was Kristen’s first time driving in Sydney so she was a little scared at first, but by the end of it, she was an absolute pro. We hired a Toyota Corolla (one her mum had a few years ago when she was driving in Adelaide, so she was comfortable with) and it was so easy to drive, and super compact, which was great for parking. We used it to drive down to Royal National Park for the Saturday and go on a stunning hike, and to drive over to Auburn to try out New Star Kebab on the Sunday.
The following weekend, Mel was moving house, so we hired an SUV to cart all of her stuff around. The car was a Toyota RAV4 and it was a pretty new model, so we still felt a bit spesh driving it around. With the back seats down, it only took us two trips to get everything over to her new place, so we’d call that a major success.
How much does Popcar cost?
Membership starts from $0 a month for a Standby plan, with the highest hourly and date rates, to $19.90 a month for the Often plan, which has the lowest hourly and day rates. Popcar also sends through regular specials and discount codes via email, so make sure you sign up for that to make the most of those reduced rates.
We’ll definitely be using Popcar again throughout the summer to visit some of the more remote beaches and coastal walks around NSW, and if we ever have to travel far to check out a restaurant or event. If you’re keen to hire a car for a few hours or a day at an affordable rate, you can check Popcar out here.
