Car hire for a trip from Darwin to Adelaide

Car hire for a trip from Darwin to Adelaide

by Graham Bird
(Oakland, CA)

all-wheel-drive

I'm planning to explore for a month (September-October) whilst driving from Darwin to Adelaide.

Her's the problem: even setting aside the cost, there seem to be no rentals that will allow me to do e.g. Oodnadatta or even modest side trips on unsealed roads. Any thoughts?

I've also looked at Wicked's buyback option (where one buys an old vehicle and then they buy it back after the trip), but it is unclear how I (US based American/Brit) could obtain insurance for my time there. I have emailed Wicked with no response to date.

Help! I REALLY want to spend a month exploring and having fun in the Outback.

Graham
Oakland, CA

Comments for
Car hire for a trip from Darwin to Adelaide

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Apr 25, 2011

Car hire & unsealed roads
by: Rita

Hi Graham,

I definitely understand your frustration!

You are talking about hiring a car. All I can say is that no car rental company will allow you to go on an unsealed road with a normal 2 WD car, let alone on the Oodnadatta Track.
I even saw an agreement that didn't allow an all-wheel-drive, like the one pictured above, go on unsealed roads. They just don't want their fancy cars get damaged.

Usually the agreements for normal cars say that you are allowed to drive a few kilometres (up to 10 or 15 km) on an unsealed road to reach a certain highlight, remote accommodation or campground. But that's it.

When you ignore the rental terms and drive a normal car on the tracks, you are going to risk your insurance coverage when something happens. Besides, it would be hard to get rid of the red dust in every crack of the car. I don't know what will happen if they see clear evidence that you broke the rules when you return the car. A fine? I don't know.

I know 4 WD cars are expensive to rent, but if you really want to get off the bitumen, you don't have much choice.

You could check out Discovery Campervans. This is a booking agency for the major campervan companies, so you can compare prices easily on their website.

So even if I say here on the Outback Guide that most tracks can be done in a normal car, dry weather provided, this is not possible with a hired car.

Driving from Darwin to Adelaide on the Stuart Highway, maybe also to Uluru on the bitumen shows you a lot of Outback scenery. However, that is probably not all you want to do when you come that long way.

Whatever decision you make, have a great time.

Rita

Apr 27, 2011

I'd like any other comments and experiences please!
by: Graham

Thanks Rita,

I'm wading though the options, and thanks for the clarification.

I'd welcome other's feedback and suggestions.

Cheers

Graham

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