<p>Last week, DS was fortunate enough to land an internship from the end of May to the latter part of August at a company located in a suburb of Portland OR. We looked at several options:</p>
<p>No car - he could probably manage if he picked the right apartment, but even then the "tri-met" schedule, especially on weekends, didn't look promising. We thought it would be a good idea if he could explore the place a bit on his days off.</p>
<p>Drive his car from Pittsburgh to Portland - am really concerned if it's safe to drive this sort of distance, especially in an old car, even if one of us accompanies him. Really have concerns doing this.</p>
<p>Ship the car - about $1,300 each way and fly.</p>
<p>Rent a car - given that he's 18 I'm not sure it's possible; he's checking if his company has a deal with some rental companies to rent to the sub-25-year-olds, but even then don't know what sort or a premium they'd put on the rental rates.</p>
<p>Buy a car and sell it in 3 months. </p>
<p>What advice do you have - we're really looking at the rental option if it's even possible and the rates are not outrageous.</p>
<p>Might be cost effective to compare the cost of shipping vs rental vs trading in the old car for a newer one: one that gets better gas mileage, that you trust to make the trip there and back, and will perhaps get him through college and maybe grad school and other internships. A rental will not be cheap. I would take those costs and the current car and invest in one that you trust making the trip and more to come.</p>
<p>Congratulations
your DS will need a car to explore Oregon, be it a shared or individual car. </p>
<p>If the internship is with the big tech firm, there is a good possibility that there is subsidized housing and transportation. TriMet Passes (bus-lightrail) is provided free by his company. </p>
<p>Our DS managed without a car in Pittsburgh (CMU '06) for summer '04. But you cannot manage a summer without a car in Oregon - too much to see/do. </p>
<p>Be aware that Oregon has a 9% income tax but no sales tax. DS will probably pay both income taxes in PA and OR.</p>
<p>My daughter had an internship in CA last summerā¦and was just turning 19.</p>
<p>We found none of the major auto rental companies rent under 21ā¦but were incredibly surprised to find two local companies offered rent a long term rental as long as we had our own aut insurance.</p>
<p>SInce your D is probably an āaway from homeā addendum to your policyā¦the car rental will likely be covered.</p>
<p>I rented her a 9 year old Toyota Corolla for $550 for 8 weeks. First 2 weeks she took public transportation - but that was very difficult if the team was staying late ā she missed the bus/train combo. </p>
<p>Having a car gave her the option to shop and get around before and after work.</p>
<p>Google car rentals in the location she may reside and you will probably be quite surprised.
We had the car inspected by a local mechanic just to make sure it was in good running orderā¦particularly the brakes.</p>
<p>If you donāt trust his āoldā car enough to make the trip out and back then do you really want him driving around in it at all? Maybe itād be worth selling his existing car and replacing it with a reasonably priced reliable used car assuming his current car canāt reasonably be made reliable. You could then drive out with him and fly back and then do the reverse for the return trip. Driving cross-country can be a great experience and can be a good bonding experience with your S. Thereās a lot to see between Pittsburgh and Portland if you have a bit of time.</p>
<p>I suggest buying an inexpensive car here in Portland and selling it when he leaves. Our public transportation system is pretty good, but he will definitely want to explore areas of the state that arenāt accessible by TriMet. Summer in Portland is gorgeous - I hope he has a great time!</p>
<p>Iām a student, but just a thought - have you considered checking sites like Craigslist to see if you can find anyone who is willing to rent his/her car for a few months, wants to do a kind of trade, etc.? My older sister has managed to work out deals like this when she did internships in college/grad school through Craigslist.</p>
<p>Iām just a student too, but the most logical thing to me seems to be driving the car to Portland. You guys could make a trip out of it and see many beautiful parts of the country. Public transportation cannot get you to the more remote areas, which are often the most beautiful. If you think the car can make it, then this seems like the best option to me.</p>
<p>You could sell his older car at home and then fly out to portland and buy a slightly more expensive/in better shape used car there. That way you only need to do the cross country drive once. My parents did that one summerā we live on the east coast and used to spend most summers on the west. They leased a car while out there and drove it all summer and then drove back across the country.</p>
<p>Iām with curious123. I vote for driving the car out to Portland together. How many times in the rest of your life are you going to have an an excuse to spend a significant amount of 1 on 1 time with your son/daughter? It could be a great adventure.</p>