I've used renaultusa.com to book my Renault Eurodrive lease for my trip to Milan, Italy. Don't overthink it, this is a long-term rental in Europe, works just like a rental, here are a few pros and cons:
Pros:
- can take the car anywhere like Eastern Europe (Czech republic, Croatia, Poland and etc), which regular rentals won't let you
- full zero-deductible insurance (better than that of a regular rental) so you don't need to worry about any dents or dings when you return the car
- factory new car
- factory gps loaded with Europe maps and bunch of great hands-free features like bluetooth and phone connectivity
- no fee for additional driver, so your partner, parents and kids can drive free of charge
- no one-way fees so you can pickup your car in Portugal and return in France and pay zero one-way
- hassle-free pickup and drop off, you know exactly the model you get ahead of time and no worries with the 24/7 road-side assistance
- they've been around for over 50 years, so pretty reliable in their service
Limitations:
- Because it's a tax-free program you have to reside outside of EU to qualify
- Can't modify the car color or options (but you can check the standard specs for the model so you know what's included)
- Have to book early in advance otherwise the models get limited, for example if you want a car with winter tires
- 40 locations in Europe where you can pickup/return, so have to make sure this fits with your travel plans, here's the map of their centers
http://renaultusa.com/MapsOfLocations.asp- Min duration is 21 days and max is 6 months unless you are a teacher, student, researcher or journalist going to Europe for a training or an assignment then you can lease for up to 1-2 years
All-in-all our experience was great, the only issue we had was a flat tire in Tuscany when we drove off the beaten path but their assistance was quick to send a tow truck to get us back on the road (which was all covered by the insurance), so crisis averted.