Hiring a car can quite often be the cheapest option of transport when on holiday; especially if you are travelling with a small group or a family. Hiring a car means you won't have to pay expensive airport taxi transfers or rely on taxis during your stay. It is important to remember however that if you are planning on travelling a long distance in your hire car and want to save money you must make sure the vehicle you hire is an economy car.



With fuel prices in Spain much like the UK we can no longer expect to see good economy at the pumps. With petrol being as expensive as ?1.26 per litre the more economical your car is the more spare money you will have to enjoy during your holiday. The message seems to be taking care of our environment will also take care of your wallet.

Today car hire companies even have economy hybrid cars in their fleets. These cars run on combined electric motors and conventional petrol engines. Hybrid cars work by using the Petrol engine to run a dynamo which in turn will charge batteries whilst cruising at speed; but through traffic and when starting and stopping frequently the engine can be turned off and the car will drive seamlessly powered by the electric motors. This can be quite disconcerting at first because the car makes almost no sound what so ever, but when it is needed again the conventional combustion engine will start automatically.

Recent developments in technology have even seen cars fitted with tyres and materials which create less friction when in use or regenerative breaking which captures energy which would otherwise be lost when breaking. A staggering amount of energy is lost when breaking in a car in fact if you are travelling at 60 miles per hour and break to zero enough heat energy is produced to boil 2 litres of water. Hybrid cars use less petrol and therefore produce less harmful emissions; they are kinder on your pocket and kinder to the planet. The best cars produce less than 100 grams of Carbon dioxide per kilometer travelled.

If you specifically want an economy hybrid or very economical car it is best to book as far in advance of your departure as possible. By using our On-line search engine you can be sure of getting the most comprehensive and cheapest quotes. The search engine will return prices from over 25 companies providing car hire in Spain. You can then look into which package represents the best deal for you. As a word of precursory warning don't always go for the one which looks cheapest. Sometimes for a small amount more you can waiver any excesses; or they might have hidden extras which another company doesn't look carefully and shop through the several economy car hire companies on our search engine.

Many economy hybrid cars available today on the market can achieve around 65 miles per gallon when driven sensibly. This is more like 30 MPG in a conventional car; you could potentially spend half as much on fuel during your stay with an economical hire car. Even if a company doesn't offer hybrid technology you can save money by making sure the car you rent has an economical petrol engine. Check the statistics when you make your booking. By doing this you are going to make savings in the long run which will mean you have more to spend and enjoy during your trip.