Iceland Ring Road Trip

Hard to find on the map

Normal car rental procedures are fine, but making changes can be somewhat troublesome.

Our first car inexplicably broke down. Despite many local mechanics checking it, no one found the cause. After contacting the rental company, they promptly arranged for roadside assistance and a replacement car. Even though it was completed by 3 AM local time, their responsiveness was commendable and didn't affect our schedule the next day.

Terrible experience! After completing the formalities and being informed that I had purchased the supplementary full insurance from the rental service, the female manager on duty tried to sell me paper maps, GPS, and various insurances, which I refused. Her attitude then became very unfriendly. The Vitara arranged for me was red and had over 90,000 kilometers. While driving from Seljalandsfoss to Skógafoss, I received a call from the rental company inquiring about the vehicle's condition and requesting an inspection the next morning in Vík. The male staff member sounded very anxious on the phone. After I confirmed that the car was fine, his tone noticeably relaxed. About an hour later, before reaching Vík in a mountain pass near the branch road to Sólheimajökull Glacier, the throttle stopped responding, and the car eventually stalled. When I contacted the company for assistance, they insisted without inspection that it was my improper operation that caused the throttle failure (later, the provided repair list proved it was a clutch failure). Due to the poor communication and rude attitude of the rental company, I terminated the service agreement. Thanks to the persistent efforts of colleagues from the rental service, we finally succeeded in getting compensation. The rental company's behavior was malicious, and their service before, during, and after the rental was very irresponsible and rude. I give them a bad review. First-time visitors to Iceland planning to rent a car should consider their options carefully.

First They did not have the vehicle we booked. They then said they were upgrading us and tried to give us a 9 person van. As you can imagine not ideal for traveling for parking or expense if gas. Not really an upgrade. Then they gave us an old minivan. Not what we had booked but better than the 9 person van!