[dsfyu404ed]

I'd like to add that when you aren't rich enough to own a specialized vehicle for every task you have to cater more toward the edge cases, for most people that interior size and/or higher passenger/cargo capacity than they need on a daily basis. Likewise nobody's gonna make their only car something with a 250mi range and a mandatory 45min break if you're going farther than that because it makes a 150mi round trip something you have to actively plan for (because starting on 50% will be a pain in the butt vs a 10min delay with a liquid fueled vehicle).

[Arbalest]

That's when car hire companies come into the mix. If you're not commuting those distances regularly, chances are you've planned the long distance in advance.

[volkl48]

Even if you have planned it in advance, car rentals get expensive quickly, especially if you want something more than a passenger car.

SUV/Pickup rentals are often >$500/week, AND the agreement will claim that I'm not supposed to take it off road, so if I'd like to go out to some hiking trailhead along the way, I'm totally uninsured if anything happens on that dirt road.

Adding $1000 to the cost of one of my yearly vacations adds up to a lot of money over the life of a car.

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On that same note, long trips are quite common for many Americans who don't commute those distances. My daily commute is 4 miles each way, I could bike it if the road had better infrastructure for it.

On at least 2 weekends a month, I'm driving 200+ mi each way, and my destinations typically do not have charging infrastructure (or paved parking lots). I know lots of people who do the same for their various outdoor hobbies.

[Arbalest]

I suppose I forgot how spread out the US is. Europe is just as spread out, but they have a decent train network. I'm from Australia, and our cities are a lot more centralised, that everything is either within 100km, or greater than about 500km. Well, except for a couple of cities on the east coast, most notably Sydney to Newcastle. Where I am though, there's basically not major centres in that mid region.