Purchasing Sun Pass before you go ?

[ash2005]

We are flying into Miami and hiring a car before driving up to Orlando.

We have done this around 10 years ago. At that stage you could still pay your tolls by cash.

The car hire company are looking to charge over $100 for Sunpass. Howver I have looked at Sunpass website and see you cab pre purchase a Sunpass for $4.99. You then set up an account and pay your tolls from this.

Has anyone recent experience of doing this ?

[Gryff]

We have our own just register the hire car on line and keep,it topped up never had an issue
Just remember to delete the car on return at the airport if you are using it again

[Goldmember]

You need the licenseplate number to activate it. So you can’t do it before arrival.
Buy a sticker (difficult to remove) at CVS or Publix or mobile transponder ( easy to remove and use again $20,- ) download the app and register.
The rental car company will only charge for the first day.

[shack69]

i think this is a great idea as i believe the hire companies charge an admin fee and then you also get charged at the Cash rate, but with the sunpass you get the lower rate. So even if i but the sticker for $5 its going to be cheaper as i believe avis charge $3.95 per day or $19.95 max plus toll charges.

[fredflintstone]

Originally Posted by Goldmember

You need the licenseplate number to activate it. So you can’t do it before arrival.
Buy a sticker (difficult to remove) at CVS or Publix or mobile transponder ( easy to remove and use again $20,- ) download the app and register.
The rental car company will only charge for the first day.

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That depends on the rental company. Alamo only charge for the days you use it but AVIS charge for every day of the rental upto a max of $19.95 a month.

[ChrisS]

Originally Posted by ash2005

We are flying into Miami and hiring a car before driving up to Orlando.

We have done this around 10 years ago. At that stage you could still pay your tolls by cash.

The car hire company are looking to charge over $100 for Sunpass. Howver I have looked at Sunpass website and see you cab pre purchase a Sunpass for $4.99. You then set up an account and pay your tolls from this.

Has anyone recent experience of doing this ?

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Hi ash... alternatively use Google maps, click on 'directions' then 'options' and route yourself via avoid: 'tolls'. HERE'S an example.

[foxhillsteve]

Hi, I've doing a similar thing in that I today received my portable Sunpass that I bought via eBay for my holiday in August when I fly into Miami, where I pick up a rental car with Dollar.

I'm going to register it this weekend, I've read it needs a US address for registration, not sure what I will put in, unless someone has any guidance (? Address of rented villa?.

I also planned to add the rental car license plate to the Sunpass app whilst picking up the car from Miami airport. I have a UK three SIM card and planned to use the app on my phone using this three SIM. I've read somewhere some people have trouble with getting a mobile signal in the car parking garage, this would seriously cause me an issue as I would not be able to register the license plate on the Sunpass app.

Has anyone got any experience of doing this with a three SIM card and had any issues/had no problem. Is there free WiFi in the car rental centre at Miami airport?

[Gryff]

We sometimes have to register ours when we get to the villa but one of us has nipped back to the terminal when we've got the car reg in the garage and registered it
By the time the driver has loaded the bags adjusted the seat mirrors workedcout the parking break found the petrol cap release and media system I'm usually back on my own I go back to get cold water a comfort stop etc worth it I'm 3 never had an issue

[ianc]

In my view you seem to be involving yourself in a lot of faffing around for little benefit.

The toll road is the Turnpike and only the southern section (Homestead Extension) has 'no cash' tolls. You either don't need to go on that bit, or it is easy to avoid. The cash toll will be about $20. The Sunpass toll will be about $15, to which you need to add the cost of your getting your own pass (plus time spent doing that) or the rental companies fee. For a return trip that is about $40.

If you follow ChrisS's advice and choose one of the 'no toll' routes, then you save $40. Furthermore, if you are staying in a villa, you are not likely to be going to Orlando, as in his example, but somewhere nearer Championsgate (which is not near the Turnpike). The journey time to there along the US27 is just under 4 hrs - only 12 minutes longer than the Turnpike.

Although the speed limit on the US27 is a bit less than the Turnpike, it is more direct, so a shorter distance, which is why the time is not much different. It has some traffic lights, but so does the Turnpike route before/after the Turnpike. Depending on what you are planning, most visitors probably won't be going on toll roads very much once in Central Florida.

The US-27 is my preferred route, which I've done myself. It is a good fast free-flowing 4 or 6 lane dual carriageway. The built-up areas it goes through are very small, not major conurbations with traffic hold-ups. Why waste $40?

[foxhillsteve]

Originally Posted by Gryff

We sometimes have to register ours when we get to the villa but one of us has nipped back to the terminal when we've got the car reg in the garage and registered it
By the time the driver has loaded the bags adjusted the seat mirrors workedcout the parking break found the petrol cap release and media system I'm usually back on my own I go back to get cold water a comfort stop etc worth it I'm 3 never had an issue

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Did you get a three mobile signal from within the Miami airport car hire garage so could register the car liceset plate from the mobile app?

For those who have done this before, when it asks for address, can you put in your UK one?