# New to Uber / Lyft - Is renting a car through Hyrecar worth it to do both platforms at the same time?



## MikeAW2010 (Feb 28, 2020)

I know you can't Lyft with Uber and can't Uber with Lyft (while we're on subject out of plain curiosity can anyone tell me if either company has the ability to track drivers who do this? Im just curious.)

Anyway - Its about $350 - $380 a week to rent for 7 days through Hyrecar. I've never done Uber/Lyft before either. My intent is to work 50 to 60 hours a week. I also have a full time job ontop of this but I'm flexible with when I can work that job. Basically I need some extra money to recover from some serious debts that I have incurred and am trying to figure out if this will really be worth it or if I will just be paying to work / no profit. I'm in the Austin TX area so not sure if they will hurt or help me either.

Let me know.


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## TomTheAnt (Jan 1, 2019)

I have no idea how much you can gross in a week in Austin, but damn... Paying 1400+/month to somebody just to be able to drive U/L is just insane, IMO. That’s probably, what, at least 25% of your monthly earnings? Damn...


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## IR12 (Nov 11, 2017)

MikeAW2010 said:


> I know you can't Lyft with Uber and can't Uber with Lyft (while we're on subject out of plain curiosity can anyone tell me if either company has the ability to track drivers who do this? Im just curious.)
> 
> Anyway - Its about $350 - $380 a week to rent for 7 days through Hyrecar. I've never done Uber/Lyft before either. My intent is to work 50 to 60 hours a week. I also have a full time job ontop of this but I'm flexible with when I can work that job. Basically I need some extra money to recover from some serious debts that I have incurred and am trying to figure out if this will really be worth it or if I will just be paying to work / no profit. I'm in the Austin TX area so not sure if they will hurt or help me either.
> 
> Let me know.


If your goal is becoming debt free, exactly how is it practical to pay for rental?


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## MikeAW2010 (Feb 28, 2020)

IR12 said:


> If your goal is becoming debt free, exactly how is it practical to pay for rental?


Admittedly this is kind of why I was asking here to see if others here went through the same thing and how they coped with it, or if it was worth it all.


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## Soldiering (Jan 21, 2019)

It's not. Buy a 5k Prii you'll be much better off. Or you can try it an most likely give up in 2 3 weeks. You will make no money an you will be dead on your feet ig you already have a full time job.

BTW, I log 40 to 50 hrs a week driving an gross 900 to 1200 a week. It's a gristle (hustle/grind). MHO


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## MikeAW2010 (Feb 28, 2020)

Soldiering said:


> It's not. Buy a 5k Prii you'll be much better off. Or you can try it an most likely give up in 2 3 weeks. You will make no money an you will be dead on your feet ig you already have a full time job.
> 
> BTW, I log 40 to 50 hrs a week driving an gross 900 to 1200 a week. It's a gristle (hustle/grind). MHO


I see, thats Gross and not take home correct? Im guessing take home would be marginally lower after taxes especially for me so basically half of my earnings would be spent just to have a car, not including gas.


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## Soldiering (Jan 21, 2019)

Yes that is gross.

Here in the PHX market it's about 125 to 140 a week in ⛽. Guber an Gryft have really hobbled our ability to make really good money. 3 years ago I grossed 3000 one week, now the most I can make is 1600.


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## KK2929 (Feb 9, 2017)

MikeAW2010 said:


> I know you can't Lyft with Uber and can't Uber with Lyft (while we're on subject out of plain curiosity can anyone tell me if either company has the ability to track drivers who do this? Im just curious.)
> 
> Anyway - Its about $350 - $380 a week to rent for 7 days through Hyrecar. I've never done Uber/Lyft before either. My intent is to work 50 to 60 hours a week. I also have a full time job ontop of this but I'm flexible with when I can work that job. Basically I need some extra money to recover from some serious debts that I have incurred and am trying to figure out if this will really be worth it or if I will just be paying to work / no profit. I'm in the Austin TX area so not sure if they will hurt or help me either.
> 
> Let me know.


----------------------
I believe that you can drive for Lyft if you rent from Uber. Check and see. 
The $350-380 range that you mention is huge. Personally, I think it is too much. How are you going to work full time and drive 50- 60 hours a week. First week or two - maybe. After that will be straight down hill. 
I believe that Hyrecar rents privately owned cars. Watch that there is not a limit per week on miles. You probably will not be able to keep the same car for over 1-3 weeks and the deposit is large. 
You are in Austin, Tx. Go to your city on this forum and ask local drivers is there is somewhere cheaper to rent.
Top of page under US -- find Austin in the drop down.


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## nonononodrivethru (Mar 25, 2019)

MikeAW2010 said:


> I know you can't Lyft with Uber and can't Uber with Lyft (while we're on subject out of plain curiosity can anyone tell me if either company has the ability to track drivers who do this? Im just curious.)
> 
> Anyway - Its about $350 - $380 a week to rent for 7 days through Hyrecar. I've never done Uber/Lyft before either. My intent is to work 50 to 60 hours a week. I also have a full time job ontop of this but I'm flexible with when I can work that job. Basically I need some extra money to recover from some serious debts that I have incurred and am trying to figure out if this will really be worth it or if I will just be paying to work / no profit. I'm in the Austin TX area so not sure if they will hurt or help me either.
> 
> Let me know.


Driving your own car is a tax write off, which is a much better idea.


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## MikeAW2010 (Feb 28, 2020)

nonononodrivethru said:


> Driving your own car is a tax write off, which is a much better idea.


Noted. My personal car isn't a qualified vehicle which is why I was considering Hyrecar.

Was trying to avoid buying a new car too


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## OldBay (Apr 1, 2019)

Soldiering said:


> Yes that is gross.
> 
> Here in the PHX market it's about 125 to 140 a week in ⛽. Guber an Gryft have really hobbled our ability to make really good money. 3 years ago I grossed 3000 one week,* now the most I can make is 1600.*


That is still pretty bad ass, fwiw. Is that 80 hours in the car?

In my market, I avg 1000 a week for 42 hours, but if I put more hours, my hourly starts to go down, making it not worth it.


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## nonononodrivethru (Mar 25, 2019)

You can spend $1500 a month on a rental and owe on taxes or spend $500 a month on a car payment and get it back in the form of a tax deduction. The choice is yours.


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## MikeAW2010 (Feb 28, 2020)

nonononodrivethru said:


> You can spend $1500 a month on a rental and owe on taxes or spend $500 a month on a car payment and get it back in the form of a tax deduction. The choice is yours.


Noted. The problem is, I dont intend to do it long term. Just long enough to clear my debts. After I were done I would still have an additional car payment.


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## Lil'Lyftie (Feb 23, 2020)

MikeAW2010 said:


> I know you can't Lyft with Uber and can't Uber with Lyft (while we're on subject out of plain curiosity can anyone tell me if either company has the ability to track drivers who do this? Im just curious.)
> 
> Anyway - Its about $350 - $380 a week to rent for 7 days through Hyrecar. I've never done Uber/Lyft before either. My intent is to work 50 to 60 hours a week. I also have a full time job ontop of this but I'm flexible with when I can work that job. Basically I need some extra money to recover from some serious debts that I have incurred and am trying to figure out if this will really be worth it or if I will just be paying to work / no profit. I'm in the Austin TX area so not sure if they will hurt or help me either.
> 
> Let me know.


I'm in the Los Angeles market. I drove for Uber years ago, and know what it does to your owned car. I did not want to do that to my car this time around, so I researched options, just as you do now.

The Hyre car quote you got is outrageous. You'll never turn a profit with that, especially if you plan to only do it p/t. You'll be working half the week only to pay Hyrecar, then another three days to pay for the gas. If you're lucky, you'll turn profitable on the last day of the week.

Comparing all my alternatives in the LA market, I found Lyft's Flexdrive to be the most cost effective (it's $179 plus about $15 tax in my market, with 200 "personal miles", which you'll use up just to position yourself and drive to the car wash). At that price point, Lyft was about $50 cheaper than the Uber alternatives, and much cheaper than Hyrecar and the other unaffiliated offers. Obviously, Lyft is subsidizing the vehicles in their program, because I already racked up 8k miles on my rental, and I'm barely three weeks in.

I found Lyft (in my market) to keep me so busy, I don't need to switch to Uber. And you're a fool if you mis-use your platform-specific rental to moonlight for the competition. They do track miles, and if you're "offline" working for the competition and crash, your included insurance is void.

Working almost f/t with my Lyft rental in the LA market, I clear about $1.2k weekly, which makes for profit (before taxes, but after gas) of a little less than $1k per week. But that's almost f/t, and starts me at 4am most days.

Riches ain't in the offing with these kinds of arrangements...


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## TomTheAnt (Jan 1, 2019)

MikeAW2010 said:


> Noted. The problem is, I dont intend to do it long term. Just long enough to clear my debts. After I were done I would still have an additional car payment.


Rental payment: 1400/month
Car payment: 350/month

You could make four months worth of car payments in one month and you would still have what ever is left over to pay your other debts like planned. In essence, you could basically own your car in less than a year if you take out a four year loan, for example. Plus you can deduct your expenses in taxes. Yes, you would have to deal with insurance and maintenance, but buying vs. renting would still leave you over 1000 bucks per month for that compared to renting that covers those.

And you don't have to buy a brand new car. Just buy a car that has a couple of years of eligibility left for 5K, or so. Plenty of choices in that price range.

Just saying...


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## Soldiering (Jan 21, 2019)

OldBay said:


> That is still pretty bad ass, fwiw. Is that 80 hours in the car?
> 
> In my market, I avg 1000 a week for 42 hours, but if I put more hours, my hourly starts to go down, making it not worth it.


Oh no, right now I'm sitting at 1100 and I've got 47 hours showingbtwn the 2 platforms. I'm out at 4 am an drive until it gets slow or I get tired. I don't try to kill myself or my car so usually don't drive anymore then 55 hours or so week


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## ntcindetroit (Mar 23, 2017)

Renting is best choice for beginners without tons of cash to waste. You could get deactivated, you could get into something you did not think of ahead. 

If you're a veteran commercial driver, than buying with your own saving fund may worth the risk to try to save a few bucks. Otherwise something like Hyrecar is an alternative, if you can build up relations with the owner and get better discount. 

I once consider to rent out my Uber/Lyft cars to other drivers, I still do. With my over 50 years driving experience since I first tried driving taxi at college, I still got black listed or deactivated PERMANENTLY from these two platforms. If you're not experienced like me personally. they may keep you a little longer than my tenure. Both deactivated my account in less than a month so I have too many cars in my hands now. Wishing you're near by, I'd rent a car to you though platform or not.


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## MikeAW2010 (Feb 28, 2020)

Well. I ended up buying a Prius, 2015 Prius C with 50k on the clock for about $11k, financed $13k $0 down - $280 a month payments with GAP.

I guess its time to get started.


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## OldBay (Apr 1, 2019)

MikeAW2010 said:


> Well. I ended up buying a Prius, 2015 Prius C with 50k on the clock for about $11k, financed $13k $0 down - $280 a month payments with GAP.
> 
> I guess its time to get started.


Son.... hate to be bearer of bad news... but you can't use a Prius C for lyft anymore.

They stopped allowing subcompact sign ups. Not clear if you can use it for Uber. It's not eligible in NYC. May not be allowed in other markets.


__
https://www.reddit.com/r/Lyft/comments/b7hdy0


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## Lil'Lyftie (Feb 23, 2020)

OldBay said:


> Son.... hate to be bearer of bad news... but you can't use a Prius C for lyft anymore.
> 
> They stopped allowing subcompact sign ups. Not clear if you can use it for Uber.


Oye. I wanna hear more of this. Better than prime time programming on Hulu.


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## MikeAW2010 (Feb 28, 2020)

OldBay said:


> Son.... hate to be bearer of bad news... but you can't use a Prius C for lyft anymore.
> 
> They stopped allowing subcompact sign ups. Not clear if you can use it for Uber. It's not eligible in NYC. May not be allowed in other markets.
> 
> ...


Weird. It seemed to accept the make and model and my insurance information as well. Both of those were accepted into Lyft.










Admittedly though if it wasnt accepted I would be crying right now. Lyft's website isnt explicit about any models outside of a vehicle with less than 4 doors being unaccepted.


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## MikeAW2010 (Feb 28, 2020)

I'm now in on both systems:


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## OldBay (Apr 1, 2019)

You're VERY VERY VERY lucky if so. The only possible explanation I can think of is that the car was previously used on Lyft and it is grandfathered in. If it is based on VIN and not the user account, that may be the case.


*Anyone else reading this DO NOT buy a Prius C, its not an approved car for Lyft (and Uber in some states.) The OP may be faking the screenshots, or he may have gotten lucky because the car was previously registered with Lyft.*

EDIT: I see that Lyft has modified the restricted subcompact list. The prius C used to be restricted, maybe overwhelming pressure or the toyota lobby got them to change it.


*Chevrolet:* Aveo, Aveo5, Metro, Volt
*Daewoo:* Lanos
*Ford:* Fiesta
*Hyundai:* Accent
*Kia:* Rio, Rio 5-Door, Rio Cinco, Rio5
*Mazda:* Mazda 2
*MINI:* Cooper, Cooper Clubman, Cooper Countryman, Cooper Countryman Hybrid, Cooper Hardtop, Cooper S, Cooper S Clubman, Cooper S Countryman, Cooper S Countryman All4, Cooper S Countryman All4 Hybrid, Cooper S Countryman Hybrid, Cooper S Hardtop
*Pontiac:* G3
*Scion:* xD


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## MikeAW2010 (Feb 28, 2020)

OldBay said:


> You're VERY VERY VERY lucky if so. The only possible explanation I can think of is that the car was previously used on Lyft and it is grandfathered in. If it is based on VIN and not the user account, that may be the case.
> 
> *Anyone else reading this DO NOT buy a Prius C, its not an approved car for Lyft and Uber in some states. The OP may be faking the screenshots, or he may have gotten lucky because the car was previously registered with Lyft.*


I can understand cause for concern but I'm definitely not faking it. I dunno anything about Uber / Lyft and the laws or protocols of what vehicles they do and dont allow outside of it cant be a 2 door vehicle (which is why I had to buy another car) but it seems like they would atleast give you a list of vehicles that dont qualify because their websites say anything with 4 doors and 5 seatbelts (05 and newer for Uber and 2010 for Lyft) and does not give any exclusions from that category. Not saying you're wrong just saying it would definitely be nice if they clarified something important like that before trying to sign up.

This is in Texas so it may be different in other states.

You can also see one of those screenshots was captured directly from my cell phone. There's no way I can fake that.


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## OldBay (Apr 1, 2019)

MikeAW2010 said:


> I can understand cause for concern but I'm definitely not faking it. I dunno anything about Uber / Lyft and the laws or protocols of what vehicles they do and dont allow outside of it cant be a 2 door vehicle (which is why I had to buy another car) but it seems like they would atleast give you a list of vehicles that dont qualify because their websites say anything with 4 doors and 5 seatbelts (05 and newer for Uber and 2010 for Lyft) and does not give any exclusions from that category. Not saying you're wrong just saying it would definitely be nice if they clarified something important like that before trying to sign up.
> 
> This is in Texas so it may be different in other states.
> 
> You can also see one of those screenshots was captured directly from my cell phone. There's no way I can fake that.


See my previous edit. They changed the list sometime in the past year. It used to be restricted. Notice that there are some cares on that list bigger than the Prius C and Yaris.


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## MikeAW2010 (Feb 28, 2020)

OldBay said:


> See my previous edit. They changed the list sometime in the past year. It used to be restricted. Notice that there are some cares on that list bigger than the Prius C and Yaris.


That's really interesting.

I'm guessing it was because of collisions and the likelyhood of passenger injury in smaller vehicles?

But yeah I got really lucky thankfully. I was looking for a list of vehicles that were and were not acceptable but couldn't really find one and assumed any 4 door sedan would work


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## ntcindetroit (Mar 23, 2017)

MikeAW2010 said:


> Noted. My personal car isn't a qualified vehicle which is why I was considering Hyrecar.
> 
> Was trying to avoid buying a new car too


Always wonder can you be a real independent contractor of an existing independent contractor of a rideshare outfit ? or at least, rent a car from that independent contractor if they trust you. Most ppl have no high regard or trust for rideshare drivers though.

Texas is a pick-up truck country, why would anyone buy with his own finance a Prius C for two rideshare platforms? I'd love to lent or donate one Toyota for you just to try out. Now you're stuck with more headaches than you know how to deal with the stuff you did not think of ahead. Nonetheless, if you're real into taking care of your debt, GooD LucK! The market is crashing, The virus is spreading. How to break even in a down economy? I'd use the money to short the cruise lines, and other transportation, energy related stocks in the coming months, if not quarters or years.

After checking some price quotes on energy stocks, I found the pickup they make in San Anton may be a good buy than Prius C. Some energy stock just got cut in half over the weekend. Haliburton, SLB and NBR all went down more than 20, 30, 40 or 50% earlier. Something never dreamed of. Cheap Oil, Big truck is the only way to go. Cowboy!


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## TomTheAnt (Jan 1, 2019)

ntcindetroit said:


> Big truck is the only way to go.


That's what I've been telling everybody the whole time I've been here. Tips are great, too! :thumbup:


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## MikeAW2010 (Feb 28, 2020)

Admittedly I believe I'm seeing why the Prius C was stamped out of the Uber / Lyft market in prior years. It can't get out of its own way to save its life. Great fuel mileage though. I'm not really too worried about owning a Prius over a Pickup (not to mention I don't like large vehicles). I have no intention on keeping it. I'm just going to sell it after I get back even grounded again.


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## ntcindetroit (Mar 23, 2017)

MikeAW2010 said:


> Admittedly I believe I'm seeing why the Prius C was stamped out of the Uber / Lyft market in prior years. It can't get out of its own way to save its life. Great fuel mileage though. I'm not really too worried about owning a Prius over a Pickup (not to mention I don't like large vehicles). I have no intention on keeping it. I'm just going to sell it after I get back even grounded again.


9
Wishing you good luck and you and/or the Rideshare algo. figure out how to best match your IMPORTED car with rider(s) who love(s) you as a person. You sound very bright by taking a very risky venture to pay back your debt by taking up a new loan? New threat of PERMANENT deactivation?


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## OldBay (Apr 1, 2019)

MikeAW2010 said:


> Admittedly I believe I'm seeing why the Prius C was stamped out of the Uber / Lyft market in prior years. It can't get out of its own way to save its life. Great fuel mileage though. I'm not really too worried about owning a Prius over a Pickup (not to mention I don't like large vehicles). I have no intention on keeping it. I'm just going to sell it after I get back even grounded again.


It's horrible.

https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/a19664551/2018-toyota-prius-c-test-review/
Problem with a car as slow as the prius, if you ever need to "get into it", you lose all the fuel savings, as noted in the C&D article.


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## MikeAW2010 (Feb 28, 2020)

OldBay said:


> It's horrible.
> 
> https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/a19664551/2018-toyota-prius-c-test-review/
> Problem with a car as slow as the prius, if you ever need to "get into it", you lose all the fuel savings, as noted in the C&D article.


Yeah, admittedly I should have did more research. We have 75 MPH speed limits here and you have to pretty much floor it just to keep up with traffic. it has NO pick up at all. Its actually a pretty unsafe car.

Are all Prius or other Electric Hybrids like this?


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## OldBay (Apr 1, 2019)

MikeAW2010 said:


> Yeah, admittedly I should have did more research. We have 75 MPH speed limits here and you have to pretty much floor it just to keep up with traffic. it has NO pick up at all. Its actually a pretty unsafe car.
> 
> Are all Prius or other Electric Hybrids like this?


No. I have a Ford C-max with 188hp and 0-60 sub 8s. I'm getting 45mpg driving it easy.

Most decent hybrids have 0-60s 8s or less.

The problem with the Prius is they made it a shitty car to eke out that last 5mpg. That was "cool" when average cars were getting 22mpg and gas cost $4/gal.

The real world savings between 45mpg and 50mpg is miniscule, especially with cheap gas. Its not worth sacrificing the cars performance for that extra 5 mpg.


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## TomTheAnt (Jan 1, 2019)

Looks like we might need @Dekero here to give the lowdown on the Prius... :whistling:


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## Dekero (Sep 24, 2019)

TomTheAnt said:


> Looks like we might need @Dekero here to give the lowdown on the Prius... :whistling:


It's a TURD. No more words .. move along!


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## TomTheAnt (Jan 1, 2019)

That didn’t take long. :roflmao:


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## SHalester (Aug 25, 2019)

Dekero said:


> It's a TURD


no it's precious. That's what my wife calls her prius. Her precious prius.


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## Laf118 (Dec 14, 2019)

I did the car rental thing through hertz Uber for about 2 months I wasn’t making nothing by the time I subtracted tolls and gas and rental well I was making about $400 a week not worth it.


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## Legalizeit0 (Jul 26, 2017)

Skip the Hyre car, you will never get ahead doing that. Plus, what is your time worth?

at $350 a week assuming you work 50 hours:
$7/ hour just for the car
$3/ hour for gas (if you get a good mileage vehicle)

If you gross $15/hour - you make $5 net. Even if you average $20/hour gross you only net $10 - but I have not seen too many markets where you can gross $20 on the full 50 hour week, unless you are not counting down time/travel time.


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## LADryver (Jun 6, 2017)

MikeAW2010 said:


> I know you can't Lyft with Uber and can't Uber with Lyft (while we're on subject out of plain curiosity can anyone tell me if either company has the ability to track drivers who do this? Im just curious.)
> 
> Anyway - Its about $350 - $380 a week to rent for 7 days through Hyrecar. I've never done Uber/Lyft before either. My intent is to work 50 to 60 hours a week. I also have a full time job ontop of this but I'm flexible with when I can work that job. Basically I need some extra money to recover from some serious debts that I have incurred and am trying to figure out if this will really be worth it or if I will just be paying to work / no profit. I'm in the Austin TX area so not sure if they will hurt or help me either.
> 
> Let me know.


You are going to get a lot of nay-saying around here, so take it with a grain of salt. What you need is the combination of arithmatic and a sample of experience. Austin may be a sustainable city. I do not know Texas but Austin is well-known and is the only city in Texas I ate a meal in. You have to seek out the local drivers to you, on this forum and up close and personal if any would share their stories with you. You need to see what you have by way of tourism, commerce, lodging, events, and so forth. Profit is never a philisophical issue so you should be able to decide for yourself. If at the end of the week you have more money than you started with and can pay one or more of yout bills then your goal would be reached. I think Hyrecar can be costly but that does not matter if you make income. Nobody tells the businessman to give up his office because hr rents it. Your office is the car. Good luck.


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## TomTheAnt (Jan 1, 2019)

LADryver said:


> You are going to get a lot of nay-saying around here, so take it with a grain of salt. What you need is the combination of arithmatic and a sample of experience. Austin may be a sustainable city. I do not know Texas but Austin is well-known and is the only city in Texas I ate a meal in. You have to seek out the local drivers to you, on this forum and up close and personal if any would share their stories with you. You need to see what you have by way of tourism, commerce, lodging, events, and so forth. Profit is never a philisophical issue so you should be able to decide for yourself. If at the end of the week you have more money than you started with and can pay one or more of yout bills then your goal would be reached. I think Hyrecar can be costly but that does not matter if you make income. Nobody tells the businessman to give up his office because hr rents it. Your office is the car. Good luck.


And if would've continued to read just a few posts after his original post, you would've noticed that he already made up his mind and bought the tiny version of the Prius.


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## LADryver (Jun 6, 2017)

TomTheAnt said:


> And if would've continued to read just a few posts after his original post, you would've noticed that he already made up his mind and bought the tiny version of the Prius.


Like I have all the time in the world. Prius C is an excellent car. I never used mine for Rideshare but I rode in some before getting the car.


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