Tried the U-Haul vs. Budget Truck comparison when I moved from Evanston to Logan Square last month

I rented a Budget truck cause it was $20 cheaper but man, that thing had zero pickup going up the Kennedy on-ramp. Barely made it to 45 mph and cars were flying around me like I was parked. U-Haul might cost more but at least you don't feel like you're gonna get rear-ended the whole way. Anyone else have a brand that just handled Chicago hills better for their move?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_parker7d ago

Dude, I feel your pain so hard. I did the U-Haul thing from Lincoln Park to Bridgeport last year and my truck sounded like it was dying on every single hill. The Kennedy on ramp is basically a vertical wall of anxiety. I had some guy honking at me and flipping me off because I could only go 35mph up the ramp near Fullerton. It's not like I wanted to be slow, I was just praying the engine wouldn't explode. At least you made it to Logan Square in one piece, that's a win in my book.

oliviagrant6d ago

oh man my buddy Tom literally had this exact same nightmare move from Rogers Park to Pilsen with a Penske truck. he got to the on ramp near Montrose and the thing just completely gave up halfway up. like the engine was making this sad whining noise and people were laying on their horns and this one guy in a minivan actually got out of his car to yell at him. Tom said he was just sitting there sweating and the truck was barely rolling backwards like some kind of reverse hill nightmare. finally some construction worker dude came over and showed him how to manually shift into a lower gear but by then traffic was backed up like half a mile.

anderson.david6d ago

Drivers honking and yelling because you're going slow up a hill with a moving truck sounds more like an overreaction on their part than a real problem with the truck. Every rental I've had crawling up those Kennedy ramps just becomes part of the experience, you just put your hazards on and let everyone freak out behind you. Far as I can tell, any of those trucks struggle with the grade until you learn to gun it on the flat part before the incline.