Drive Society Offers Unique Automotive Experiences in Classic, Rare Cars

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Car lovers now can rent a model they might otherwise have only dreamed of owning thanks to a new startup launched by a Cherrydale couple.

Drive Society went live earlier this month, and offers members the chance to rent cars like Ferraris, Porsches, Teslas or a 1969 Chevy Camaro. The club has nine cars available for rent right now, and expects to add more as it grows.

Danielle Schefer, one of the company’s co-founders, said cars have been a passion for a while. Through Drive Society, Schefer said she wanted to help other people get the same enjoyment.

“What we’re trying to do is give people a really broad brush of automotive experiences, because those are all very different cars to drive and to experience,” Schefer said. “It’ll really give people a lot of different driving experiences in a variety of cars.”

Those interested in renting a car must sign up for membership, then can purchase points on top of that to rent a car. For example, the Camaro costs six points for a weekday rental, 30 points for a weekend or 36 points for a full week. The member then is free to take the car away with them and enjoy it for a short period.

“So you would buy a points package as a member, and then use those points to drive whichever of the cars you wanted to, maybe on a weekend trip to the Blue Ridge Mountains or to the beach, or just to have it for a week around town to use it as if it were your own,” Schefer said.

And anyone worried about getting in a wreck needn’t, Schefer said, as the company has liability insurance to go on top of a customer’s individual policy.

“One of the hassles about buying these cars is it increases your insurance and you pay personal property tax and it depreciates no matter what you do,” she said. “So we tried to get rid of all the hassles and headaches of car ownership and really allow people to just experience the great part of driving and experiencing these cars.”

Already, Schefer said a member has borrowed a car for a weekend in the Pocono Mountains in Pennsylvania, and there is plenty more interest in other rentals. She said the club’s stable of cars are intentionally a bit different from the norm, and that members can help shape its growth.

“We try to find cars that are really unique, that are experiences you can’t have every day,” Schefer said. “So we have a BMW 1M, and there’s only 740 of those ever made. We have a Tesla Roadster, and there are only 1,500 of those in the United States.”

“We tried to pick cars that are my husband and mine’s favorite cars, and then what we want to do is as the club progresses, have the members help us figure which cars are the right cars.”

Photos via Drive Society.