Life Hack: Mobicar Carsharing Service (Yabangee Discount Included!)

Istanbul is a massive city, there is no doubt about that. Although there have been concerted efforts to expand public transportation in recent years, there are still those times where life in the city would be easier if you had access to a car. That is where Mobicar comes in.

Similar to Zipcar and its ilk in the States, Mobicar is a pay-as-you go carsharing company that gives you all the positives of owning a car without all the negatives that come with it (I don’t even want to imagine how treacherous it would be to find parking in Istanbul). Need to travel to some industrial corner of the city to pick up a wayward package? Looking for a quick beach break on the weekend but don’t want to schlep up to Kilyos by public transportation? Mobicar gives you the freedom to do all these things on your own schedule.

Personally, one of the things I like best about living in Istanbul (and most walk-able cities with decent public transport systems) is that I don’t have a car and, thus, one less financial and logistical burden. But are there times when I would rather not have to negotiate in raised voices about exactly how much a taxi to Polonezköy will cost? Certainly. And, as a former Zipcar user in the States, I’m excited that a similar service is now available in Istanbul for when access to a car would just make life easier.

How exactly does it work? Mobicar is a membership based system – once your membership is approved, you will get a member card that is used to lock/unlock the car during your reservation. Members can reserve a car by the day or even by the hour (hourly rentals FTW), and car pick-up and drop-off is completely self-service. You make all reservations online and there is no limit to when you can reserve a car – shared vehicles are available 24/7 at convenient spots located throughout the city (Cevahir, Nişantaşı, Beşiktaş, to name a few). Mobicar not only has affordable rates, but they also take care of insurance, taxes, roadside assistance and every reservation includes gasoline. Even better, most of their cars are automatics, so no need to worry if you aren’t used to driving a manual.

And, to top it all off, Mobicar has generously offered a discounted membership to our readers! When signing up for a membership here, select “Promosyon kodu” and enter “yabangee” as the discount code. With this code, your yearly membership will be discounted from 60 TL to 1 TL, and you will have 50 TL worth of driving credits automatically added to your account. If you want more information about their service, you can visit their website and Facebook page. It should be noted, though, that Mobicar only accepts credit cards issued from a Turkish bank.