BRILLIANT Idea!! Why not use these cars for ultra-short car rental to tourists. Much better than just collecting dust.
Kreppa car rentals LOL.

It is popular – to bring trucks from continental Europe here. Especially among German UNIMOG fans. But it’s time consuming – you spend much time in the sea and not cheap indeed. Only if you really have special car.
From Britain? You can place your car into container and come here after it arrives. Or drive to Denmark. Or try http://hasso.is/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=16&Itemid=40

As “rentals” might scare clients – stay just with “Kreppa Cars” ;)
And go with three business – first rent 4×4 to run across the country – then divide into two groups – those who watch whales and those who would like to stay right there – where harpoon is! ;) I’m sure there will be more people in the second group. Or at least they would pay more. If the guys fly thousands of miles to shoot lions – they would pay a fortune to shoot (and most likely miss anyway) whale (or Sea shepherd)…

PS. It’s a pity that Íslendigur is just a museum now :(

There actually is another possibility with Smyrill line, a ferry company from the Faeroer you can put your car on the ferry in Denmark and have it transported to Iceland, with a short break on the Faeroer islands.
A colleague of mine did this last summer and spent 4 weeks driving around Iceland in his own car. This was considerably cheaper than renting a car in iceland. I met a man from Czech Republic in Iceland who was doing the same.
How to get to Iceland from the UK I do not know though.

I agree that local car rentals are just crazy.
But they’ve been charging these rates in euros all the time. Why? Cause you can not drive here with your vehicle! They have full monopoly and you have no other choice – except using bike.

But I can tell you where to get good 4×4 at reasonable price. And winter still not over (in fact – it’s much better now as days are longer). So check best deals with air tickets – but don’t book hotel/car over Internet ;)

i had paid an outrageous 3100 euros for a landrover for some 18 days back in 2006 (and that was a bargain), which to anyone with a regular salary coming from continental europe must feel like being skinned alive.

now that iceland should be more affordable, i went ahead to check the rentals (hoping to fulfill my dream of seeing iceland in winter) only to find out that it is not much cheaper, if at all.

i know, wanting much or more or clinging on to what you have is human nature (and especially corporate nature), but after years of taking tourists to the cleaner’s, perhaps icelanders could show some humility and appreciation for foreign nature lovers who, during iceland’s heyday, had given an arm and a leg for experiencing the beautiful eeriness of the landscape and would like to come again, while letting locals earn some income in these lean times as well.

Tuesday, December 9, 2008 09:36
1 US Dollar = 120.084 Iceland Krona
1 Iceland Krona (ISK) = 0.008327 US Dollar (USD)
Interbank rate +/- 0%
This means:
You buy 1 US Dollar : 120.084 Iceland Krona
You sell 1 US Dollar : 110.084 Iceland Krona
You buy 1 Iceland Krona : 0.008327 US Dollar
You sell 1 Iceland Krona : 0.009084 US Dollar
Median price = 110.084 / 120.084 (bid/ask)
Minimum price = 107.390 / 117.390
Maximum price = 115.400 / 125.400

ICB. Des. 9, 2008 09:36
USD Buy. 114,64
USD Sell. 115,18
USD Median. 114,91
Eur Buy 147,30
Eur Sell. 148,39
Eur Median. 147,48

ICB Median Rate Des. 9, 2008 09:36 111,7

So, what planet are we on?