In Reply to: bali car hire for bali-flores+back posted by 1971ramon on Friday, 19. March 2010 at 00:35 Bali Time:
Labuan Bajo and then back.
I would suggest flying to Maumere and then coming back overland to Labuan Bajo. This will take you 3-5 days depending on where you stop and what you look at.
There are a number of drivers available for this service/tour.
Once on Labuan Bajo you could go to either Rinca or Komodo Islands to see the dragons. (failing this I will send you a photo of my ex-wife)
From there catch the ferry back to Sumbawa and again do the overland section with a local driver.
Another ferry will get you back to Lombok and another vehicle ride. By this time you will hate vehicles and will never want to see one again.
As you have mentioned there is a hassle taking rental vehicles from one island to another. It is just an extra hassle that you will not want or need.
This trip will possibly take you about 10 days. It is well worth the experience.
When you have got that one finished have a look at a drive up through Sulawesi. You can fly into Ujung Pandang and fly back from Manado.