Transylvania to Timisoara by Train

I’m planning a trip this June and will be in Romania for 4 days flying into Targu Mures from Budapest on the 4th and then out of Belgrade, Serbia on the 8th. I’m thinking of renting a car at the airport in Targu Mures and driving to Sibiu for the first night. Do a little exploring in the area and then spend the night in Brasov on the 5th and 6th visiting the area. On the 7th drive back to Targu Mures, drop the rental car and take a train to Timisoara. The morning of the 8th I’m hoping to get a van to the Belgrade airport from Timisoara with Geatours for my 12:50 flight, Geatours assures me that they can get me to the airport in 3 hours. The train schedule is causing me some trouble. I’ve looked at the scheduling website www.mersultrenurilor.ro and it gives me lots of possibilities to get there. I’m wondering if anyone has made the trip to Timisoara and can give me some advice on which train(s) to take to keep the trip as short as possible.
I had originally wanted to rent a car in either Targu Mures or Brasov and drop it in Timisoara I’m having trouble finding a rental company that offers this without a huge extra fee. One company offered to let me drop the car in Belgrade for an additional 1,000 euros! I have no problem paying a premium but that seems exccessive.

Locke

The easiest train option from Targu Mures to Timisoara would be the daily direct train.
For schedules, you can take a look at the web of the DB Bahn where you would see not only the direct train but all the options available on your travel dates changing trains. The web of the DB bahn shows the total travel time (including the time you have to wait between trains) so it'll be easy for you to see what's the quickest option on your travel date. Be careful with tight connections though.

Thanks for the info!
The direct train looks like the way to go, a first class seat is about $30us so that's good. My girlfriend is probably going to ask about the train, any idea what the accomodations are like?

Also, any recomendations on where to stay near the station since we get in to Timisoara after midnight?

Locke

any idea what the accomodations are like?

You mean how is the train like? First class cars are usually made up of relatively clean, separate 6 people compartments (three non-reclining seats per row); this train has no restaurant car so don't forget to bring some snacks (trip takes ~7 1/2 hours). It's better than on a bus, anyway.

any recomendations on where to stay near the station

You could try Hostel Nord (It's not actually a hostel, more of a budget hotel) or Casa Palace guesthouse.