Rental Car thread

[FoMoJo]

There are just too many gears.  Turbo engines don't need them.

It would be a transmission similar to what's in my Discovery Sport which works really well with the 2 litre turbo.  Smooth as butter.

City driving, it manages to keep revs around 1500-1700, just before boost trickles in.  Highways speeds it's in top gear at around 90-95kph (55-60 mph) with moderate acceleration.  By 110kph (68 mph) revs are at about 1750 rpm.

Best mileage I've gotten so far is 6.6 litres per 100 kilometers (about 35 mpg). 

From what I've read about some FCA products, they need to work on their mapping.

[CaminoRacer]

I rented a Sentra in San Francisco and was actually pretty impressed. Much better than what I expected from Nissan's current reputation. Decent power, steering was direct and had good weight, although not much feel. It drove well on the curvy mountain roads south/southwest of SF. Love the adaptive cruise control, but don't care much for the automatic braking or lane keep stuff. (At least it was just a warning beep for leaving your lane, no assist)

Android auto implementation was OK but it wouldn't connect if Google maps was already up and running with directions. Had to start fresh and search on the car screen, which is dumb.

[CALL_911]

I have a new G30 330xi right now as a loaner. I have to say, I like this thing. The steering still sucks, but it's better than the F30's. The infotainment is great (Carplay is fast, the screen is hi-res, it feels like a new computer), the powertrain is also excellent. I'm getting north of 33 mpg, and the thing pulls too. I like its interior, though its gauges are strange. I could see myself in an M340i.

[r0tor]

I can't fathom why the Cherokee has a "sport" mode for the terrain response.  There is absolutely nothing about the thing that would ever want me to drive it hard.

An "eco" mode would be better served.

[MrH]

I have a new G30 330xi right now as a loaner. I have to say, I like this thing. The steering still sucks, but it's better than the F30's. The infotainment is great (Carplay is fast, the screen is hi-res, it feels like a new computer), the powertrain is also excellent. I'm getting north of 33 mpg, and the thing pulls too. I like its interior, though its gauges are strange. I could see myself in an M340i.

Those gauges are unforgiveable.

[CALL_911]

Those gauges are unforgiveable.

Yeah they're awful. I love the gauges in my car by comparison

[CaminoRacer]

I just booked a 2017 BMW 330i on Turo. I'll see how it compares to the 2000 328i that we used to have.

I was tempted to book a 2016 Tacoma for this drive down to Vegas, but I'm sure the BMW will drive much nicer on the highway at 80+ mph.

[CALL_911]

It's very well suited for that job

[veeman]

I just booked a 2017 BMW 330i on Turo. I'll see how it compares to the 2000 328i that we used to have.

I was tempted to book a 2016 Tacoma for this drive down to Vegas, but I'm sure the BMW will drive much nicer on the highway at 80+ mph.

I've never used Turo.  About half the time I go on a trip by airplane I rent a car at the airport by one of the big rental companies (usually using Priceline) and I sometimes rent a car locally from Enterprise if my car is at the autoshop/dealer getting some work done and I don't have a loaner or I need two cars. 

I'm not interested in renting more higher end sporty cars or luxury cars.  I like big coupes/sedans when I'm just by myself (like a Chrysler 300) and with the family I usually rent a small to midsize SUV (my wife likes the raised ride height).  Maybe it's not worth it then for mainstreamer cars.  I don't know.  I like the unlimited mileage that come with renting mainstreamer brands from the airport and easy replacement of the car if there is some problem upon initially driving it. 

[CaminoRacer]

I normally rent from rental companies if  flying somewhere. This will be my 3rd Turo trip, and all 3 times I've gone with Turo due to the lack of convenience from normal rental car companies - I'd have to drive 50+ minutes to the airport to pick up or drop off my car, or they are closed at the times I want to pickup/drop off.

I've done Turo twice here in Utah and once in England. Always a good experience so far.

[r0tor]

Never heard of Turo... Looks like there is an Alfa 4c nearby that got me excited to maybe rent for a day until I saw a mountain of disclaimers and fees if you drive it hard

[CaminoRacer]

The BMW was pretty good. Very similar to my E46 in a lot of ways.

Pros:
- Turbo 4 cylinder was torquey and quick, sounded decent too. (But that was probably fake engine noise? IDK)
- Both the handling and ride quality was good.
- Interior materials are nice, although I haven't been in a competitor from 2017 to know how it compares

Cons:
- Was a bit less stable at 90 mph going through southern/central Utah than I would have liked, but maybe that could be fixed with some alignment tweaks.
- The iDrive stuff was merely OK. I prefer the Miata's system, which is similar with the knob but with much better menus and options.
- The seat bottoms were a bit too narrow, so the bolsters dug into my thighs. Had to get out and walk around every 2 hours. My E46 had flatter bottom bolsters which I preferred.

Here's the driveway at our VRBO rental house we had for the week:

[veeman]

It looks like your companions also used Turo to get German sports sedans.  A BMW, a Merc, and an Audi.  Did you guys plan it that way?  That's hilarious! 

Based on this thread I was checking out Turo for a rental for my upcoming conference trip to San Diego in a few weeks.  I usually rent Chrysler 300s but to rent one of those from the airport for 5 days will cost $450 whereas something like a Corolla would cost $300.  By using Turo the car costs the same per day but you save on all the airport fees/taxes you don't have to pay which is significant savings.  Renting a car from the airport is so easy however as it's either a short walk or a short shuttle ride.  The cost savings of Turo is not worth it for me because of that convenience. 

Turo for me would be great if I wanted a more high end sports car or sports sedan.

[CaminoRacer]

My co-workers own the Audi and Mercedes

[veeman]

I'm in San Diego for a week because of a conference.  I love visiting this city and try to go to a conference once a year here.  So anyways I reserve online a few months ago a rental car and pick the category where hopefully I'll get a Chrysler 300 which is my favorite rental.

Get to the counter (Thrifty) and they don't have any large premium cars (the category I reserved).  I ask about sporty coupes (like a Challenger, Mustang, or Camaro) but apparently those are more expensive (which is weird because I don't remember V6 versions of these as rentals being more expensive in the past).  She offers a Dodge Charger but I've had that in the past and didn't like it.  You would think it would drive similar to a 300 but it's more noisy, didn't drive as soft, and I just didn't like it.   She offers an Impala but I decline that as well.  I tell her I also don't want an SUV.  She offers an Infiniti Q something.  It's more expensive than the category I selected but gives it to me for the same price.  Haven't been in an Infiniti sedan in a while so looking forward to it.

I walk up to the spot and it's a QX50 (which is a compact sporty SUV) and I chuckle to myself.  Even the counter people don't know whether the Infiniti they have in stock is a car or SUV.  I've been in this car once or twice in the past as a loaner vehicle from the dealership I go to.

I've grown over the last week to really like this car.  Looks good on the outside and interior is great (super comfortable seats and nice dash/screens).  Quiet.  In sport mode, really quick.  Mag reviews have been middling because of so so fuel economy and loudish unpleasant engine noise under hard acceleration.  To me fuel economy is a wash on all of these cars in this segment unless you get a hybrid.  I'm averaging 20 mpg.  The engine under hard acceleration doesn't sound bad to me.  It's a bit harsh but it's muted and the ride is very good.  I'd prefer this sound to fake speaker engine sounds anyways just based on principle.  By doing some googling, this car in base or mid level trim is a pretty good price (high 30/low 40 thousand dollars).  It feels much better than a mainstreamer brand SUV and undercuts the German brands in price.

[Morris Minor]

Not a rental but I got a limo to take my wife & I from Heathrow to my brother's house in London: $450 total for the trip... & return 10-days later.

It was a new M-B E220D. The driver was a very nice guy, but not good at his craft and not a smooth driver... and we spent hours and bloody hours sitting in nightmare traffic and bumping over speed humps. We should have used the trains and dealt with lugging the bags.

[CaminoRacer]

I rented a Tacoma on Turo this weekend just for fun. We drove up to the Golden Spike National Historical Park today to see where the transcontinental railroad was finished. Then we drove 15 miles on a gravel road out to the edge of the Great Salt Lake to see the Spiral Jetty.

The truck has larger wheels/tires and I think it has a mild lift too. I think it'd be a lot better stock - the gearing is too high now so it's slow off the line and can't accelerate much in 5th/6th gear on the highway, has to downshift to 4th to really go anywhere. The gas pedal feels super mushy which is weird. Brakes are pretty bad too. Handling is okay.

The stereo is a JBL headunit but I guess it's stock. Not great for an OEM offering, looks like a slightly improved aftermarket stereo from 2010. Competitors have much nicer touchscreen menus and design.

Overall the truck gets us places but nothing about it is impressive. Everyone says they'll go 300k miles and more - that's a long time driving a rather average & not impressive truck.

[Speed_Racer]

Your final paragraph sums it up well. What did you think of the seating position? I've always thought it to be awkward for a truck

[CaminoRacer]

I don't mind the seats or seating position. A telescoping might be nice but I was fine without it. It is kinda funny to sit up high in a truck but only have an inch or two of headroom.

[mzziaz]

Are US rental rates still crazy inflated?

[Speed_Racer]

Are US rental rates still crazy inflated?

Yeah it seems all over the place though. I just ran a quote at my local Enterprise, $80/day for a Mirage, $150/day for a pickup. But sometimes they have no inventory for weeks out.

Pre-pandemic I used to be able to get a compact for ~$20/day

[CaminoRacer]

I'm booking a spring break rental with Enterprise in Florida today. $83/day for a midsize sedan (which they say Corolla or similar). Double what I used to pay.

edit: the price dropped to $73.50/day after I played around with the pickup time and then went back to the original time I entered. Odd. But I'll take it!

[Speed_Racer]

Oh I guess I have a rental review.

I had this for a short week in Puerto Rico: the humble base trim Nissan Versa. Honestly this is my preferred compact rental because of its ample trunk and rear leg room.

Engine and CVT weren't great - underpowered but at least not buzzy. We averaged 30 mpg mixed. The car's skinny profile was nice for PR's narrow roads. Steering and ride were light. Interior looked and felt decent considering it's one of the cheapest cars you can buy right now. Would have liked Android Auto, but it did have keyless start, a bunch of USB ports, power windows and locks as standard.

It was nothing spectacular, but I respect its honesty. It isn't trying to be anything except an easy to drive, affordable car. The extra interior space is a bonus.

[veeman]

Oh I guess I have a rental review.

I had this for a short week in Puerto Rico: the humble base trim Nissan Versa. Honestly this is my preferred compact rental because of its ample trunk and rear leg room.

Engine and CVT weren't great - underpowered but at least not buzzy. We averaged 30 mpg mixed. The car's skinny profile was nice for PR's narrow roads. Steering and ride were light. Interior looked and felt decent considering it's one of the cheapest cars you can buy right now. Would have liked Android Auto, but it did have keyless start, a bunch of USB ports, power windows and locks as standard.

It was nothing spectacular, but I respect its honesty. It isn't trying to be anything except an easy to drive, affordable car. The extra interior space is a bonus.

Recently Nissan has really upped their game regarding the design and interior quality of their cars. In the past I've gotten "stuck" a few times renting a Nissan Versa and hated it.  It's roomy but everything else about it sucked.  I haven't gotten into the 3rd generation one (2019) though but I'm assuming it's much better than the prior one. 

[veeman]

Last week for the first time I used Turo.  Figured I'd try it because airport rentals from the large rental companies are so expensive currently.  Used it twice.  In Las Vegas for a two day trip got a 2019 Mustang convertible (red with white vinyl stripes).  Beautiful car.  Unfortunately a bit too cold and windy for my parents who were with me for me to keep the top down while cruising the strip. Nightmare ongoing experience but that has nothing to do with the car and for a different thread. Also rented a 2019 BMW X3 for a ski trip with my fam near Salt Lake City.  Surprised how roomy it is and how smooth and quiet a drive it is.  I wasn't expecting it to drive like my mother in law's Lexus RX but it felt that smooth and quiet with better road feel. Damn, this is a nice SUV.

[CaminoRacer]

Oh I guess I have a rental review.

I had this for a short week in Puerto Rico: the humble base trim Nissan Versa. Honestly this is my preferred compact rental because of its ample trunk and rear leg room.

Engine and CVT weren't great - underpowered but at least not buzzy. We averaged 30 mpg mixed. The car's skinny profile was nice for PR's narrow roads. Steering and ride were light. Interior looked and felt decent considering it's one of the cheapest cars you can buy right now. Would have liked Android Auto, but it did have keyless start, a bunch of USB ports, power windows and locks as standard.

It was nothing spectacular, but I respect its honesty. It isn't trying to be anything except an easy to drive, affordable car. The extra interior space is a bonus.

I liked the Sentra I rented in SF last summer. CVT was lame and the touchscreen could be finicky (especially switching back and forth between the backup camera), but I was impressed but the driving dynamics, interior materials, and features for a car I'd normally assume is cheap and boring.

[CALL_911]

I'm in Washington state this week, rental is a 2021 (last gen) Civic sport with the 2.0L NA 4-pot. I really, really like this thing. It's fun to drive, has a nice interior, CarPlay, I think it's good looking. This has me strongly thinking about getting the next gen CTR.

[NomisR]

I'm in Washington state this week, rental is a 2021 (last gen) Civic sport with the 2.0L NA 4-pot. I really, really like this thing. It's fun to drive, has a nice interior, CarPlay, I think it's good looking. This has me strongly thinking about getting the next gen CTR.

As a daily?  I wouldn't

[CaminoRacer]

I have a Corolla this week. Don't care for it. Brakes and gas are too touchy. Door panel design isn't great, and the USB placement for apple carplay is an afterthought. But at least it has CarPlay.

The infotainment software might be higher quality than the Sentra I rented last summer, but I definitely preferred the driving dynamics of the Sentra

[Eye of the Tiger]

I have a Corolla this week. Don't care for it. Brakes and gas are too touchy. Door panel design isn't great, and the USB placement for apple carplay is an afterthought. But at least it has CarPlay.

The infotainment software might be higher quality than the Sentra I rented last summer, but I definitely preferred the driving dynamics of the Sentra

Driving dynamics .... Sentra?