Car Rental: Didn't get what I paid for

[GreasyJack]

@Superhal

I agree with the above, the salesperson “mistakenly/on purpose” gave you the wrong car to see if you could tell the difference. But imho:

1. There’s really no way to mistake one class for another. When I rented a car, they listed all models in that class.
2. You should always get the smallest car available unless you are driving short distances. The gas savings on the smallest car would be about 20-30%.

I think this whole long thread pretty much disproves #1. Each rental company has different classes and different ideas about what cars fit into what class. I’d agree with you if the issue was that the OP paid Hertz for a “standard” car and didn’t get a car that was on the “standard” list, but the confusion here seems to be in the disparity between Hotwire and Hertz’s class systems which don’t use the same words. It’s also further complicated by the fact that Hotwire uses the term “midsize” which has a specific meaning in the greater automotive world, but the rental companies don’t use it that way.

I do suspect, along the lines of what Mdcastle says, that the Chevy Sonic is probably the car equivalent of the crummiest room in the hotel. It’s technically in the correct class, but if they can they’re going to save the nicer cars like the Corollas and Focuses (Focii?) for people paying full fare

[What_the]

@GreasyJack

I think this whole long thread pretty much disproves #1. Each rental company has different classes and different ideas about what cars fit into what class. I’d agree with you if the issue was that the OP paid Hertz for a “standard” car and didn’t get a car that was on the “standard” list, but the confusion here seems to be in the disparity between Hotwire and Hertz’s class systems which don’t use the same words. It’s also further complicated by the fact that Hotwire uses the term “midsize” which has a specific meaning in the greater automotive world, but the rental companies don’t use it that way.

I hear ya…maybe it will help that the local Hertz desk already tried to make it right as best they could. Then again, they can see they just wanted to make me go away and 10% was nothing to them.

[JRDelirious]

@GreasyJack

Granted, Toyota has gone and muddled things by making the 2014 Corolla a true midsize car, but the 2013 and earlier have 92 cubic feet of passenger space and 12 cubic feet of cargo space. The Sonic has 91 cubic feet of passenger space and 12 feet of cargo space.

Although to be fair, the EPA “cubic feet” benchmark does not seem to always take into account how actual human bodies fit into those cubic feet, if some of the cars I’ve been in are any indication.
But yes, like GreasyJack says, the car companies’ depiction of what is economy/compact/intermediate/standard/full/etc. is a purely in-house scale that has little to do with what the average consumer expects. Myself, I avoid “opaque booking”. And I even mostly skip regular online one-stop booking sites a-la Orbitz unless they can get me a good deal on a package of multiple services.

[runningdude]

@leahcim

In my experience, Hertz doesn’t even look at its own reservations when giving you a car. The last time I was there, having booked online in advance, they were asking me what I’d booked and then told me the price was about twice what I’d been quoted online.

I whipped out my phone, showed him the confirmation email with the quote price and he gave it to me (and a discount), but I had to ask. I get the impression that the desk guy has quite a bit of leeway with the price.
…

I suspect they work on commission. You have to stay on top of them, because they will do everything in their power to weasel out a few extra bucks. I had a rental car a few months ago while my car was in the shop, and I had to negotiate brick wall style to get them to honor the price my insurance company would pay.

They also needed to switch the car I rented after a few days - of course, after I filled the tank - and I made sure to note that I expected a fuel credit every time I spoke to them on the phone, and again at the desk when I returned it, because I knew they would conveniently forget otherwise.

[Ann_Hedonia]

@Amateur_Barbarian

I’ve had the reverse happen more often - book a midsize, get there, have them try to upsell me to a full-size, luxury, specialty, whatever… and when I decline, it turns out that’s the only vehicle available. I’ve driven one or two very luxe vehicles (in the Continental mode) for a base rental amount. Got a convertible Mustang GT once, too.

This reminds me of my best ever car rental experience. I think it was Hertz but I’m not sure…it happened about 20 years ago.

I had reserved a compact car in Reno. There was some sort of problem at the reservation desk which was causing extremely long waits. I was rather cranky when I reached the front of the line.

The agent looked at my reservation and asked me where I was going, I told him I was driving to Squaw Valley. He explained to me that he did not recommend a compact car at that elevation, apparently the thin air is an issue.

I braced for the upsell but his next words were " WE just got in some new Cadillac Sevilles and since you had to wait so long we’ll upgrade you at no charge.

And they meant new… the car had 15 miles on the odometer. It was the most totally awesome driving experience I have ever had and.

[What_the]

UPDATE: HotWire gave me $58 in HotDollars. That appears to be the dif in rates between a mid-size and lesser cars if not more. It also appears that I can use them for a hotel room without having to overpay or get something nicer than I want in the first place.

[Really_Not_All_That_Bright]

Good for them (and you!)

[Dangerosa]

At least you didn’t get more than what you paid for:

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2014/05/03/guys-driving-to-kentucky-derby-find-dead-body-in-rv-during-trip/http://www.foxnews.com/us/2014/05/03/guys-driving-to-kentucky-derby-find-dead-body-in-rv-during-trip/

[Really_Not_All_That_Bright]

Ew.