Hertz - Hertz Albany airport is the worst...

Just picked up my $500 one week rental in Albany NY (airport). They use Toyota Corollas as there intermediate cars. No other choices available. They said it is just like a Mazda 6. The one they gave me has over 47,000 miles on it and smells like a smoky tavern. Stains and scratches galore. It reminded me of the old "Rent a Wreck" chain. The manager was useless as he was upset that I interupted his newspaper reading. Tried to charge me 25 for the Sirius I didn't reserve. I'm Hertz Gold and have never been treated this poorly by Hertz anywhere but this location is the pits. I hope its not the start of a trend. Then again, maybe back to National for me.

Corollas have been intermediate cars for years.

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry8703e/4.1.0 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/104)

Just picked up my $500 one week rental in Albany NY (airport). They use Toyota Corollas as there intermediate cars. No other choices available. They said it is just like a Mazda 6. The one they gave me has over 47,000 miles on it and smells like a smoky tavern. Stains and scratches galore. It reminded me of the old "Rent a Wreck" chain. The manager was useless as he was upset that I interupted his newspaper reading. Tried to charge me 25 for the Sirius I didn't reserve. I'm Hertz Gold and have never been treated this poorly by Hertz anywhere but this location is the pits. I hope its not the start of a trend. Then again, maybe back to National for me.

Sorry to learn of your misfortune. If you're going to get stuck with a lousy rental car, at least you shouldn't have to overpay for it. A weekly rental of an intermediate picked up at the Hertz Local Edition on Central Avenue (maybe a $25-30 cab ride) and returned to the airport is about half the price.



Avis also has an (even closer) off-airport location at the Colonie Center Mall. The CDTA "Shuttle Fly" bus will take you from the airport to the mall in about 15 minutes for a whopping $1.50.

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry8703e/4.1.0 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/104)



Sorry to learn of yur misfortune. If you're going to get stuck with a lousy rental car, at least you shouldn't have to overpay for it. A weekly rental of an intermediate picked up at the Hertz Local Edition on Central Avenue (maybe a $25-30 cab ride) and returned to the airport is about half the price.

Avis also has an (even closer) off-airport location at the Colonie Center Mall. The CDTA "Shuttle Fly" bus will take you from the airport to the mall in about 15 minutes for a whopping $1.50.

Thanks for the tip. I'm going to try to return this clunker and try Avis in the morning.

Sounds like a dollar rental to me, first call roadside hotline and have them tow the car back and send a replacement. This is hideous.....

Thanks for the tip. I'm going to try to return this clunker and try Avis in the morning.

I'd call Avis before you make the trip and see if you can make a reservation. Tuesdays are usually not very good days to be a walk up customer.

Sounds like a dollar rental to me, first call roadside hotline and have them tow the car back and send a replacement. This is hideous.....

They won't do that. If someone abandons a car then they will but they usually go out after the police inform them that the car has been impounded. The customer's card will then be charged the rental rate for everyday until the car is recovered, the impound fees, the towing charge, and an administrative fee.

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry8703e/4.1.0 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/104)

Thanks for the tip. I'm going to try to return this clunker and try Avis in the morning.

I'd call Avis before you make the trip and see if you can make a reservation. Tuesdays are usually not very good days to be a walk up customer.

Better yet: Book something tonight for tomorrow.

They won't do that. If someone abandons a car then they will but they usually go out after the police inform them that the car has been impounded. The customer's card will then be charged the rental rate for everyday until the car is recovered, the impound fees, the towing charge, and an administrative fee.

Yes they will, all the customer has to do is call HOTLINE and say there is a SAFETY issue with the vehicle, they will be more than WILLING to swap out

Yes they will, all the customer has to do is call HOTLINE and say there is a SAFETY issue with the vehicle, they will be more than WILLING to swap out

Oh, okay -- you didn't tell the original OP to LIE when he called. Another situation to be careful in - they will charge you if they catch you.

Oh, okay -- you didn't tell the original OP to LIE when he called. Another situation to be careful in - they will charge you if they catch you.

So do you know the OP???? He might have allergies or the smell might cause him to wreck!
I am extremely allergic to a lot of things, so it would be very much indeed a safety issue if I was the renter!!!!!!!!

So do you know the OP???? He might have allergies or the smell might cause him to wreck!
I am extremely allergic to a lot of things, so it would be very much indeed a safety issue if I was the renter!!!!!!!!

If it was safe enough to drive off the lot then it is safe enough to drive back.

I had a corolla from ALB earlier this spring. First car I had in a long time that didn't have cruise control!

If it was safe enough to drive off the lot then it is safe enough to drive back.Completely untrue. It could be "safe enough" at 20 mph and then once on the freeway at 65 mph, there could be a wheel unbalanced causing severe vibration, or a braking issue, or a steering issue.

Completely untrue. It could be "safe enough" at 20 mph and then once on the freeway at 65 mph, there could be a wheel unbalanced causing severe vibration, or a braking issue, or a steering issue.

That is not the issue that was mentioned. The issue was an odor in the car that apparently became so severe that the driver can no longer drive the car.

All rental car agencies at Albany are awful. I've rented from them all over the last decade. I finally gave up on National because they gave me a bunch of attitude when I pointed out they were trying to downgrade me. This month, I'm trying Avis after a long absence.

The only time I have had good rentals was when Budget used to have the $25 Ford Ranger pickup trucks earlier this decade.

Just a follow up, never did hear back from corporate customer service.

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry8703e/4.1.0 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/104)

Just a follow up, never did hear back from corporate customer service.

Did you ever switch cars?

I had a similar situation renting a one way car from DFW. It had about 40,000 miles, dirty all over, and smelled horrible (why are one way rentals always the out of state plates, high mileage, and dirty cars!?). I attempted to discuss at the HLE my concerns (it was a one way 40 mile rental) - was told to talk to the manager at DFW. Attempted to discuss with a manager at the DFW airport - he told me he would call me back. Never heard from him again (after many messages left for him) so I sent a complaint letter. I never heard back from Hertz corporate.

Needless to say, right before this happened I made presidents circle. I haven't rented from Hertz since. I miss the ease of making reservations and check in. My company always requests I make reservations at Hertz - so I have more paperwork to go through to NOT rent from Hertz. I wish their customer service was more proactive in atleast responding to my concerns - it would have changed my mind to atleast hear from someone at corporate.

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry8703e/4.1.0 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/104)



Did you ever switch cars?

After all the hassle I decided just to tough this one out and instead of changing cars I'm changing companies. Fortunately my company let's us choose. Turns out a number of my peers have been experiencing Hertz problems so we may be dropping them all together. I'm going to try National for a few rentals.