ikura

Going to rent a car out of Avis LAX in a couple of months.

I see that they have this car available at a decent price:

Specialty
Mercedes Benz E350 or similar

What car would I normally get using this rate? Does Avis actually have the E350? I wouldn't like the 528i at all.....

mittencuh

Barring unforseen circumstances, a reservation for a specialty vehicle will get you that specific vehicle.

Dantor

Hello All,

Many thanks for providing such a comprehensive and insightfull collection of rental car related topics! This helped me a lot in planning my upcoming trip to the USA.

I will be renting a Premium SUV category car in Charlottesville Airport (CHO), VA, in the summer, and dropping it off in NYC after almost 2 months.

Does anybody know what kind of Premium SUVs are in the CHO fleet of AVIS? Given our requirements (flat loading floor, so must have fold flat seats in the rear), I'd very much like it to be a Chevy Suburban, 2015 model.

Also, do you think that the length of the rental period and the drop-off in NYC will impact the allocated car? I.e. will I get an old banger due to the one-way drive or a brand new one instead? I'd just like to understand what to expect.

Many thanks for all you help, and happy travels!

IAHtraveler

Can't speak specifically for that location, but Premium SUV is really only the Suburban or Enclave. But you might find a rogue Expedition/XL.

The older Suburbans are now very few & far between so you should have a good shot at getting one. And if not, find another location and swap for one

Yes, for 1-way, the stations often like to get rid of vehicles they don't want. But since there are so few types of Premium SUVs, you shouldn't have really bad luck. Length can also impact it: if they have a vehicle with the expiration coming soon (time or mileage), they won't give it out for a long rental because they'll then own it outright without a turn-back possible.

Redwood839

Participating in the '15 Florida Drive Out.

Got a Standard Elite SUV out of MCO to IAH. Any ideas what I could potentially get? Anyone have a good experience negotiating with the test?

I did the same last year to JFK and got a fully loaded Explorer out of FLL. Don't see it on their list as a Elite SUV anymore.

BTW, I'm guessing Standard Elite SUV is the top out of the 3 SUV classes? Standard and Mid Size SUV.

Dantor

Thanks so much for the insights! I'm a bit more confident now. ^

briantoronto

Was at YYZ T1 today picking up a one-way to BUF. Noticed a couple brand new Mercedes Benz E400 sedans. Brand new. Well equipped.

Talking to the agent you need two credit cards and the minimum upgrade price is 125$ a day.

hafamaca

Weird about the two credit cards... I've never had to provide two with any rental from Avis including the BMW 740i. New policy?

jackal

Interesting. I had to provide two at Budget PHL yesterday to rent a Challenger (which was pulled over from the Avis lot).

Saco2011

They do actually have it ;-) I had the Mercedes E350 in Chicago last week - great car! Paddle shift, leather seat, navi etc.

launcher

I paid for class C (intermediate) and Avis gave me a Mitsubishi Lancer, which I perceived as a downgrade but Avis CSR defended as an intermediate class.

This disagrees with the info. I found on this thread. The car had no bluetooth, and no USB connector. Even though those features had appeared on the dashboard controls, they were not installed. How can I guarantee a car with ipod USB connector, if the cars that are designed to support this feature don't always come with the hardware?

jackal

Since Avis doesn't guarantee a specific model for your car class, and since USB ports are not a guaranteed benefit of any specific car class, I don't think you'll find much sympathy from Avis for your point of view.

I just assume I won't be getting a USB port with my car and travel with a USB cigarette lighter adapter and (unless I forget it) a standard 1/8"-to-1/8" audio cable and count it as a pleasant surprise when I get a car with a USB port or Bluetooth capability. That said, I often reserve PCARs with Hertz, and the most common car I get in that class, the Maxima, has neither a USB port nor an aux-input jack nor Bluetooth capability, and a premium car is supposed to be nicer than everything below it (ha!), so you really can't assume anything with the rental agencies.

hafamaca

I haven't rented form Avis this year yet. Seems like it might be a new policy for the Speciality class? I have a BMW rental next month... curious to see...

Evr

First post here, found the site as I was browsing for various information regarding my upcoming 3 weeks on the west coast in August as well as my first time overall in the US. Great site with tons of useful information.

For now and for this thread my question is what car I could expect when having rented a convertable from Avis @ SFO? I saw the three cars listed in the wiki. What do I have to do to avoid the Chrysler? are there any flyertalk-protips for this? Call them 1, 3, 7 days prior to my arrival and butter them up? Any tips on what to do if all they want to offer me is the Chrysler once on site - is it possible (i.e. do they ever cave in) to request the Mustang or Camaro? Should i suggest coming back the following day or so? We have three nights in SFO before heading south...

All tips are welcome!

tg80

Hi

So I am looking to book a rental car for two weeks out of EWR in June, and I seem to have found a good rate on a convertible from Avis. It says Mustang or similar, so I am wondering what I might get. In the fleet list sticky it also says Chrysler 200 convertible, but I thought that had been discontinued? Do they still have this in their fleet?