alexcturner

Did not see any SUV's at National when we picked up on 3/9. Inquired as there were none on Emerald or EA. The attendant on the lot went to check and when she came back she said "$99 per day to upgrade".
So we chose a Dodge Charger that was on the EA. After a couple of days, it started making a chiming noise to let us know that it needed an oil change.

wazzuFreddo

I did see a Nissan Titan with 4x4 but its tires looked worn so I stuck with my jeep, which is now filthy.

earny

Picked up on 3/25 @ around 9 AM. EA was all sedans with Malibus, Impalas, a Mazda 6 and Hyundai Sonata. Quick glance at ES there was a Sonata, Impalas, a Buick, and a SUV.

When I turned in the car later that day, the lot was almost empty.

bitachu

will be visiting at the end of aprill..will give my report...

jbarm

Visited twice recently. ES selection was the most boring of the other rentals I made during visits to the islands.

First visit had a Buick, bunch of Impalas, Sonata, Elantra and a Charger. I asked about a SUV and told I could pay $20 more per day for one.
I took the Charger and it was fun to drive. However it was a gas hog when paying $4.69/gallon. Also, even though it was a newer vehicle, the paint was stained with hard water deposits, even after they washed it for me. Good service this time.

Came back a week later and selection was worse. ES had mostly Impalas, one Charger and an Altima. EA had a Sonata, but it was fairly beat up. Took the Altima and it was an OK ride.

Asked about a better car and they offered an upgrade for $30/day.

sjbushido

Does anyone happen to know for those with the basic Emerald's Club status.. are you able to select your own car here despite the National site stating that Maui is a counter service?

qs933

There is an Emerald Aisle (where the 2 Chrysler 200s are) and Executive Selection (where the Jeep and Impalas are):



OGG used to be my favorite (photo above was the last time it was "interesting" -- I drove a brand new Durango)...lately, it's been mediocre. Nothing wrong with the cars (they move you from point A to B just fine), but both EA and ES have been the typical Malibu/Impala/Altima trio, most well worn with over 10K miles.

sjbushido

Thanks for sharing qs933, much appreciated!

sjbushido

Had a follow-up question.. are typically the cars listed above the cars available for "mid-size". They all seem almost "full-size" in nature. Are there any smaller cars in the midsize range available?

qs933

The smallest I've seen on the Aisle is the Chrysler 200, which is a Standard, I believe. If you reserve a midsize, they have a midsize section where they usually have Corollas and Focus sedans.

peteropny

If you are Emerald Club member you should be able to self-downgrade to these smaller cars.

YYZC2

Wirelessly posted (iPhone: Mozilla/5.0 (Linux; Android 4.0.1; Galaxy Nexus Build/ITL41F) AppleWebKit/535.19 (KHTML, like Gecko) Chrome/18.0.1025.166 Mobile Safari/535.19)

Anyone know what the convertible selection, if any, is here? Is it all Mustang or is something with a more substantial back seat available?

Aino

The OGG location typically has the Mustang and 200 convertibles. The 200 is more of a family convertible, so it has a little more space in the back seat.

On a side note... after speaking with one of the managers (who used to be the lot attendant), learned that the location isn't set for too many new vehicles for a while. ...which probably explains the "chevy dealership" I've seen on the ES/EA as of late. He did say that they'll try to accommodate if they can though.

BH62

When traveling on the Mainland, I (as an Emerald Club member, with a nice, shiny card to prove it), usually book a generic mid-size sedan, but then traipse over to the Emerald Aisle, pick out an SUV (preferably a mid-size cross-over) & go on my way. Eventually, I get a nice receipt pointing out how glad they were to upgrade me. Now, fast forward to National at OGG ... over many visits over the years I've been reserving an SUV from the get-go. Now I'm wondering why not try to do an on-the-spot "just pick an SUV" on an upcoming trip to Maui. So the question is: has anyone had a positive experience doing/geting an upgrade there? And BTW, are there usually enuf SUVs on site to make this possible without an advance high$$ reservation?

Alaska737890

Generally with the upgrades here it would only be from a Fusion to an Impala. SUV's (and cars in general) tend to be very scarce especially on peak times (ie. when mainland flights come in). I have even witnessed on two seperate occasions, the porter brings out a Wrangler and he would'nt even park it and there would be five people duking it out in the parking lot on who would get it. Just for that reason alone, the staff will charge you a premium unless you are the extra lucky one that finds something in aisle.