Sixt experience in Tampa
Apr 23, 2015, 7:18 am
#1
Suspended
Original Poster
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: Canada, USA, Europe
Programs: UA 1K
Posts: 31,452
Sixt experience in Tampa
I recently rented from Sixt in Tampa. I had a Nissan Armada booked for three weeks. The overall experience was fair, though I do echo what others have posted here regarding both hard-selling and car/location quality. I'm a Platinum member, for what it's worth.
When I arrived, the car was under a canopy and a big deal was made about the 'special Platinum guest' that was arriving today, as well as the extra effort the team had made to wash and detail the car. The person who took over my check-in for the car was pleasant but increasingly and irritatingly fawning. Then came the time for upselling...
- Upgrade car: Would I like to upgrade the car to a Suburban...we brought one down especially for you since you are such an important customer (there wasn't one on the lot). I didn't need it but asked for the price...$1,900 on top of what I was paying for the Armada (ca $1,800). When I mentioned that I was paying less than this for the Armada he started typing furiously in his computer, the result of which was a 'manager's special' reduced to $900 extra. I don't expect an automatic upgrade as in Europe, but seriously, no thank you.
- Sun Pass: Would I like to rent the Sun Pass for $5 per day (I think), so basically $100. I told him I didn't need it, at which point he told me (insisted in fact) that the stretch of I-75 between Naples and FLL no longer accepted cash payments (I was returning the car to FLL). I asked him what the penalty was for driving without it, and he realised that paying $100 for a one-off $5 charge made no sense for me. In the end, it turns out that cash is still taken anyway.
- Prepaid fuel: Like almost everything else I always decline this, but the upsell here was so hard that in the end he offered the special rate of $60 for the full tank. I relented to get him off my back, but still ended up paying more than if I had fuelled it up myself. My fault.
At the end of this whole process he said 'we do all this to make sure that you give us four stars at the end of your rental; we want you to be really happy with us.' Urgh...
The car was ok, certainly not cleaned the way they had claimed (old lollypop sticks, my wife smelled a bit of wet dog); 30,000 miles makes it not exactly a new car in my book either. It's funny, since Sixt has such a premium product in Europe, that the US operation has a decidedly second-class feel to it. The hard sell is not my thing and I may just avoid Sixt in the US. It must be said that the price was better than any of the US big boys.
When I arrived, the car was under a canopy and a big deal was made about the 'special Platinum guest' that was arriving today, as well as the extra effort the team had made to wash and detail the car. The person who took over my check-in for the car was pleasant but increasingly and irritatingly fawning. Then came the time for upselling...
- Upgrade car: Would I like to upgrade the car to a Suburban...we brought one down especially for you since you are such an important customer (there wasn't one on the lot). I didn't need it but asked for the price...$1,900 on top of what I was paying for the Armada (ca $1,800). When I mentioned that I was paying less than this for the Armada he started typing furiously in his computer, the result of which was a 'manager's special' reduced to $900 extra. I don't expect an automatic upgrade as in Europe, but seriously, no thank you.
- Sun Pass: Would I like to rent the Sun Pass for $5 per day (I think), so basically $100. I told him I didn't need it, at which point he told me (insisted in fact) that the stretch of I-75 between Naples and FLL no longer accepted cash payments (I was returning the car to FLL). I asked him what the penalty was for driving without it, and he realised that paying $100 for a one-off $5 charge made no sense for me. In the end, it turns out that cash is still taken anyway.
- Prepaid fuel: Like almost everything else I always decline this, but the upsell here was so hard that in the end he offered the special rate of $60 for the full tank. I relented to get him off my back, but still ended up paying more than if I had fuelled it up myself. My fault.
At the end of this whole process he said 'we do all this to make sure that you give us four stars at the end of your rental; we want you to be really happy with us.' Urgh...
The car was ok, certainly not cleaned the way they had claimed (old lollypop sticks, my wife smelled a bit of wet dog); 30,000 miles makes it not exactly a new car in my book either. It's funny, since Sixt has such a premium product in Europe, that the US operation has a decidedly second-class feel to it. The hard sell is not my thing and I may just avoid Sixt in the US. It must be said that the price was better than any of the US big boys.
Last edited by LondonElite; Apr 24, 2015 at 2:06 am Reason: Clarity and extra info
Apr 23, 2015, 8:57 am
#2
Join Date: Feb 2003
Posts: 643
I recently rented from Sixt in Tampa....The overall experience was fair, though I do echo what others have posted here regarding hard-selling and car quality....at the end of this whole process he said 'we do all this to make sure that you give us four stars at the end of your rental.'......The car was ok, certainly not cleaned the way they had claimed; 30,000 miles makes it not exactly a new car in my book either.