At the risk of further derailing the thread...
Originally Posted by
jackal
Really? I think the 3.7 is extremely underpowered in the Grand Cherokee (the one I want to buy is the 4.7L V8...though of course I'd like to go for the 6.1L, 425hp SRT8 model), but in the much lighter Liberty, I thought it was actually quite sporty. If you do end up getting one, I believe they offer a 4.0L that is a substantial improvement over the 3.7L. (Doesn't look like much of a difference in the displacement, but I hear it is quite nice.)
I have driven the Limited trim of the Liberty, and it has all of the things you missed, plus a 368-watt (or something like that) Infinity sound system with a 6.5" subwoofer. So, a better-equipped vehicle is out there!
Looking at the options on the Jeep site, I see where the Liberty Limited has many of the appointments I would have preferred to see. That being said, the Limited would also keep me from getting what I really look for in many purchases- a manual transmission. The manual would probably help with the underpowered feel but I know that rental fleets don't want the masses renting stuff and burning up the clutch by not knowing what they are doing
The Sport also has a different rear axle ratio that could be affecting takeoff...something like 3:21 compared to 3:73 in the Limited.
I think having rental cars be decked out would actually increase manufacturers' sales, since people would actually like the cars and might go down to a dealership to look at cars they otherwise wouldn't have considered.
Absolutely no question there, especially since there are also those who look to rent the very vehicles they are considering a purchase of in the foreseeable future. Cheap feel driven for a week does not instill confidence in the future purchase...although admittedly, many of the rentals I have had through Thrifty had options that made the drive bearable (ie. the heated seats in Denver) and I did like that the rental this week had the sunroof.
This means two things for the rental car customer: you're going to start to see more Japanese cars in rental fleets, since they tend to hold their value better, and you're going to start seeing a higher percentage of older cars (two to three years old) to brand-new to six-month-old cars. (I rarely used to get cars with over 15,000 miles, and now I often see 25,000 miles.) So, my point is becoming more and more moot...
I've been fortunate. Rare is the instance where I have gotten a car with more than 7-8K miles, and in fact, this week's rental had not even hit 2K until after I had it a few days.
And, for the SUV class that I have been seeing on the Wild Car option, I can't complain about the cost. They typically are more car than I need, but they are easier for me to adapt to since they are similar in size to my daily drivers...and in strange places, comfort behind the wheel is a good thing.