jamesbrownontheroad

Where: Norwich Airport, UK (NWI)
When: 15 June 2015
Level: Preferred
Booked: Estate Medium - Group G ("Kia Cee'd SW, Vauxhall Astra Estate or similar"
Received: 2014 (64 plate) Hyundai i40 Tourer 1.7CRDI (134 bhp) 10,535 miles (Estate Large - Group H "Volkswagen Passat Estate, Vauxhall Insignia Estate or similar)

Something for the American Avis customers who subscribe to the Jalopnik school of forbidden fruit - a six-speed manual diesel wagon. ^

Big screen factory navigation (although no speed camera locations), USB, bluetooth, electric parking brake (a little frustrating to get the hang of), engine start-stop, heated seats (all too easily activated if the driver's knee rests on the centre console below the steering wheel) cruise control, etc etc etc.

Exterior - looks like a prettier car was left in the oven and melted a bit, but there's a deceptively large hauling space in the back. Good fuel economy. 46 UK MPG over 500 fast motorway miles, mostly with four adults.


Avis: 2014 Hyundai i40 by James Benedict Brown, on Flickr


Avis: 2014 Hyundai i40 by James Benedict Brown, on Flickr


Avis: 2014 Hyundai i40 by James Benedict Brown, on Flickr


Avis: 2014 Hyundai i40 by James Benedict Brown, on Flickr


Avis: 2014 Hyundai i40 by James Benedict Brown, on Flickr


Avis: 2014 Hyundai i40 by James Benedict Brown, on Flickr

jamesbrownontheroad

Where: Norwich Airport, UK (NWI)
When: 7 July 2015
Level: -
Booked: Estate Medium - Group G ("Kia Cee'd SW, Vauxhall Astra Estate or similar"
Received: 2015 (15 plate) Seat Leon 1.2 TSI 110 SE 5dr [Technology Pack] 6,433 miles

Booked through Budget, but from drawn from the shared pool of Group G vehicles shared between Avis and Budget.

Compact wagon, comfortable for four large adults and luggage. Even fully loaded, there was a surprisingly responsive pick-up from the turbocharged 16 valve 1.2 (yes, 1.2) litre petrol engine.

5.8 inch touchscreen with built-in navigation system but missing the removable SD card with maps. DAB radio brings dozens of extra stations, including the ever delightful BBC 6 Music.


Budget: 2015 Seat Leon Tourer 1.2 TSI by James Benedict Brown, on Flickr


Budget: 2015 Seat Leon Tourer 1.2 TSI by James Benedict Brown, on Flickr


Budget: 2015 Seat Leon Tourer 1.2 TSI by James Benedict Brown, on Flickr


Budget: 2015 Seat Leon Tourer 1.2 TSI by James Benedict Brown, on Flickr

PDXNRTLHR

I booked a Group G (Medium Estate/Wagon) at Croydon the other day; I was "upgraded" to a Citroen C4 Picasso. I generally prefer smaller cars, but this was perfect for trips to Ikea and the garden centre. I managed to fit five fully assembled dining chairs and an armchair + footstool (Poang, anyone?) in the back, and still had space for a passenger.

I'm not sure what group it's meant to be in, but it's good to know it's in the fleet.

clubman

O if it were Manual, or L if Auto.

j4ck100

64 plate C200 Merc saloon petrol manual SE @ Aberdeen Airport

AMOZ

I think I just got conned at Avis LHR. I booked a Group P - VW Golf or similar - through Qantas to get their discount. But arriving at Avis a week ago I was told no Golfs so a Citroen Cactus instead. Never having heard of a Cactus before I took the agent at face value that this was in the same group and after having queued for a while I took this vehicle just to get going. But the next day of an eight day rental I looked into the Cactus vehicle and it turned out to be a Group E car (Group C with Budget) but I was still being charged the higher Group P price!

I queried this with Avis during the rental but just got a polite and vague fob off. I went to query again on vehicle return but the place was too busy and I had to catch a plane. The subsequent RA invoice clearly states that I was charged a Group P price for a Group E vehicle driven. When I look online there is quite a difference in value between the two groups, especially over eight days.

I've written to Avis again but silence so far. I wrote to Qantas too and they politely just thanked me for my comments, even though I booked through them.

The moral of the story is when you are offered a vehicle on collection that you're not expecting or not familiar with, push for a confirmation on what charging group it's from. I will next time, with every company. But with Avis at Heathrow I'm starting to see reports of other people having the same issue.

The Cactus? Well after getting used to it the vehicle was actually quite nice to drive though a bit ugly to look at. Really I had no issues with the vehicle, just the price I was charged for it. I think I was downgraded without any price adjustment.

rcspeirs

A typical group E vehicle would be a standard hatchback, the archetypical example would be a Golf. A typical group P vehicle (supposedly executive) according to Avis would be a Golf. How Avis can charge more and claim differentiation of vehicle is beyond me.
At a guess, Group P might have factory fit navigation.
I find both Avis and Hertz have an enormous gulf between what head office/marketing think is how the business is run and how staff on the ground actually operate. As far as operational staff are concerned, anything that looks compact sized is a compact. I've booked an Audi (only because it was cheap...) but given a Seat and told it's the same.
In your case, I fear you have no hope. You accepted the car offered. In such circumstances in the future, your only hope us to make a big fuss on pick up.

AMOZ

Yep, a another valuable lesson learnt. In future I'd just go for a cheaper Group E car with Avis Heathrow and as someone else said, probably get a VW Golf anyway! In hindsight you're right, what would a Group P vehicle be for the higher price? I only went with P for a Golf, not a special edition, just a Golf, as it was the only group on both the Avis and Qantas websites that promoted a Golf and instead I got a Cactus!

I've still not heard anything from Avis on this, though it's not surprising - as you say - so I've just moved on. Funnily enough I saw a piece in a UK newspaper recently where someone had complained about Avis and the Avis company told the newspaper that they prided themselves on their great customer service and would of course fix the problem - or words to that effect

Buster

Just back from London. I rented Group F (Large Standard) and received the Hyundai i40 sedan. It has a surprisingly large trunk and was able to easily accommodate our 2 large suitcases and carry-ons. It was also a diesel, which meant that it was really fuel efficient (especially with the auto-stop feature). Overall, pretty pleased with it.

jamesbrownontheroad

+1

Had an i40 estate last summer, and it was cavernous. (Just remembered - my report on it is a half-dozen or so posts above this post, with pics of the car in blue).

For North American guests, the i40 rides on the same platform as the US market Sonata, but is otherwise tailored to the European market.

Redwood839

So, first time travelling to UK and my company rented a vehicle for 30 days for me, it says Intermediate and shows a Peugeot 3008 (Intermediate Automatic). Any idea if that's good or what I might get? I'm hoping it has bluetooth and GPS on it.

I was kinda hoping to get a Leon Estate, those look nice

jamesbrownontheroad

Sadly, not much experience with the automatic transmission fleet of any UK rental agency. Avis UK website includes the VW Golf and Vauxhall Astra which are both perfectly fine workaday hatchbacks. The 308 hatchback is listed in the parallel manual classes, so you could conceivably end up with one of those. The 3008 is a pleasant sort of crossover, more like a tall hatchback.

Sorry, no info about GPS or bluetooth, either. I recommend Navfree which you can download to a smart phone for free and loaded with a full map of the UK for navigation without use of your data.

May be I the first to offer you a warm welcome to the UK. Remember the usual things... move left after overtaking; no turning on red; and have fun with the roundabouts. Sorry about the weather, the traffic and (if you sound American) British people telling you how much they love Florida

Redwood839

Thank you so much for the warm welcome

I'm actually relocating completely, so I will be picking up my car on arrival and keeping it for about 2 months while I purchase mine.

I'm actually terrified of driving on the other side, which is why I picked a AT to help out while I get used to it.

I'll definitely download the app, thank you.

PDXNRTLHR

I had a very similar experience booking through the BA website--booked a class E or similar ("VW Golf or similar"), then arrived at Munich airport and was offered a Cactus (with automatic transmission). I absolutely hated the car; looking at online reviews, the automatic transmission is terrible, and the engine did not have enough oomph for driving on the Autobahn.

Anyhow, following the rental, I wrote to Avis suggesting that the car was unsafe and uncomfortable, and that while I know a particular car is not guaranteed, I felt the Cactus was not in the same league as a Golf. I got back a form letter saying essentially too bad, cars are allotted depending on availability, try us again sometime.

clubman

What makes you think the Cactus is unsafe?