Bjam99

Dropped off my CX5 rental this evening (23rd March at 8pm) and had a look around PC. I had a need to get another one way rental for a day but Hertz was charging insane money ($250) and not accepting points so I had to go with Alamo and ended up with a hateful Mitsubishi Outlander Sport. That'll teach me to plan ahead!

PC selection wasn't bad. I was gutted to spot a Volvo S90 in PC (rather than upgrade!) as I really want to try one. I hope it'll return when I get back there in a couple of weeks. There was a huge selection of Malibu's, a few new base Equinox's with low miles, a good few Avalon's and Maxima's, a couple of generously equipped Impala's (the top Premier trim) and a Q50 that was quickly snapped up. I've seen a much worse selection, maybe things are improving?

luftair

Hi Guys,
Can I ask you what is the rental procedure at LAX if I have the president's circle status and paid reservation (intermediate)?
Do I go straight to the desired car and show documents at the exit? I have never been there. thanks

CalItalian

Yes as long as the pre-paid isn't an opaque (Priceline bid for example) pre-pay. Paid or pay later w/ PC, just pick you vehicle from PC, 5*, Gold, intermediate or full size areas and go to the gate. The only thing you really need is your id. But it's always good to bring along a copy of your reservation just in case there are problems.

Oflyt

March 25th

PC was stocked fully with a sea of Chrysler 300s and the other usual suspects. One S90 with no keys so wondering if it could be the same one Bjam99 saw.

I had booked a Mustang GT hoping to try the new one out (They only have two 2018s in their fleet, rest are 2017). They had not got any in for my res so was offered a discount, tank of gas and a brand new Challenger 6.4 Scat Pak. Fun car!

TheZach

Two things...

I reserved a Reserve this Exact Model (Group U4) XTAR (U4) Chevy Camaro SS Convertible (Adrenaline Collection) for a week at an amazing rate (booked it back in December) at LAX. Does anyone know what year the these things are?

Also when I booked I booked it for noon, but my flight has been moved up a few hours and will now get in at 9am. I've tried to modify the rental but it says they are sold out if i try to modify, however I do have my flight information into the thing. How early is too early to pick it up? I have no problem getting a bite to eat at the airport and killing time in the lounge before heading to the lot, but I don't want to sit in the lot for an hour or two waiting.

dayone

An hour early normally should be no problem. Earlier than that is in the hands of the rental car gods.

TheZach

Thanks... looks like I'll be eating airport breakfast before picking up my car.

docbert

You can almost certainly rock up at any time and they will sort you out. Keep in mind that if picking up early crosses a 24 hour mark then the price will go up.

Or just call and they will be able to change the pickup time for you. I've done this before when it couldn't be done online due to being sold out, and it's never been a problem.

Cre8ate

Hi guys i have a flight at 7.05 in the morning.
I was wondering if anyone has any experience returning the car early in the morning (say 5am), and how long would it normally take (from dropping the car off at the car rental centre to taking the shuttle back to LAX?)

Thanks!

azepine00

At 5 am no traffic.. should be 15-20 min from car to terminal

CalItalian

To T1, no more than 5 minutes once the bus leaves the Hertz facility. For T7-8, the last terminal, up to 15 minutes more.

Bjam99

Slim pickings today in PC (18th April at 5pm-ish) if you wanted an SUV anyway. It was quiet when I got there, then a couple of buses pulled in and then BOOM! Gold kiosk had a queue well out the door. I had a look in 5* and Gold - nothing of note really, apart from a Buick Encore (yuck) and a fair few minivans which I was tempted by.

In PC, there was a nice selection of Chrysler 300's (take your pick of colour!) and a few Jags with relatively high mileage, including an XE in a really beautiful deep blue colour that went quite quickly. I was disappointed that they kept bringing out Altima after Altima. Booooo! I waited around for an hour and managed to pick up an almost new Jeep Grand Cherokee Stirling Edition. That'll do nicely for a week.

I can't complain as I've had a run of good rentals here recently. Just returned a 2018 Highlander, before that had an Audi A4 and a CX-5 before that. Now i'm on the hunt for a decent rate for a month long rental again. Tricky!


Oh I also note they've updated the returns bit - they now have two separate lanes, one for printed receipts and an 'e-returns' lane - you just jump out the car, leave the keys and get the receipt emailed later I guess?

BThumme

Yeah, pretty much. DTW has it. I usually return very close to the 24.5 hour mark, so I usually go to printed since I usually want to make sure that they check it in right then. If you're not right up on that deadline, then the email line is probably a better option, as it might be 15 minutes-hour depending on when they get to those cars.

GiantCow

Is there a reason why SUVs seem to be cheaper than almost every sedan class at this location?

Always thought that the smaller cars are cheapest. I rarely rent cars and needed one for a day in LA next month, just found it interesting.

Bjam99

There seemed to be better cars in 5* than in PC last night (Weds 25th at 6:45pm) so it's worth checking out both sections if you're renting here. PC section was almost full but mainly full of Chrysler 300's. There were some decent spec ones there, I note a few that had adaptive cruise and i'm pretty sure I spotted a 300C but wasnt after a sedan so didnt go check it out. They're mainly the S models. There were some base GMC SUVs and of course the usual smattering of Fusions and basic Equinox's and a Washington plate Explorer on 23,000 miles. There was a Range Rover Evoque that had the trunk up for some reason, when I went to check it out I noticed the windshield was all cracked, weird that it was just left in PC. It just seemed to be the usual models other than that.

5* had a couple of CX-5's (one of which I took) and three new Dodge Chargers. They actually moved one of them up to PC. There were a couple of newish Ford Escape Titaniums, a Ford Edge and some Rogue SV's. Not bad considering it's usually just Elantras and Corolla's over there.