DENPremEx

Just picked up my car from MSP and had another terrible experience. Let me back up for a minute...

I was in MSP a month ago, found my name on tha board and walked to my car only to find a Subaru station wagon. I walked back inside and informed them I rent mid size cars (Mazda 6 or equivilant) and I don't drive station wagons or minivans. The lady went in to the back room, came back about 5 minutes later and told me all she had was a Grand Marquis. I'm 30 and not exactly into the land yacht thing but I had no choice so I took it.

Earlier today I flew in to MSP, walked to my car and found a Taurus station wagon. Again, I walked inside and (again) informed the lady I didn't rent a station wagon nor do I drive station wagons or mini vans. She went in the back, emerged 5 minutes later and told me they would have a Camry for me in 5 to 10 minutes.

I informed her of the problem I had the last time I was here and she said it was because they were taking more reservations then they had cars for. She pointed to the group of people waiting off to the side and said they were all waiting for cars and some of them had been waiting for 30 minutes or more. She suggested I take a card for the city manager and contact him. She also said she has been handing out lots of cards because there are a lot of upset Golds and 5*s.

Anyone else have problems like this? Aside from contacting the city manager is there anything else you would suggest? Thanks in advance for your help.

Beckles

Well, since you asked, I would suggest getting over your ridiculous refusal to drive a station wagon and it would seem like you'd have no problem at all.

DENPremEx

If I wanted to drive a station wagon wouldn't I rent one? I suppose its fine for a hotel chain or Hertz to give me a smoking room even though I always rent/reserve a non smoking one? You do raise one interesting point, if I simply accept whatever I am given then I will never be disappointed. With all due respect, that's just rediculous.

rthib

If Hertz gave you a smoking car (or a non-smoking car if you smoke) then you could complain.

Actually a more correct analogy to your hotel example would be if you reserved a small interior room and instead were given a corner suite.
One of the "perks" of Gold is a car class upgrade, so even if you reserve intermediate and found a Taurus in you space - they are actually meeting you requirements.

In Hertz computer it views those cars as upgrades from your reservation level.

pinniped

On one hand, I understand your position: I've politely declined upgrades at Hertz on many occasions, trading back a Grand Marquis for a Mazda 626 if I plan on driving high miles or doing a lot of city driving. I've never had a problem doing it.

On the other hand, dropping a bunch of attitude about how "I don't drive station wagons" doesn't sound a good approach to use when they are swamped with people waiting for cars. Look at it this way: a lot of people were waiting for cars, yet there was one in your stall. Hertz went out of their way to take care of you, presumably because of 5* or PC, and you had to go bite the hand that feeds.

Would you rather the stall be empty next time, with a Hertz agent telling you to get in line? If I were waiting more than...I don't know...about 20 seconds for a car, I'd happily take the ugliest wood-paneled station wagon on the lot.

The overbooking situation itself is another story: if I were one of those customers waiting for a car, I'd be beyond pissed off. I understand that overbooking happens, but rental car companies never have a game plan in place for when it does happen. They run out of cars, and chaos ensues. You would think that the agencies would work with each other and local cab companies to figure out a reasonable solution to the oversell situation.

noah

Here at FT we're all fairly upgrade obsessed. At least I know I am .

But the one area where I regularly hear complaints about upgrades is with rental cars. This is a perfect example. If I had reserved a Mazda 6 and got a Subaru Outback, I'd be happy. If I reserved an economy seat and was upgraded to a UA First Suite, I'd be even more excited.

That said, there are situations where the reserved car is desired -- fuel efficiency, ease of parking, or in the case of the OP "I don't drive station wagons or mini vans". The problem is that Hertz thinks it is doing you a favour by giving you the upgrade, and while that might generally be true, there are bound to be some situations where the upgrade doesn't do you any good. I'm kind of surprised the OP took the Grand Marquis over the Subaru (a much larger car) but in the end it doesn't matter -- they did not get what they had reserved.

What can be done about it? In reality, not much. You could reserve an even smaller vehicle and hope to be upgraded to a Midsize. Or, thank the agent for the upgrade, ask if they have any smaller cars available, and if then don't go on your way. Or, you could throw a fit. My advice, however, is to suck it up and let the upgrade gods smile upon you -- be it in a hotel room, rental car, or from Y to F. Trying to give away your upgrade might make them angry and you'll forever be sitting in that Y seat and staying in the small hotel room with a view of the dumpster.

Beckles

I hardly ever get what I reserve at Hertz ... between my AMEX Platinum Card 1 class upgrade and/or Hertz 5* status, I usually find something else in my spot ... so that whole argument seems pretty moot for me. If I had a problem with that I'd probably ask them to note my profile "no upgrades", I believe that can be done.

To the situation at hand though, the Subura station wagon is a midsize car ... it has four passenger doors ... the Taurus wagon is a full-size car (an upgrade from your midsize!) ... it has four passenger doors ... the fact that they're station wagons seems so inconsequential to me I just can't believe anyone would complain about it.

Folks complaining about Grand Marquis' and SUV's I can understand (though I don't personally feel the same) because they have qualities very dissimilar to other vehicles, but in this case it's not like a station wagon really drives differently than a corresponding mid-size or full-size car ... I've gotten the Taurus wagon before and it seemed darn near the same as a Taurus sedan to me.

Beckles

I hardly ever get what I reserve at Hertz ... between my AMEX Platinum Card 1 class upgrade and/or Hertz 5* status, I usually find something else in my spot ... so that whole argument seems pretty moot for me. If I had a problem with that I'd probably ask them to note my profile "no upgrades", I believe that can be done.

To the situation at hand though, the Subura station wagon is a midsize car ... it has four passenger doors ... the Taurus wagon is a full-size car (an upgrade from your midsize!) ... it has four passenger doors ... the fact that they're station wagons seems so inconsequential to me I just can't believe anyone would complain about it.

Folks complaining about Grand Marquis' and SUV's I can understand (though I don't personally feel the same) because they have qualities very dissimilar to other vehicles, but in this case it's not like a station wagon really drives differently than a corresponding mid-size or full-size car ... I've gotten the Taurus wagon before and it seemed darn near the same as a Taurus sedan to me.

Tummy

Have them put "no station wagons or minivans" in your profile.

You'll probably never get them again.

Italian_Kayaker

I often go kayaking, and would love to get a station wagon or minivan.. Instead, I always seem to get a Mazda / Taurus. Surely, there must be some way for us to swap cars?

Seriously, I don't understand in what way a station wagon can be seen as inferior to a similar sedan. If you don't need the extra space, don't use it. It's not as though handling and performance will be much different.

DENPremEx

Thanks for the comments, although I respectfully disagree I do appreciate them. I suppose I'm just a whiny SOB for actually expecting to receive what I rent. Its not that I dislike upgrades, its the station wagon or minivan that I dislike. I'm 30 years old and I don't have any kids (its a phobia) so I don't appreciate the "upgrade". Next time I'll trade with nspatafora or request a child safety seat so I complete the "I-live-in-the-suburbs-with-1.8 kids-and-a-white-picket-fence" image

Tummy

One time I reserved an LS and got an S80. That made me upset since I was booking a particular car. In your case, you booked a certain class of car and was upgraded to a higher one due to your 5* status. I would have probably asked the agent for another car if I were in the same situation, but I wouldn't have been so snippy with them.

From your reply, it appears that the root of the issue is the image you project while driving the rental car that concerns you. I'm 26 and while I do enjoy driving a nice car, I have found that most people are indifferent as to what type of rental car I was assigned. I think they understand that it's only a rental, temporary, and not something I can hand select to my specifications. I also don't feel that a Taurus sedan projects a significantly different image than a Subaru wagon, Taurus wagon or minivan. All four of these cars are very much family oriented.

SAT Lawyer

Very true. However, if you get stuck with a Chevy Aveo like I did in Vegas (I was cheap and atypically did not get any kind of upgrade), you will look like a chump. A station wagon would have been manna from heaven for this 28 year old on that trip!

pinniped

My TOS-friendly response: "I can't say that I disagree."

Uh...yeah...if a rental car freaks you out, I'd say maybe you should line up some therapy.

rthib

I would suggest always getting a mini-van or a station wagon.
No child ever wants to be seen in one of those.
My daughter always want to ride in a mustang but has never asked for a ride in a mini-van