pickles1107

Arrived yesterday at 930 pm on a PCar res. Friendly agent in the lot said "we have you down for a premium car. We will see what we can do to get you a free upgrade. After finding out that we had 2 adults 2 kids plus a ton of luggage he radiod and thy pulled around a 2017 Infinti QX70. The guy loaded all our luggage while I got the car seats situated. Great service. As mentioned upthread, they are eager to please.

Didn see much of the executive rows but did notice at least 3x 300c.

pickles1107

Return 6/28 6:30 pm. Browsed the aisle while waiting for the shuttle.

ES had 1x 300 and 2x Charger Hemis. Most Of the rest was standard fare.

nikehair

Will be arriving to OGG on 8/9. It doesn't sound like SUVs are an option for EA. Am I mistaken with my assumption? Going to be a family of 5.

bretthexum

Just leaving OGG. A nice selection of Fusion hybrids, chargers, and quite a few Jeeps in exec aisle. I picked a Cherokee Limited which was pretty nice.

ginmqi

Looks like small selection but good service here.

Given that this is an obviously highly-crowded tourist destination I wonder if the selection may be limited on Friday evenings. I'm actually going to be working in HNL for about 6 months and I'll have pretty much every weekend off so goal is to island hop on the weekends and travel all over.

So plan is to fly in late Friday evening (9pm). I do have executive status so hopefully there will be nice selection in the ES section but I guess only one way to find out!

Oh and one more thing. ANother section of FT there was a poster who asked if on Maui you are allowed to drive the entire loop all the way around? Apparently he said years past there was some rental car restriction that prevented you from driving the main highway all the way around the island for some reason....

OSLexpat

It is still prohibited on the rental contract to drive on parts of Piilani Hwy (36) on the southern part of the island.

My coworker from Maui says it's not that bad, but it should be avoided at night and after heavy rain. Of course you always run the risk of a hefty towing bill if your car gets stuck there.

ginmqi

AHh interesting. Very good to note. And after I googled that highway it led to me a website named "most dangerous roads"! lol....but it makes sense now. The road conditions seem terrible and it would be way too much risk to drive there without proper knowledge/skill and survival gear.

Mendor

Drove the whole loop 2 month ago on RWD 300C, its not that bad, drove just 20 mp/h at some point. There no signs on the road that its prohibited to drive.
Prohibited on contract? How would you know it? They don't even print contracts for the club members.

OSLexpat

It may be that the road is not specifically forbidden, but The Master Rental Agreement which you agree to as a part of the Emerald Club makes multiple mentions of no driving on unpaved roads.

I believe parts of Piilani Hwy is unpaved, which would make it prohibited. I also thinks most rental agencies in Maui list the road as prohibited in their physical Driving Guides that they hand out.

But like you said, it may not be that bad condition. Just depends whether or not the risk of a flat tire or getting stuck is worth it to you.

ginmqi

Very good point.

I'm sure many many car renters do some things that are specifically prohibited in the contract but they are fairly small infractions that are never discovered.

So for Jeep rentals I'm sure off-roading is prohibtied but I bet a few do take it for some off-road jaunts that does not result in clear evidence of off-roading (unless the rental is equipped with precise GPS or a hidden dash cam....) and everything is fine.

So obviously I think people do drive that and go unpaved but they were lucky enough to not have any damage/issue.

The risk is if you do drive it and something wrong happens (flat tire, damage, stuck) and the rental car find out...the contract is being breached and then you may be in for a world of hurt.

I'd rather not take that risk

hpark21

So, National's rental agreement specifically forbids unpaved roads? what about government maintained named gravel roads? I plan to do some hiking in Pacific North West and it requires me to drive on some unpaved gravel roads in order to get to some trailhead.

I was planning to rent an SUV, but if there is specific prohibition against driving on gravel roads, then that puts dampers on my trip. I can understand prohibition against Off roading, but "unpaved road" can mean a LOT of back roads would not be drivable (I can think of Alaska where a LOT of roads are not paved).

bocastephen

Seriously, your concern is waaaaay over fraught.

Countless people drive this highway every day in a variety of cars, most of which are rental cars. If you get stuck, which is itself a highly unlikely event, the towing charge is on you (no problem with a AAA membership), otherwise it's a very useful and important way to see a wonderful side of Maui.

The road is bad after heavy or sustained rains, something you can determine by the weather forecast before heading out...but if conditions were dry for a few days, it's a great drive with a few chunky spots here and there to be cautious while driving through to avoid the potholes.

I've done the drive a few times myself, no "survival gear" or special training needed, and if conditions permit, I insist on it vs dragging myself back through the hairpin turns of the Hana Hwy a second time.

We had this same issue/discussion on the KOA thread for years - before Saddle Road was re-aligned, every rental co stamped the paper contracts with a big red "Driving Saddle Road is Prohibited" stamp - yet half the cars on Saddle Rd outside rush hour were rentals. Today you cannot take your rental car to the summit of Mauna Kea due to the unpaved gravel section, yet every single car up there at sunset is a rental. There is a huge volume of knowledge online that explains the dos/don'ts and the how-to's of driving these (and other scenic) roads.

ginmqi

Haha, duly noted.

I know that I am a fairly cautious/worried person so anytime I read something online I am a bit more timid. But I do see your point and this is what I probably suspected...that many renters drive anyway and usually it's not a problem.

I may try to at least pick up a SUV or something to help instead of something real low to the ground.

bocastephen

Something a little higher up like a small SUV might be helpful if you're concerned - I've done the Pi'ilani Hwy in everything from midsize to convertible, and there are only a few spots in a couple sections where you just go slow and steer around the potholes - they are big enough to be very obvious and unless you're screaming along at 50+ through the rough spots, there is plenty of time to avoid dropping into one.

You'll notice much of the various rental fleets have little scrapes and dings here and there, rim scratches, etc - they didn't get that way from sticking to "approved" paved highways because some of the most beautiful scenery in Hawaii is often along a choppy or less desirable road and thanks to some of the more popular tour books, that is now where everyone takes their rental cars.

Sopwith

We're scheduled to arrive at OGG at 10:40 pm in November. The web site says National closes at 11:00 pm, so we probably won't make it by then after waiting for bags. Does anyone know if they stay open to meet these late flights?