2025 Upgrades
Mar 7, 2025 | 8:00 pm
#46
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: SDF/TLV/ATL
Programs: AA EXP, UA LT Ag, Marriott LT Ti, Hyatt Glob, Avis PC, Busted-Knuckles Club.
Posts: 3,023
Mar 13, 2025 | 10:13 pm
#47
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: SDF/TLV/ATL
Programs: AA EXP, UA LT Ag, Marriott LT Ti, Hyatt Glob, Avis PC, Busted-Knuckles Club.
Posts: 3,023
Status: PP
Location: ICT
Booked: intermediate
Offered: Nissan Altima (NO NO NO) "...but it's a 'full-size!'" "NO".
Received: below
Ended up with a RAM 1500 truckasaurus with a big-... RAMMM!!! V8 that I'm driving back to SDF vs my now-canceled AA return flight with zero alternatives...
My dailies are small (relative to most US road monsters) so this beast has been a handful.
Edit: this thirsty piggy somehow managed to eke out 18mpg average over a 12hr drive, but I think (employer) spent well over $100 in gas, and between that and the Avis one-way nonsense it will end up costing more than the flight refund. Eh, weather, waddya do...
Location: ICT
Booked: intermediate
Offered: Nissan Altima (NO NO NO) "...but it's a 'full-size!'" "NO".
Received: below
Ended up with a RAM 1500 truckasaurus with a big-... RAMMM!!! V8 that I'm driving back to SDF vs my now-canceled AA return flight with zero alternatives...
My dailies are small (relative to most US road monsters) so this beast has been a handful.
Edit: this thirsty piggy somehow managed to eke out 18mpg average over a 12hr drive, but I think (employer) spent well over $100 in gas, and between that and the Avis one-way nonsense it will end up costing more than the flight refund. Eh, weather, waddya do...
Last edited by born sleepy; Mar 14, 2025 at 10:43 pm Reason: update
Mar 15, 2025 | 12:03 pm
#48
Join Date: Aug 2019
Posts: 18
Sorry if this isn't the right place for this question, but as PC is there any benefit to booking premium instead of full-size sedan? For PC potential 2 class upgrade I was unsure if it doesn't go past premium so really the only benefit would be that it would be a guarantee to get a premium/suv. Having a rental next week in PHX airport.
Mar 16, 2025 | 1:25 pm
#49
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: NYC
Programs: AS MVPG, DL KM, Bee Six, Bonvoy Plat, Choice Plat, IHG Plat, Avis PC, Natl Exec, Greyhound Road Rwds
Posts: 20,112
Status: PC
Location: DEN
Booked: fullsize
Assigned: brand-new Hyundai Sonata
Offered: that, Chevy Malibu, new-ish Toyota Camry
Received: 2025 Toyota Camry Hybrid LE, 2300 miles
-J.
Location: DEN
Booked: fullsize
Assigned: brand-new Hyundai Sonata
Offered: that, Chevy Malibu, new-ish Toyota Camry
Received: 2025 Toyota Camry Hybrid LE, 2300 miles
-J.
Mar 16, 2025 | 4:10 pm
#50
Moderator: Hawaii-based airlines & Hawai'i forums
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: Ka ʻĀpala Nui, Nuioka
Programs: NEXUS/Global Entry, Delta, United, Hyatt, IHG, Marriott, and Hertz
Posts: 18,726
Status: PC
Location: 68 E. 11th St (Greenwich Village NYC)
Booked: Subcompact
Received: Interermediate 2025 Mazda CX-30 Preferred AWD with NJ plates and 4,900 miles on the odometer.
Location: 68 E. 11th St (Greenwich Village NYC)
Booked: Subcompact
Received: Interermediate 2025 Mazda CX-30 Preferred AWD with NJ plates and 4,900 miles on the odometer.
Mar 26, 2025 | 7:46 pm
#51
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: SDF/TLV/ATL
Programs: AA EXP, UA LT Ag, Marriott LT Ti, Hyatt Glob, Avis PC, Busted-Knuckles Club.
Posts: 3,023
Status: PP
Location: EWR
Booked: intermediate
Offered: Buick... Encarta? Escritoire? Emporium? E-something SUV with 60,000mi
Received: new Volvo XC60, ~1,000mi
Seems this location got a bunch of new Volvos because they were pretty numerous. Nice upgrade! Terrible touchscreen controls for the HVAC, little engine is farty-sounding but there's an electric assist so it moves pretty well. Don't think it's sold as any kind of hybrid and there's no situation where I was driving on volts. Terrific seats as expected from Volvo. Weirdly-sized touchscreen makes CarPlay look odd; it's almost a square. The audio crapped out tonight: no radio, CarPlay, no blinker-click or seatbelt nag. Turns out the fix is to force a reset of the whole system.
National is our other rental car vendor but they are usually more expensive than Avis, sometimes around 50% more. But they were competitive for a same-day rental. I picked out a new Mazda CX-50 and while it drives really nicely and has decent (not great) power, within an hour my butt was going "OW OW OW" and I had another 90min to go. This was the worst car seat I've ever experienced. Just an FYI.
Location: EWR
Booked: intermediate
Offered: Buick... Encarta? Escritoire? Emporium? E-something SUV with 60,000mi
Received: new Volvo XC60, ~1,000mi
Seems this location got a bunch of new Volvos because they were pretty numerous. Nice upgrade! Terrible touchscreen controls for the HVAC, little engine is farty-sounding but there's an electric assist so it moves pretty well. Don't think it's sold as any kind of hybrid and there's no situation where I was driving on volts. Terrific seats as expected from Volvo. Weirdly-sized touchscreen makes CarPlay look odd; it's almost a square. The audio crapped out tonight: no radio, CarPlay, no blinker-click or seatbelt nag. Turns out the fix is to force a reset of the whole system.
National is our other rental car vendor but they are usually more expensive than Avis, sometimes around 50% more. But they were competitive for a same-day rental. I picked out a new Mazda CX-50 and while it drives really nicely and has decent (not great) power, within an hour my butt was going "OW OW OW" and I had another 90min to go. This was the worst car seat I've ever experienced. Just an FYI.
Mar 26, 2025 | 8:35 pm
#52
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: NYC
Programs: AS MVPG, DL KM, Bee Six, Bonvoy Plat, Choice Plat, IHG Plat, Avis PC, Natl Exec, Greyhound Road Rwds
Posts: 20,112
Status: PP
Location: EWR
Booked: intermediate
Offered: Buick... Encarta? Escritoire? Emporium? E-something SUV with 60,000mi
Received: new Volvo XC60, ~1,000mi
Seems this location got a bunch of new Volvos because they were pretty numerous. Nice upgrade! Terrible touchscreen controls for the HVAC, little engine is farty-sounding but there's an electric assist so it moves pretty well. Don't think it's sold as any kind of hybrid and there's no situation where I was driving on volts. Terrific seats as expected from Volvo. Weirdly-sized touchscreen makes CarPlay look odd; it's almost a square. The audio crapped out tonight: no radio, CarPlay, no blinker-click or seatbelt nag. Turns out the fix is to force a reset of the whole system.
National is our other rental car vendor but they are usually more expensive than Avis, sometimes around 50% more. But they were competitive for a same-day rental. I picked out a new Mazda CX-50 and while it drives really nicely and has decent (not great) power, within an hour my butt was going "OW OW OW" and I had another 90min to go. This was the worst car seat I've ever experienced. Just an FYI.
Location: EWR
Booked: intermediate
Offered: Buick... Encarta? Escritoire? Emporium? E-something SUV with 60,000mi
Received: new Volvo XC60, ~1,000mi
Seems this location got a bunch of new Volvos because they were pretty numerous. Nice upgrade! Terrible touchscreen controls for the HVAC, little engine is farty-sounding but there's an electric assist so it moves pretty well. Don't think it's sold as any kind of hybrid and there's no situation where I was driving on volts. Terrific seats as expected from Volvo. Weirdly-sized touchscreen makes CarPlay look odd; it's almost a square. The audio crapped out tonight: no radio, CarPlay, no blinker-click or seatbelt nag. Turns out the fix is to force a reset of the whole system.
National is our other rental car vendor but they are usually more expensive than Avis, sometimes around 50% more. But they were competitive for a same-day rental. I picked out a new Mazda CX-50 and while it drives really nicely and has decent (not great) power, within an hour my butt was going "OW OW OW" and I had another 90min to go. This was the worst car seat I've ever experienced. Just an FYI.
). XC60 is a nice upgrade on an intermediate rental.-J.
Mar 31, 2025 | 8:35 am
#53
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: NYC
Programs: AS MVPG, DL KM, Bee Six, Bonvoy Plat, Choice Plat, IHG Plat, Avis PC, Natl Exec, Greyhound Road Rwds
Posts: 20,112
Status: PC
Location: CDG
Booked: compact automatic (Peugeot 2008 or similar)
Offered: 2024 BMX X2 sDrive20i M Sport (group L)
Not sure if this is an upgrade or not, but I still think this would have been fun to drive in the French countryside. Really bummed I missed the flight.
-J.
Location: CDG
Booked: compact automatic (Peugeot 2008 or similar)
Offered: 2024 BMX X2 sDrive20i M Sport (group L)
Not sure if this is an upgrade or not, but I still think this would have been fun to drive in the French countryside. Really bummed I missed the flight.
-J.
Apr 2, 2025 | 8:58 am
#54
Join Date: Jul 2018
Posts: 3
Status: PC
Location: HPN
Booked: Standard
Offered: Mazda CX-9 with 57k miles and a broken radio
Received: Mazda CX-9 with 57k miles and a broken radio
Took this after waiting for an hour to get the car, on a 4 hr one way rental dropping off at JFK. Tough location!
Location: HPN
Booked: Standard
Offered: Mazda CX-9 with 57k miles and a broken radio
Received: Mazda CX-9 with 57k miles and a broken radio
Took this after waiting for an hour to get the car, on a 4 hr one way rental dropping off at JFK. Tough location!
Apr 3, 2025 | 6:04 pm
#55
Original Poster
Join Date: Nov 2000
Location: SDF/TLV/ATL
Programs: AA EXP, UA LT Ag, Marriott LT Ti, Hyatt Glob, Avis PC, Busted-Knuckles Club.
Posts: 3,023
Apr 6, 2025 | 1:04 am
#56
Join Date: Dec 2018
Posts: 67
Renting a car with Avis for the first time - they matched my Hertz President Circle so PC.
Will be picking up in Austin and returning in Houston - reserved an Intermediate SUV (RAV 4 or similar, group F).
- since Im renting for the first time with AVIS, will I be able to select a car in the app? Is this available for everyone (coming in from Europe, rented from the Belgian website).
Will be picking up in Austin and returning in Houston - reserved an Intermediate SUV (RAV 4 or similar, group F).
- since Im renting for the first time with AVIS, will I be able to select a car in the app? Is this available for everyone (coming in from Europe, rented from the Belgian website).
Apr 6, 2025 | 9:32 am
#57
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: NYC
Programs: AS MVPG, DL KM, Bee Six, Bonvoy Plat, Choice Plat, IHG Plat, Avis PC, Natl Exec, Greyhound Road Rwds
Posts: 20,112
Status: PC
Location: CDG
Booked: compact automatic
Assigned & received: 2024 DS 9 E-TENSE 4x4 360 PHEV
I don't know how reliable it'll be in a few years but otherwise I gotta hand it to China, this was a pretty sweet ride. The massaging seats ("cat paw") was nice this morning on the drive back from Reims.
-J.
Location: CDG
Booked: compact automatic
Assigned & received: 2024 DS 9 E-TENSE 4x4 360 PHEV
I don't know how reliable it'll be in a few years but otherwise I gotta hand it to China, this was a pretty sweet ride. The massaging seats ("cat paw") was nice this morning on the drive back from Reims.
-J.
Apr 7, 2025 | 8:55 am
#58
Join Date: Oct 2002
Location: Easton, PA
Programs: Delta Skymiles, Hertz Gold, National Emerald Club, Priority Club
Posts: 258
Not sure if Budget qualifies for this thread, so let me know if it doesn't...
I am National Executive but they were sold out for a last minute one-way I needed as a result of a flight cancellation.
Status: Budget Fastbreak
Location: PHL one way to ABE
Booked: Fullsize
Offered: This location has 'zones 1, 2 and 3' for Fastbreak members to choose their own car. I didn't receive a text/email directing me to a zone and went to the counter. The rep told me to choose anything in any of those zones. Cars that were available included a CX-90, Outlander, Malibu, Kia Soul and Outback
Received: Chose the Outback - had PA plates and only 900 miles on it. Enjoyed driving it.
I am National Executive but they were sold out for a last minute one-way I needed as a result of a flight cancellation.
Status: Budget Fastbreak
Location: PHL one way to ABE
Booked: Fullsize
Offered: This location has 'zones 1, 2 and 3' for Fastbreak members to choose their own car. I didn't receive a text/email directing me to a zone and went to the counter. The rep told me to choose anything in any of those zones. Cars that were available included a CX-90, Outlander, Malibu, Kia Soul and Outback
Received: Chose the Outback - had PA plates and only 900 miles on it. Enjoyed driving it.
