June. We went to pick up our 'Toyota Yaris, Chev Aveo or similar' from Thrifty LAX. Our rental was fully paid with all insurance, CDW etc - yet he still tried to sell us, pushed and cajouled us, to buy TRIPSAVER® 24-hour Roadside Assistance, which was included anyway, but didn't cove if you lost your keys ETCETERA - an extra $5.99 per day - I asked for a brochure as to what the ETCETERA was and he slid open a few drawers and 'can't find the brochure' - A COMPLETE RIP OFF an extra $84 plus tax for 2 weeks in case you lose your keys. (There was a spare key in the glove box anyway which we carried separately) The Yaris does 42mpg so is not so bad for the environment given we were to drive over 3000 miles in 2 weeks.
They ONLY have Chryslers, which was confirmed later by Thrifty staff. There are NO Yaris or Aveos available. The smallest available was the Dodge Caliber or, as we know it, the Dodgy Low Caliber - a truly dreadful car - that does less than 30mpg at best. Such uncomfortable hard rubbery seats for thousands of miles of piles! The front tyres were about 1mm from the fully worn line when we picked it up. The issuing guy didn't care and there were only much larger PT Cruisers and people movers as an alternative. The WORST aspect is that not one of the cars in the economy/ compact class has ANY way to hide your luggage no boot/trunk or cover - so if you are visiting a National Park or stopping for a meal YOU ARE VULNERABLE. The caliber thing screamed around every corner due to the tyre wear and bad handling charactistics, it also had out of balance tyres - things you don't notice till you have taken it. And yes, it was covered in scratches which you MUST REMEMBER TO NOTE on the condition report.
It was so bad we changed it for a PT Cruiser (slightly better) after a week.
As Chrysler is bankrupt, Thrifty staff told us that instead of the lease system they used to have, which I assume requires full maintainence of the cars - they dispose of them at auction - so maintaining condition may not be a priority!
If you INSIST on renting from Thrifty - Don't pay extra for a 'compact' over an 'economy' they are the same cars at LAX and Las Vegas at this time!
We are worried about our Credit Card bill - yet to come - given the horror stories we have heard about being blamed for other peoples damage to Thrifty cars... awaiting outcome...
0 comments