Rental Cars

[BeyGon]

Last month we flew into Oakland and rented a car to visit north of the bridge, we got a Fiat 500. I always thought they were interesting cars, we put over 400 miles on it. Driving it for two hours at a time is too much, it might be ok as an inner city car but it didn't have much power, even downshifted on inclines on the freeways. The Speedometer is set deep, is so dark it's hard to read, the ignition switch is situated too close to the dash and makes in hard to get the key in and out. I didn't think it was a comfortable car, my wifes 2010 Golf is more comfortable, has more power and rides better. at about the same price.
This week I rented a new BMW Mini Four door, also way under powered but more comfortable than the Fiat, but for the price, the Golf is still faster and rides better.

[LeeH]

We rented a Fiat 500 in London. Other than the steering wheel being on the wrong side and having to shift with my left hand, it was fun, but can't see owning one. The boot was so small we had to put one of our suitcases in the back seat.

[Amail]

Originally Posted by LeeH

The boot was so small we had to put one of our suitcases in the back seat.

Boots are typically big enough for one foot, nothing more. Why'd you think you could fit a suitcase in one?


Silly

[Josh D]

Recently had a RHD Kia Sportage 4 cyl TD 6 spd when I was in Dublin, Ireland. Not a bad driver. 4 cyl TD had good torque and plenty of gidiup and it got phenomenal mileage. I kept trying to rev it out like my 911, but it didn't like that! Short shifting took a bit to get used to. There wasn't anything sporty about the steering or handling (lots of roundabouts to test cornering), so I question the Sportage name.

Now after driving one, makes me not understand why small TD's with manual transmissions are more popular here in the States.

[nostatic]

My wife drove one for a year and Dean's assessment is pretty much spot-on. For her, going from a Tacoma TRD to the 500 for her 66 mile commute made a big difference in gas costs. Right before we got rid of it for the i3 I drove it to Solvang and back for a short anniversary trip. The short wheelbase makes for a rough ride and passing at freeway speeds...well...don't be in a hurry. Upside is that it sipped gas, you can park it anywhere, and it had enough storage for her and us on our trip. But she never put anyone in the back seat - usually was folded down to give more cargo space in the rear. They also depreciate like a brick...

[JavaBrewer]

IMO cars like the Fiat 500 don't make much sense outside the big city limits.

Rental cars - I was pleasantly surprised with the '13 Ford Focus I had for a long weekend. Took the family (4 of us) to Santa Barbara and back. I would not be terribly inconvenienced with one - especially in ST trim. A couple months back I was in Baltimore and drove a new Corolla for the week. Solid appliance.

Rental cars have come a long way. 10-15 years ago they were dominated by the dregs of GM and Ford. Total utter garbage. Now fleets are packed with imports and the GM/Ford products have improved greatly.

[pamu]

I agree 2010 Golf is better, Me and my wife also get it from car rentals last year from 'thecheapestcarrentals'. We enjoyed the road trip, I want to book to them again on the next vacation.