Horrendous Hire Cars (and good ones)

Associate
Joined
11 Dec 2009
Posts
530
Location
Barnsley
Not sure if there is a thread on this already.

However recently I have been on holiday to the USA (best man at a friends wedding).

Evidently Texas is a very big place so I needed a car. £100 for the smallest crap box they had for 4 days or £120 for a full size. Being of sound mind and derelict body I opted for the full size.

Went to pick it up and was pleasantly surprised to recieve the keys to a Toyota Camry. Now I have driven a few Toyota's before in the UK so expected this to be somewhat better than the usual barge's I had seen running around Austin.

How wrong was I!

The ride was comfortable, but the handling was dire! Corners at any speed resulted in tremendous body roll. The Auto box seemed to have Alzhiemers which resulted in it changing up whilst driving up inclines at low rpm and when your toe nail grows a micron dropping two gears and screaming the thuppeny bits off of it! (I am used to auto boxes so the random changing is nothing to do with my driving style (or the missus))

You would also expect a 2.5l 170bhp 4 banger to have at least a respectable turn of pace. Well nope, it couldn't pull the skin off a rice pudding!

Do American versions of cars have revised suspension and steering geared towards feeling like it has just been popped out of a jelly mould?

On the flip side, I went to Vegas for a week after the wedding was done with and decided I fancied a go at a muscle car for a run out the Canyon etc. Opted for a 6.2l V8 2012 Camaro SS. Now the way this drove really surprised me.

I was expecting it to be lazy, low revving but a bit of V8 fun. How surprised was I when I found the ride and handling to be excellent and it extremely keen to bury the tacho in the redline, and a tendancy to go sideways :D (not to mention the throaty V8 roar and it dumping fuel into the engine of overrun for some nice pops and bangs). On the whole I really enjoyed this car and was loath to give it back.

When I got back to the UK. I flagged a lift into work from a friend. (my company car has been off hired whilst on holiday and it's replacement isn't due until March!!!)

I was greeted by the fleet manager with a silly grin on his face and a set of Vauxhall keys. "Great!" I thought, "A bloody corsa!". The reality of the situation was much worse however. A metallic green Zafira 1.8 SRI!!!!!!! :o

It drives infinately better than the Camry I had in Austin. However much to my amusement there is a button on the dashboard with the word "Sport" on it.

So far I have resisted the urge to press it as I am wholly expecting the radio to start playing cricket/golf/snooker commentry to me.

Fortunately the guys at work have found me another car I can use until March. It's nothing flash (A 92k 2008 A3 with optional extra's such as a steering wheel) but I would prefer it over the loser cruiser I have been lumbered with at the minute!!!
 
I think if my employer offered me a vauxhall as a company car I'd actually decline and absorb the expense of running my own car.
 
Chrysler Sebring Convertible. I hired it for a laugh. It was absolutely rubbish.

I once hired a Toyota Avalon for about 4 hours and that was pretty damn awful, too.
 
Last week myself and a colleague got a Hyundai i30 with a whopping 1.4L of power. To say this was underpowered was an understatement! First roundabout with a rather large gap so went to pull out (With quite a bit of effort) and it barely moved. Was dangerously slow! Overtakes on motorway in 3rd as this was the only option.

Awful, awful car!
 
Funnily enough a few guys here have i30's with the 1.6 115ps diesels in until their new cars come and they love em!

All the guys who have temp Vauxhell's like me (Insignia's, Disastra's etc) and Chevy Cruze's are asking to change to them!

I've not had a go in one yet but wouldn't mind seeing what all the fuss is about.

One of the guys also has a Kia and he rates it much more highly than the Fabia he had before it.

Perhaps Korean cars are coming along!!?
 
The i30 feels as though the steering isn't attached to the wheels, it wobbles all over the place too.

On the upside it has good cup holders xD
 
I did have an '11 plate focus 1.6 TDCi for a while too and loved that car. It wasn't as fun to drive as my petrol one but it was certainly quicker. Never managed to get used to the nothing....nothing....waaaaaaah!.....nothing power delivery, but it was a lovely car. Very quiet and comfy, handled well and despite my minimal driving experience, I didn't notice any differences in the feel of the nose from the heavier diesel engine.
 
The Chevy Uggo, or HHR as it's officially known.

2006_Chevrolet_HHR_exfrpass34.jpg


Horrid slushbox where you could make a cup of tea between shifts, gutless engine that would probably struggle to push a Vespa up a hill, creaky plasticky interior and terrible visibility. Everything wrong about cars in one terrible package.

It's the worst 'upgrade' ever too, the class below has the Kia Optima which although not great by any means is a far better car in every respect.

In defence of the Sebring, it's a genuine '4 seater' convertible..that's about it :p
 
Last edited:
I once hired a Nissan Almera, it felt like none of the controls were actualy attached to anything. Horrible thing, last hire vehicle I had was Transit :), for some reason I love driving vans.
 
I "LOVE" driving vans.

My dad had an old transit and it used to be the most fun you could have with your clothes on.

He has a Pug Partner now and it just isn't the same.

I really need to learn how to drive a lorry.
 
I have to put my hands up and say I love driving transits, Itsl ike driving a normal car, but your up so high and people get out of your way!
 
Pontiac LeMans in 91, which was simply a Vauxhall Belmont with an auto box that didn't want to stay in gear for more than 300 yards. I did 1 mile in it and returned it, THAT is how bad it was and I had had a Belmont company car too and it made that look ace which was saying something. Just awful on every conceivable level. Slow, ugly, crap build, useless gearbox and general heapofpoo feel.
 
The Chevy Uggo, or HHR as it's officially known.

[ig]http://images.autobytel.com/2006/Chevrolet/HHR/400/2006_Chevrolet_HHR_exfrpass34.jpg[/img]

Horrid slushbox where you could make a cup of tea between shifts, gutless engine that would probably struggle to push a Vespa up a hill, creaky plasticky interior and terrible visibility. Everything wrong about cars in one terrible package.

It's the worst 'upgrade' ever too, the class below has the Kia Optima which although not great by any means is a far better car in every respect.

In defence of the Sebring, it's a genuine '4 seater' convertible..that's about it :p

Haha, I had one of these when I was in Washington. I worked a bit of the old charm on the receptionist and asked her about upgrades and she said "I'll see what I can do for you ;) " and handed me the keys to that. God knows what I'd have been given had I not asked. It was a hilariously bad car.
 
Back
Top Bottom