"Nick Has an Exocet" (nickallain)
09/07/2016 at 01:16 • Filed to: None
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"Nick Has an Exocet" (nickallain)
09/07/2016 at 01:16 • Filed to: None | 0
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Rental Car Roulette is a real thing. We rented a car from Hertz (class L - 5 passenger AWD/4WD SUV). We went to pick it up but it wasn’t cleaned yet and wasn’t in the location we rented it from. They offered to drive us to the other location. I let my father go alone since I needed to get to work. I reminded him to check the tires since it’s possible this time of year to hit snow in Wyoming or Montana. When he got there, the car had a flat tire. They gave him a free upgrade to a 38k mile 2015 Nissan Armada (old but interesting).
When I got home from work, I checked it out. Bald front tires. Let’s just hope we don’t hit any snow in the mountains. When I asked him why he accepted a car with bald tires for a 4500 mile trip he said: “it’s 4WD! That handles anything in the snow!”
I suppose that no matter how many times you explain to your parents, who live in the half frozen | half burning hell of New England that tires matter more than driven wheels, it just never sinks in.
On another note, I’ve been supremely disappointed with the quality of vehicles from rental car agencies in the last few years. I’ve had a pretty wide range of cars from economy cars to diesel economy cars (UK) to full size to SUVs and almost all of them have been below the threshold of cleanliness and maintenance that I keep on my own vehicle. I wouldn’t lend my car to my friend with bald tires or smelling like the inside of a cat’s butt - so why do rental car companies? I’ve done the math on running a rental car company (it’s not complicated) and unless you’re incompetent, you can afford to maintain (and clean) your cars.
Svend
> Nick Has an Exocet
09/07/2016 at 04:20 |
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To be fair to Enterprise, the Hyundai i10 was quite clean when we got her, just not my level of clean as the interior plastics were a little dusty, couple of feet marks on the rear of the front seats, dirty door shuts and around the tailgate recesses, few specs on the floor and some brake dust between the spokes on the wheels.
She didn’t go back that way though and got a thorough clean and sealed for the next few users to enjoy.
Flyboy is FAA certified insane
> Nick Has an Exocet
09/07/2016 at 07:14 |
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When my family rented a car last to drive around Florida when I was looking at schools. they rented a “Toyota corolla or similar”
They got a crown Victoria. I was certainly surprised.
Wrong Wheel Drive (41%)
> Nick Has an Exocet
09/07/2016 at 07:42 |
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I really cannot stand the people who live in snowy climates that still are somehow convinced that tires don’t matter. Ive gone skiing in Vermont many times with my Miata and the place I normally stay at has a super steep, icy driveway. It is a shared inn/hostel kind of place and the other people are always there in big SUVs and AWD vehicles. Ive had plenty of people confused and actually talk down to me that I “brought the wrong car for this, you are gonna get stuck”. Then I drive straight up the hill in one try leaving them dumbfounded as I cruise to the mountain top down in full ski gear. While I have felt bad for people who have been stuck, I kind of just laugh when I see the questionable no-season tires with no tread.
functionoverfashion
> Nick Has an Exocet
09/07/2016 at 09:54 |
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I was JUST in Jackson, Wyoming yesterday! I rented a mid-size suv thingy from Hertz and got a GMC Terrain? We had 4 people and luggage, it was just big enough.
In any case, it was absolutely spotless and had decent tires; 15,000 miles. It was perfectly adequate.
I was also in Montana near the north entrance to Yellowstone 2 weeks ago, but we came down from Bozeman in an awful CVT Nissan Versa, but at least there were only 2 of us.
Where are you heading? I absolutely love that part of the country...
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Nick Has an Exocet
> Svend
09/07/2016 at 22:47 |
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Wow. I’m not sure I’m that nice. Especially not if they give me a dirty car. This one had a used toothpick on the passenger floor, grime in the cupholder, dog hair in the tailgate, and that funky febreeze smell.
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Nick Has an Exocet
> functionoverfashion
09/07/2016 at 22:49 |
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Cool! I’m in Elko Nevada tonight, Jackson Hole tomorrow for a few days, then Cody WY for a few days, then Heron MT for a night or two before heading to Salt Lake City to drop the family at the airport and back to San Francisco.
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Nick Has an Exocet
> Flyboy is FAA certified insane
09/07/2016 at 22:50 |
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That’s a nice surprise!
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Svend
> Nick Has an Exocet
09/07/2016 at 22:52 |
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Ouch. Still. I would of cleaned the hell out of that car to make a point and hopefully show their car cleaner what a crap job he’s doing or the company that customers expect and deserve better from a hire service they are paying hard earned money for.
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functionoverfashion
> Nick Has an Exocet
09/08/2016 at 12:31 |
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Awesome, been to jackson before? I have some suggestions, if not
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Nick Has an Exocet
> functionoverfashion
09/08/2016 at 23:57 |
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Nope. First time!
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functionoverfashion
> Nick Has an Exocet
09/09/2016 at 10:59 |
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Awesome. Well, for one, the Gondola at the ski area is free after 4:30. It’s something like $30 per person before that. There’s a place to get a (very pricey) beer at the top, OR you can byo in a backpack and sit anywhere but at the actual restaurant. You can get beer in the little “bodega” right at the entrance road to Teton Village, or in the Mangy Moose store right there.
In town, check out the Million Dollar Cowboy Bar, it’s pretty classic western style; if not a little touristy. But there are locals in there too.
We ate breakfast at a place called Persephone, it was awesome. Line out the door, worth the wait.
Oddly, there was a really good Thai place in Teton Village - recommended to us by a ski patroller - do heed their warnings about how spicy their food is.
What else do you want to know? Are you into mountain biking? Hiking? Drinking? Shopping? I have been four times and I cannot wait to get back....
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Nick Has an Exocet
> functionoverfashion
09/10/2016 at 01:27 |
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Wow, excellent recommendations. Thanks! We were wondering about the gondola but hadn’t gotten around to asking about it yet.
About half our group (myself included) are hikers so we did that today and may do that tomorrow. We did the loop around Jenny lake then drove up to the Colter Bay visitor center.
My uncles have discovered that they love the beer at Snake River Brewery. I don’t drink so it’s a non-thing for me. I’m basically in this trip for the hiking, the driving, the practice with my camera, and maybe (if I’m lucky) enough content to write up an article for placement on a good blog.
http://oppositelock.kinja.com/rental-car-exc…