Hertz upgrade from Group P?

[swylie]

Hi Guys,

Normally not fussed about the car I get (although always prefer not to have Toyota's!) - however I have a rental this weekend and I'm hoping for a decent car.

I'm thinking of booking group P instead of usual Group D. But sometimes when I book into Group D I get an UG to Group F - does anyone know if an upgrade from Group P to Group F is actually less or more likely?

Also, does anyone regularly rent Group P in Sydney (Downtown or airport, haven't decided yet)? What are the chances of getting stuck with an Aurion Presara?

Often when I get an UG from Group D to Group P, I feel like they've given me the Group P that's on its last leg - e.g. a Calais with 50,000+kms and cracked upholstery. Do you think if I specifically rent Group P, I'm more likely to receive a can in *better* condition?

Thanks!
Steve

 

[AdMEL]

Steve,

I notice your profile says you have Hertz 5 star status - my understanding is that the key benefit of 5 star is that you get a one class upgrade, which should mean if you book a group P (Calais/G6E/Presara) that you will be upgraded to a group F (Statesman) as a minimum. You may even be lucky enough to be upgraded to one of their new prestige cars (Merc C200K, Lexus IS250, etc), although probably only a very slim chance of that.

Like you, the last time I reserved a group D from Hertz at Mel Dowtown a couple of months ago, I requested an SV6 and was given a Calais, which like you, had done close to 50,000km and was a bit worse for wear - interior was fine, but as with many Commodore/Calais hire cars of any age, the front end wheel alignment was out due to hitting too many kerbs, which upsets the handling badly. It was an upgrade though!

Although I haven't hired from Hertz in Sydney (My last car hire at SYD was two weeks ago, from Avis - 3 month old SV6 when base group E reserved), some observations/suggestions which may assist you ...

Hertz don't appear to have many (if any) Presaras anymore - I've never been given/offered one, always a Calais or G6E (could have something to do with my standing request for an SV6 or XR6) and I always have a quick look at Mel Downtown and the airport when I'm collecting my car(including a couple of weeks ago while wandering around bored waiting for my delayed flight to SYD) and very rarely see one.

In any event, even though I'm only #1 Club Gold not 5 star or PC and don't use Hertz much anymore (usually use Avis, as I have a better AWD than my Hertz CDPs), they seem to be very accommodating to the car I request - I have never been given a Toyota and if I did, I'd play my trump card in need - I can't drive them because I'm too tall (I'm 6'9")! Works wonders!

Given my height and my dislike of Toyotas, together with the constant change in fleets, I usually try and call the location I intend to hire from if I don't know their fleet, to ask what specific cars they have in a group and the approx. proportion so I get some idea of the choices, then I ask for a preference to be included in my booking when I make it, or ring up after and get them to add my preference. Mostly, the staff don't seem to mind (I try and call in off peak times, like late evening at the airport) and it mostly seems to get me something I like.

Hope this helps.

 

[Dave Noble]

5* status only offers an upgrade if there is availability at the time of picking up the car with a max upgrade being, iirc, from D If you already have a P , then there is no upgrade based on status to be expected

President's Circle gives a guaranteed 1 class upgrade from D which is P or F depending on the rental location I believe

Dave

 

[peter]

I have never been given a Toyota and if I did, I'd play my trump card in need - I can't drive them because I'm too tall (I'm 6'9")! Works wonders!

Given my height and my dislike of Toyotas, together with the constant change in fleets, I usually try and call the location I intend to hire from if I don't know their fleet.

Out of curiosity, what's wrong with Toyota rentals? I'm about to rent a full size car (Avis Group E or Hertz Group D) for a week and would like to know what to avoid or request (if possible).

Thanks.

 

[swylie]

FYI, I ended up renting Group P from Sydney Downtown and received a Calais (badly scratched/dented, spring-loaded key wouldn't open, nearly 50,000kms on the clock). So might have well booked a Group D and hoped for either an XR6 or an upgrade to the Calais anyway!

AdMEL - I have a few reasons for not liking the Toyotas - but I'm sure they're personal, and some people might disagree... mainly:
- Front wheel drive / 200kw power to front wheels = comparatively poor handling and performance (because traction control cuts in whenever you put your foot down) - not that this should matter in a rental...
- Very bland plastic interior - buttons aren't solid, everything feels cheap

The newer Falcon XR6 and G6E's are much nicer (smoother, gruntier, more comfortable, more solid, quieter, and depending on the model, may have more standard features).

The Calais and SV6's are a step below the new Ford's in my opinion (mainly due to suspension - feels a bit "floaty"), but still more solid and more comfortable than the Toyotas.

The Statesmans are nice - no complaints if ever upgraded.

 

[docjames]

We had a corolla booked and on arriving at parking spot (SYD Dom Hertz) a Prius was in the spot.

I went back and the conversation went as follows:

docjames : Hi, could I please have something other than a prius?
Hertz guy: Let me check........... but you booked a corolla.
doc: yes, i know..........
HG: Is there something wrong????
doc: I just dont like the prius.
HG: Oh, okay, how about a falcon. I dont really like the prius much either.

5 mins later, off in a red XR6 with 30000km on it. Good drive.

I'm now 2/2 upgrade Corolla --> Commodore/Falcon at Hertz SYD Dom.

Thanks Hertz, much appreciated.

Note: there were mostly Falcons in the large car class....


Edit: I should add this was last weekend.....

 

[swylie]

I'm now 2/2 upgrade Corolla --> Commodore/Falcon at Hertz SYD Dom.

That's lucky! I usually hire from Syd airport in busy times (weekday mornings), but 3 times this year I have been asked when picking up from SYD if I would forgo the Group D booking I made and take a Corolla as that was all they had available, and otherwise it would be a minimum 30 min wait to get a Group D in. Annoying when you've booked 2 weeks in advance, only to be told the car you booked isn't there...

But then I'm never the only one in those situations - Hertz SYD on weekday mornings sometimes has queues of a dozen or so people waiting for cars.

 

[AdMEL]

AdMEL - I have a few reasons for not liking the Toyotas - but I'm sure they're personal, and some people might disagree... mainly:
- Front wheel drive / 200kw power to front wheels = comparatively poor handling and performance (because traction control cuts in whenever you put your foot down) - not that this should matter in a rental...
- Very bland plastic interior - buttons aren't solid, everything feels cheap

The newer Falcon XR6 and G6E's are much nicer (smoother, gruntier, more comfortable, more solid, quieter, and depending on the model, may have more standard features).

The Calais and SV6's are a step below the new Ford's in my opinion (mainly due to suspension - feels a bit "floaty"), but still more solid and more comfortable than the Toyotas.

The Statesmans are nice - no complaints if ever upgraded.

swylie, my dislike of Toyotas is also personal, but exactly the same as yours! I agree that the Fords are better in some respects (particularly the G6E is better appointed than the Calais), but I prefer the SV6 as it looks better and I find the ergonomincs better in the Holdens (I fit better in the Holdens - I'm 6'9").

If you like the Statesman, why didn't you book a group F? In my exeperience, group F is usually only slightly more expensive than group P and often cheaper, for some reason (although this seems to happen less often now than it did 12-18 months ago, when group F was almost always cheaper than group P).

By the sounds of your experiences, glad I don't hire from SYD at peak times! My only experience with something like that was Thrifty at Melbourne CBD on Australia day weekend 2009, where they tried to tell me that a Camry was what I'd booked (I'd booked Falcon/XR6), i.e. that it was in the same class, despite it clearly being in different class on their website. When I pointed this out and after much arguinng, the agent finally admitted that my XR6 hadn't been returned. She offered the Camry at a reduced price and told me no-one had cars available on the long weekend ... I called Avis - they had a Commodore Omega, so I told Thrifty to cancel my booking and haven't hired from them since. My complaint to their website has gone unanswered.

 

[swylie]

AdMEL - Hertz didn't have any Group F available in Sydney CBD, or else I would have!

That's interesting about your Thrifty experience - they did the same to me once at Avalon airport - gave me a Camry instead of a Fullsize - so I drove it to MEL and asked them to swap it

 

[sr81]

As a 5* member I have never been upgraded at MEL/SYD so now book P cars as I need the Bluetooth. It annoys me greatly that as 5* I get good cars in the USA but not in AUS.

Interestingly it looks like Maxima's are back in the fleet. Got one at HBA the other day but something reminds me that it may be a non-Hertz owned location.

 

[VirginiaF]

In response to OP, I regularly rent from Hertz Downtown SYD, and over the weekend, requested a Presara (leather seats, usually not over 50,000Km, sunroof, backing camera), and low and behold, got a Calais (not leather, no parking sensors, no sunroof, over 50,000Km, iPhone doesn't work very well with car stereo, steering gone, vague tobacco smell) so there is a good chance you'll not get a Presara.

 

[AdMEL]

As a 5* member I have never been upgraded at MEL/SYD so now book P cars as I need the Bluetooth. It annoys me greatly that as 5* I get good cars in the USA but not in AUS.

Interestingly it looks like Maxima's are back in the fleet. Got one at HBA the other day but something reminds me that it may be a non-Hertz owned location.

You could ring the call centre and ask them to note your booking for a group D (either at the time of making it, or after making it online) with a preference for either a Falcon XT/G6/XR6 or Commodore SV6, all of which are group D and all of which have bluetooth. Given that covers almost all of group D, the chances of you getting a non bluetooth car are slim and if you do, you could then upgrade to group P.

You are correct - Hertz Tas is a franchise not owned by Hertz corporate (as is Avis Tas, Budget Tas - not sure about Thrifty Tas and Europcar, but I suspect the same).

Out of interest, was the Maxima group D or P?