Car Rental Review: 2014 GMC Acadia SLT1 AWD

National's 2014 GMC Acadia SLT1 AWD

• Rented from: Stamford, CT
• Car Class: Premium Crossover (PGAR)
• Miles Out: 4900
• Miles In: 6916
• Fuel Economy: 16 city/23 highway with 3.6L V6 engine and 6 speed automatic 
• MSRP as Rented: $43,745

Pros:

• Working XM satellite radio
• Comfortable leather seats, as well as 2nd row captain's chairs that recline for long rides.
• Decent room for cargo even with all three rows up.
• Smooth ride on the highway. 
• Nicely loaded with goodies such as IntelliLink, power liftgate, remote start, tri-zone climate control, heated power seats, backup sensors and camera, and 10 speaker Bose audio.
• New for 2014: 2 charge-only USB ports in the second row

Cons:

• A bit thirsty on gas.
• Plasticky interior bits are kinda tacky, but not as tacky as the plastic wood in the Chevy Traverse.
• Soft touch buttons are still finicky.
• GM has not updated the keys to the new switch-blade style for these SUV's yet...so you are stuck trying to manage two sets of keys and separate fobs that are usually bound together. Use a carabiner if you've got one.
• Main USB port for the audio system is still in the awkward cubby location on the dash.

For Memorial Day weekend, I went on a road trip to North Carolina with my family. I originally booked my usual Intermediate reservation, hoping I would get upgraded into a full-size car on arrival - something that has happened many a time this year.

I get to the counter on Thursday afternoon after work and was offered a Jetta, a RAV4 and something else I can't remember. Considering the fact I was planning on traveling with 4 other people, I see the white Acadia and inquire about it. 

Unfortunately, since it was the holiday weekend, the manager wasn't allowed to upgrade me into it for free. He did however give me the lowest upgrade charge per day he could, which was $15. It could've been worse. I agreed to the charge and was on my way.

I rented it's platform-mate, the Chevy Traverse, last year. It is pretty much the same...except the lighting is GMC red, the MyLink system is now "IntelliLink", and the similarly trimmed GMC retails for around $5K more.

It pretty much rides the same as the Traverse. My family enjoyed having some extra room. There was still plenty of room for all our stuff.

Car Rental Review: 2014 Chrysler 300C AWD

2014 Chrysler 300C AWD

National's 2014 Chrysler 300C All-Wheel-Drive

• Rented From: Philadelphia 30th Street Station
• Car Class: Premium Special (PXAR)
• Miles Out: 20,359
• Miles In: 20,496
• Fuel Economy: 15 city, 23 highway with 5.7L Hemi V8 engine and 5 speed auto
• MSRP as rented: $40,195

Pros:

• Almost fully equipped...leather, heated and ventilated seats, heated and ventilated cup holders, heated mirrors and steering wheel, 10-way power driver seat with lumbar, Keyless ignition, the works.
• V8 engine is powerful, not too bad on gas.
• Garmin-based factory navigation is standard and sweet - also shows the next turn in the trip computer on the dash!
• Plush leather seats are comfortable.
• Roomy trunk.
• Working SiriusXM with Traffic! (Chrysler usually gives a 1 year trial subscription.)

Cons:

• While V8 was not too bad on gas, it's still thirsty with a 19 gallon tank.
• AWD makes vehicle a bit heavier. Can easily squeal rear tires in full RWD mode.
• No sunroof in this particular vehicle.
• Mileage was on the high side for the year only being half-over...it had Ohio plates so chances are it was one-wayed to the PHL area at some point.

"That thing got a Hemi?"

Why, yes it does!

Taking advantage of a Free Day I had, I figured I'd try to score one of these on a recent day trip to Philadelphia. National allows you to use a Free Day on a reservation up to a Premium (due to the way the Emerald Club works, the system downgrades the reservation to a Full Size, and then applies the Free Day coupon to that price.). When the girl at the counter offered a 300C, I immediately jumped at the chance....it's definitely a lot better than the last Premium rental I received there - which was a base trim Nissan Maxima.

The V8 was very, very peppy. The engine is still paired with an older 5-speed automatic (the 3.6L V6 version comes with a new 8-speed), but it doesn't impair performance too much.

This is one of the most technologically advanced cars out there. It has almost everything...and most of it is controlled from the 8.4 inch Uconnect screen on the dash. You can control things like the dual zone automatic climate control, radio, rear sunshade, the heated steering wheel, and lots of other stuff. It can actually get a bit overwhelming.

While I probably wouldn't pay to upgrade to this, I definitely wouldn't mind a free upgrade!

Car Rental Review: 2013 Ford Escape SEL 4WD

2013 Ford Escape SEL

National's Ford Escape SEL 4WD

• Rented From: Stamford, CT
• Car Class: Intermediate 4WD SUV (IFAR)  
• Miles Out: 23,918
• Miles In: 24,633
• Fuel Economy: 23 city/33 highway with 1.6L EcoBoost 4-cylinder and 6 speed automatic
• MSRP as rented: $28,170

One of my favorite features of Ford vehicles...an entry keypad. The code is usually in the glove box.

Pros:

• Interior is based on the Focus, so it's very familiar.
• The car in general is tons better the boxy last generation model.
• Engine is powerful and awesome on gas. The tank is also on the smaller side as well.
• Since the SEL is the middle trim grade, it had my favorite Ford goodies such as a USB port, Sync, MyFordTouch and automatic climate control.

Cons:

• No Vista Roof :-(
• Trial XM subscription was up.

The new Escape is certainly an improvement over the old one. I put over 700 miles on it over the 3 days I had it. The rate I paid was $43.99 a day, which is the usual intermediate rate at the location I rent from regularly. I'm not sure if National orders these in the Titanium trim, which is the highest trim level you can get. If you snag one of those, you're in for a treat...those have the Vista panoramic roof, foot activated liftgate, and keyless start. Even still, the SEL is awesomely equipped for the money.

Car Rental Review: 2014 Chevrolet Traverse 2LT AWD

National Car Rental's 2014 Chevy Traverse 2LT AWD

• Rented from: Philadelphia 30th Street Station - free upgrade as I'm an Emerald Club member
• Car Class: Premium Crossover (PGAR)
• Miles Out: 2408
• Miles In: 2583
• Fuel Economy: 16 city/23 highway with 3.6L V6 engine and 6 speed automatic 
• MSRP as Rented: $38,865 

Pros: 

• A little better looking than the last generation.
• SiriusXM satellite radio was still working...as seen up above. Also, this generation has the MyLink system which is just kick ass!
• Loaded with goodies such as backup sensors, rear-view camera, remote start, and tri-zone automatic climate control.
• Not too awful on gas.
• Easy to maneuver and drive. 

Cons:

• They stuck the USB port inside the cubby on the dashboard...took me a while to find it (I actually had to look in the owner's manual to figure out where they put it.)
• Wood-like plastic trim is awfully tacky looking.
• Soft touch buttons were finicky and sometimes didn't want to work right.
• No dual-pane moonroof like in the LTZ's.
• No leather, which is just as well. It was almost 100 degrees the day I rented it.

While a pleasure to drive, there are better PGAR's to rent. You might be able to snag one of the Traverse's platform mates, the GMC Acadia SLT or Buick Enclave...those are even better equipped.

Car Rental Review: 2013 Kia Forte

2013 Kia Forte EX

National Car Rental's 2013 Kia Forte EX

• Rented from: Stamford, CT
• Miles out: 11,112 mi
• Miles in: 11,350 mi
• Class: ICAR
• 26 city/29 highway with a 2.0L I-4 engine and 6 speed automatic 

Not a bad ride, but at times it felt sluggish and underpowered. It had most of the standard features most compact cars have these days, like a USB port, satellite radio, etc. Unfortunately, the USB port did not want to play nice with my iPhone and the satellite radio subscription was up. Oh well.

I think I really prefer Japanese models...just sayin'.