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 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.