Your most disappointing hire car

[ukkid35]

Toyota Yaris, twice. Once about 13 years ago (actually it was a breakdown replacement car) and then again last year. How can it not have got any better? How come it had manual window winders (I didn't realise any current production car had non-electric windows), worse still it was a US car and it didn't even have cruise, WTF? But all of that pales compared with the sheer awful plasiticiness of the whole car, every singe thing you touched just felt dreadful.

[Fastdruid]

318d. Partly because all the hype (handling was Ok but nothing special) but mostly because the engine was terrible, it's top of my worst ever engines list.

[DaveH23]

A petrol insignia, not sure what size but had the cruise sat at 70 in 6th gear and needed to overtake so put my foot down and im not kidding when nothing happened, nothing at all, at first I thought id set a limit at 70 not the cruise, dropped to 5th and it starting making a noise then had to put it in 4th to make it move, quite dangerous if you ask me.

Had a diesel insignia the week before and that was ample performace for the car.

[Veeayt]

Vauxhall Astra J 1.4 turbo. Expected a simple turbo fun, instead got a gutless buzzy eurobox. Even compared to Astra G 1.6 Caravan I've hired 5 years before.

[Sensibleboy]

BMW 116d. How did they make a 2 litre diesel so slow? Smaller cabin than the equivalent Golf, Focus etc. Small boot...stupid start stop that would re-engage every time the car was switched off...boot lid had no handle on the outside to stop it slamming so I resorted to holding the wiper arm to control its fall.

It handled nicely but why would anybody buy such a slow car and then want it to handle well? Just buy a Golf or A3 instead. Much better package overall.

[ukkid35]

DaveH23 said:

had to put it in 4th to make it move, quite dangerous if you ask me.

Never driven one, but in their defence perhaps the gear ratios are set to extricate the very best MPG, and why not? If you need to overtake then it's your responsibility to downshift.

[LukeR94]

Never had one, not old enough, 19

[ukkid35]

Sensibleboy said:

BMW 116d. How did they make a 2 litre diesel so slow?

I guess you haven't driven a new 1.2 petrol Astra, change down a gear and the only thing that happens is it makes more noise/uses more petrol. I was fortunate to hire one four months ago in Malaga, and it was comically slow. My 599cc Smart would run rings round it. On the plus side it took us to the best kart track I have ever driven.

[Sensibleboy]

ukkid35 said:

Sensibleboy said:

BMW 116d. How did they make a 2 litre diesel so slow?

I guess you haven't driven a new 1.2 petrol Astra, change down a gear and the only thing that happens is it makes more noise/uses more petrol. I was fortunate to hire one four months ago in Malaga, and it was comically slow. My 599cc Smart would run rings round it. On the plus side it took us to the best kart track I have ever driven.

Does the Astra have a turbo?

I don't understand how Ford can make a Focus 1.6 TDCi with some mid range oomph but BMW managed to make the 2 litre engine seem to perform worse. Very linear delivery but I expected a mid range at least as good as other manufacturers 1.6 diesels.

[996TT02]

Yer all amateurs.

If you are of average height or more, a Twingo is pure torture.

If ever there was a car exclusively designed for women or short people, or at any rate people with short legs, this is it.

Seat back to accommodate pedals, you can barely reach the wheel.

Reach the wheel, and you lick your knees and stress out the shin muscle which you never knew you had, just keeping your foot retracted off the throttle pedal.

The in-between position is just a bit too much of both. And no, I'm no giraffe, very average at 5'10".

[ukkid35]

996TT02 said:

Yer all amateurs.

If you are of average height or more, a Twingo is pure torture.

If ever there was a car exclusively designed for women or short people, or at any rate people with short legs, this is it.

I am a short person (5.6) and I adore the MK1 Twingo (never driven the later model). It was a breakdown replacement car during the same period that I had the misfortune to drive a Yaris. To say it put the Yaris to shame in no way conveys my contenpt for the Toyota. It was wonderful to drive and had airbags and ABS which was quite unusual for a compact back then.

[davamer23]

Dodge Stratus in 2006, hired from Dollar Rental San Francisco, drove it to San Diego via LA. Horrid, horrid car. Agricultural 2.0 4cyl that sounded like a brick in a washing machine, the Auto box it was mated to was the worst I've ever experienced. Looked just like this

[Jonny_]

ukkid35 said:

I guess you haven't driven a new 1.2 petrol Astra, change down a gear and the only thing that happens is it makes more noise/uses more petrol. I was fortunate to hire one four months ago in Malaga, and it was comically slow. My 599cc Smart would run rings round it. On the plus side it took us to the best kart track I have ever driven.

That the 1.2 turbo that replaces the old N/A 1.4?

Congratulations GM, you've made it perform just the same despite that 200cc defecit!

[stargazer30]

Worst was when my focus ST170 went in for repair and they gave me a Punto. I thought that was bad but 2 weeks in I broke it and for penance they made me drive a 950cc panda for 4 weeks! Still when the ST170 was finally fixed it felt like a ferrari!

More recently 1.6L petrol insignia. Wayyyyy too heavy for the engine, it was dire.

Best ever hire was when the missus Civic went in. The hire car driver got completely lost and didn't speak english for his boss to guide him in. No cars free so they gave me a Renault van! Oh the missus face was a picture. Still I got on top of all the DIY jobs and junk to the skip that week.

[ukkid35]

stargazer30 said:

No cars free so they gave me a Renault van! Oh the missus face was a picture. Still I got on top of all the DIY jobs and junk to the skip that week.

That's a Silver Lining I could do with!

[Hooli]

Pug 406, the worst seats I've ever sat in. Even my Mk1 Polo with broken 'bits' in the seat so the lumbar had collapsed was more comfy.

[dalzo]

LukeR94 said:

Never had one, not old enough, 19

I had a 11 plate 2.9 Porsche boxster as a hire car when I was 19. Best week of my life lol

[Escort3500]

DaveH23 said:

A petrol insignia, not sure what size but had the cruise sat at 70 in 6th gear and needed to overtake so put my foot down and im not kidding when nothing happened, nothing at all, at first I thought id set a limit at 70 not the cruise, dropped to 5th and it starting making a noise then had to put it in 4th to make it move, quite dangerous if you ask me.

Had a diesel insignia the week before and that was ample performace for the car.

^^^^^^^ I use hire cars quite a lot and the diesel Insignia is the worst. My heart always sinks when I get one. No grunt matched to lacklustre handling and it just feels so huge. But the worst was an early Prius I got stuck with for two days a few years ago. Just dreadful.

Edited by Escort3500 on Sunday 16th February 06:29

Edited by Escort3500 on Sunday 16th February 08:29

[Baz2000]

Fiat Qubo 1.3 or 1.4 diesel I can't remember but it was painfully slow in a part of Italy with some fantastic roads :|

Same colour as this one

Edited by Baz2000 on Tuesday 11th February 20:14

[LukeR94]

dalzo said:

LukeR94 said:

Never had one, not old enough, 19

I had a 11 plate 2.9 Porsche boxster as a hire car when I was 19. Best week of my life lol

Story!