Repair-It

Car: 2019 VW Jetta SE
Date Rented: 2/27/19
Location Rented: RDU
Rental Company: National
Powertrain: 147 HP 1.4L turbo I4 with 8A
Highs: 8-speed auto shifts very quickly and precisely. Decent highway on center feel for the class. Nice looking gauges. Good highway fuel economy.
Lows: Throttle response in stop and go is just annoying. Some hesitation at tip in followed by more than you bargained for at part throttle
Fun facts: Comes with a 6/72k bumper to bumper warranty (I guess VW is finally owning their quality issues)
Would I rent again? Maybe, but it would have to be slim pickings again like it was the other night

Car: 2019 Dodge Charger R/T
Date Rented: 3/19/19
Location Rented: SAN
Rental Company: Avis
Powertrain: 370 HP 5.7L V8 with 8A
Highs: Transmission performs great when hammering on it in 'Sport' mode. Holds gears, fast and smooth shifts up and down.
Lows: Transmission performs more clunkily/lazily when not in 'Sport' mode (the only other setting). Goodyear Eagle RSA-2 tires really let down a seemingly competent chassis. Also, it's so, so loud.
Fun facts: Has launch control! Hard to test is in San Diego, though. I did rip off a 5.0 second 0-60 using the in-car performance timer.
Would I rent again? Of course, need to test out launch control...

Sweet! I rented a Charger GT over the weekend to burn some free days that would have expired unused. The GT is basically a R/T minus a couple cylinders. I tried the launch control on mine and it was uninspiring. It only allows a maximum RPM of 2300, which isn't even enough to chirp a tire with the V6.

I see yours still had the bumper protection tape installed. There is an internet thing where owners leave this on to look cool.

I was wondering about the bumper thing. It's a flexible plastic that looked to be friction fit around the actual bumper. I guess Avis is terrible at PDIs, although it helped absorb some minor scraping.

It's possible Avis is leaving that protective cover on intentionally to help with resale. I have also seen it on many National Chargers and Challengers.

Car: 2019 Jeep Compass Trailhawk
Date Rented: 5/12/19
Location Rented: BWI
Rental Company: Avis
Powertrain: 180 HP 175 lb-ft 2.4L I4 with 9A
Highs: Trailhawk package gets you some cool rims and interior accents. Also a dual-speed transfer case.
Lows: 9 speeds is too many? It's pretty much constantly shifting. Engine feels anemic in all situations
Fun facts: It has a trailer hitch. Probably for carrying your bikes around.
Would I rent again? It's better than a Journey...

Car: 2019 Dodge Durango R/T
Date Rented: 6/13/2019
Location Rented: YVR
Rental Company: National
Powertrain: 360 HP 390 lb-ft 5.7L V8 with 8A
Highs: Sounds great, lots of space and drives fairly well considering its mass, great infotainment
Lows: Generally cheap feeling interior, not efficient at all
Fun facts: It has low range for maximum fuel efficiency
Other options: new Jeep Wrangler, JGC.
Would I rent again? Yes

Not exactly a rental car, but also kind of a rental car...

Drove my parents' 2014 Malibu LT down from Tampa to Sarasota. About a 70 minute drive. I will probably be driving it more frequently while I am here so I will provide more details. For now I will give my initial impressions.

First some specs.
- Auto stop/start. It never engaged for me but it was nearly 100F outside...
- Trunk seems bigger than my STS
- Has a 2.5L 4 cylinder with direct injection. Car and Driver says 197 hp @ 6,300 rpm. I thought closer to 190. This would be quicker if it wasn't nearly 3,600 lbs. 0-60 in 7.7 and 1/4 mile in 16.1 @ 88. Not fast but also not slow so that's something.
- 6 speed auto. Shifted smoothly.
- It has a full power driver's seat. I was surprised to find power recline as this was a fleet vehicle. Not sure about the passenger seat. Manual, single zone climate control.
- In 100F degree heat with the A/C pointed at my head it nearly gave me a cold headache. It wasn't as good when stopped in traffic but clearly got the job done even under some hot conditions. Come to find out it has an A/C leak and my dad recently had it recharged. That is disappointing as my Cadillacs are all original and considerably older.
- Car has about 101k on it now (hit 100k on the way down to FL from CT evidently)

Overall I think the car is better than I expected. Though I had pretty low expectations. The engine is quiet and mostly smooth. It drones a bit over 4k RPM. Also the gearing is fairly tall and despite being a 2.5L, it downshifts very soon upon adding some throttle on the highway. Seems like it would cruise long distances at high speeds with ease, just not up hills without downshifting.

The steering was surprisingly good, at least compared to what I was expecting. I liked the effort for the kind of car this is (not too heavy - heavy steering in a car like this fools no one). I also found it surprisingly precise and responsive on the highway. It is electric assist.

It has a backup camera. Color screen between the gauges (I think a lot like a Camaro of the same year). Nice MyLink screen with the flip up for storage behind. Yeah this car was better than I thought it would be so far.

Drove the Fusion a little under an hour today. I will compare and contrast a few things.

First, it is a 2013 Fusion SE with the 1.6L turbo. 142k. The 1.6 was replaced by a 1.5L in the Fusion starting in 14 for whatever reason.

A few notes:
- Interior seems a little airier. A little more view of the road. The interior design is a little more fresh than the Malibu but the myLink is far superior to what the Fusion has, which is a tiny non-touch screen.
- Steering is better on center. Off center I don't really think it had an advantage and I may actually prefer the Malibu. Ratio may be a little quicker in the Malibu.
- The Fusion feels heavier and rides softer (I doubt it is actually heavier). It felt more boaty and isolated. The Malibu felt more taut and athletic (relatively speaking). There were a few buzzes and rattles. I don't think the Malibu had any.
- Brakes are worse. The pedal feel is worse. They are mushy yet touchy. Not a good combination.
- I did like the throttle response immediately on tip-in. It is immediate upon touching the throttle. Reminds me of my Caprice. I don't mean a hard punch, just very light pressure. The Malibu felt more like my STS. Some sort of dead area before it picks up. I prefer the Fusion here.
- The turbo helped in low speed situations which was nice. There WAS some turbo lag. Overall I may prefer the 2.5L. The 1.6L in the Fusion also seemed to sound worse to my ears and the idle was kind of rough. Maybe it needs an intake valve cleaning at 142k. I dunno, the Malibu powertrain felt more refined to me. Maybe the Fusion would benefit from new engine mounts.
- Trans was pretty jerky for a while but then seemed to smooth out some as I drove it. Not sure what that means.
- Lack of remote start makes me sad. I actually used it in the Malibu to get the A/C going. Thing with Florida is, you really don't park with your windows down because you never know when it may rain, especially in the afternoons. So the cars get ridiculously hot.
- Seats seemed more supportive in the Fusion.
- I did not test the audio. I'd be surprised if it was better than the Malibu.
- The approach lighting in the Fusion seems a little classier but honestly the Malibu uses the tried-and-true GM method (which some people hate) which is probably more functional. The Fusion gives you basically some dim perimeter lighting and will do so even if you just open the door. The Malibu, if it is dark, gives you headlights and reverse lights for approach (on a timer) which pretty well illuminates the area. Some people hate this because in a parking lot it looks like a car is about to backup.

Overall I think I prefer the Malibu. The pros on the Fusion are a little more passenger room, and I did like the initial throttle tip-in (again, hard presses reveal turbo lag so I am talking very light, like in traffic, but those are the kinds of situations that are repetitive and I just liked the way it felt). I don't know which one gets better fuel economy. The Fusion may do a little better but I bet it isn't by much.

I prefer the way the Malibu drives taking it all in. It has more power and torque and may be almost a full second faster to 60 for reference. I prefer the chassis feel and I can trade the numb (but precise) on center for the rest of it. The Fusion seems a little more modern inside and probably more appealing outside, though I certainly don't find the Malibu to be an ugly car by any means. More rear seat legroom. So certainly some advantages there.

Other notes:
- Malibu has hood struts. The Fusion gives you a prop rod. That is lame.
- Malibu has CONSIDERABLY more room in front of the engine despite being almost 1L larger.

Fusion 1.6L turbo Malibu 2.5L. You can see the floor through it!! My hand for reference. Fusion is tight.

Car: 2019 Ford Mustang GT Premium
Date Rented: 8/9/19
Location Rented: YVR
Rental Company: National
Powertrain: 460 HP 5.038L V8 with 10A
Highs: Crazy fast acceleration for a rental (C&D timed it at 12.1 @ 120), sounds good, fairly comfortable as a touring car. Chassis is good and if the Camaro didn't exist, this would be more than acceptable. Good brake feel. I took this on a road trip from Vancouver to Seattle, using mostly backroads and it was a lot of fun.
Lows: Lots of road noise (not just exhaust, but other stuff), 10A isn't great in all situations, especially moderate throttle downshifts.
Fun facts: Has adjustable interior accent lighting. I set it to purple for the enjoyment of the next renter. The 10A shifts 1-3-5-6-7-8-9-10 when you accelerate under light throttle.
Would I rent again? Yes!