Quote:
Originally Posted by Clev
You might want to check your local rental lots. Hertz, for instance, has a "green collection" of cars. They may have a new Insight that you could rent for a day or two and try it out in your normal routine. (I got a Prius from them a few months ago for $20/day more than the compact.)
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Funny you should mention -- I rent from a Hertz Local agency every other week. Vehicles in their "Green Collection" include 30+ MPG vehicles like the Ford Fusion 4-cyl among the Prius. The airport location has a much better selection. Today I rented (yet another) Camry SE 4-cyl, which gets around 30 MPG (need to get back and turn it in for the final FE tally). The stiffer suspension makes it a proper ride (the funky ground effects, maybe not).
Not too long ago, my Hertz local edition had a Prius on a one-way drop, and I requested it for my trip the next week. I stopped by to pick it up and it "went to the shop with problems". I never saw it again. Yes, I was rather bummed and really didn't buy the story. I think they traded it to another location for one better suited for local rentals.
I've rented 3 Priuses from National Car Rental: 2 times from Portland, Oregon (PDX) and once in LA. Hondas are very uncommon in rental fleets. I came across one last month for a family trip to Chicago. The Accord LX managed 32 MPG with 4 people and luggage (plus crazy Chi-town driving). I had the chance to drive an '06 Accord in Sioux Falls, SD, and a Civic LX last year to Wichita. That's pretty much it out of the 100's of rentals. The vast majority are Domestics, followed by Kia/Hyundais, Nissans, Mitsubishis and a smattering of others.
The airport National/Alamo has Gen-II Priuses at an expensive rate, but I've driven those before. I would be surprised to see a new Prius or Insight somewhere. It would definitely be worth the extra expense to see if either were the real deal. Maybe some dealers rent them?
RH77