rock bottom rental cars
The idea for travelling in Scotland, to spend a week playing golf, was my father's. He proposed it four years ago, and for the last three, I had resisted. My reservations were various, but the reasons why I changed my mind over those years were also diverse and different. Still, one of the conditions that I wanted my father to meet was to let me pull some weight on this trip. I can understand why it was important to him to do this trip with me, and to demonstrate in certain ways, that he could still provide experiences such as these. I also know him well enough to know that he is happy when things are done a certain way to a certain standard. But I also wanted him to recognize that I was an adult, that I had plenty of my own travels, and could do certain things on my own. Let me book my own flights. Let's talk about the itinerary. Let me pick some of the restaurants that I want to pay for. And, yes, since we're going to have to drive, let me take care of the rental car and the logistics of getting us from place to place.
This is how I found myself leaned over a Hertz rental counter in Glasgow, early in the morning and looking into the blue eyes of a sales agent who was trying to get me to buy the upgrade and me saying, but not saying, " oh you want to play? Right now? Ok, friend, let's go."
When researching rental options, I knew two things: my dad tends to pack heavy, and we both have had bad luck with people breaking into our cars when luggage was packed in. Despite my usual proclivities, I wanted something that could take in two golf bags plus luggage without using a back seat, which nearly put us in SUV territory. It was less for my anxiety, than for my dad's peace of mind and the subsequent avoidance of arguments. However, the difference between a midsize and the next class up for a week long, one-way rental was nearly $x00, and my dad's potential worries were not worth that.
So, I went for the midsize and then met my dad in Glasgow, and walked over to the rental counter with our baggage train. The agent looked at me, then his gaze wandered over bags and he said, "If I may ... I think it's going to be a tight fit with your bags. You know cars in Europe are a wee bit smaller, yeah?"
"Oh, I know, but I think we'll be ok," I said.
"But," my dad chimed in, "do you have any available upgrades?"
Our sales agent brightened, "Oh, I think, we just might. Let me check."
"well," I said, "when I was looking online, the next upgrade that I saw was more than double the fee of this car."
"When were you looking? A month ago? There may have been some last minute cancellations. Can't hurt to check."
Why, no it can't hurt. We're just talking hypotheticals. And I looked over at my dad, and he looked ready. Ok, friend, let's play.
"Ok, what do you have?"
" ... oh, I've got a Nissan crossover and it's yours for only x0 more pounds a day."
My dad smiles, "that doesn't sound so bad."
"Ah, but, dad, multiply that by 7 days and that's almost x00 pounds. That's like $(x00 * 1.5) more."
"Oh, but, Mr. C., I see you've also opted for our supplemental GPS system. I should say, that I've also got a Mitsubishi. Same size as the Nissan but it's got a built in GPS. So I can take the supplemental off. That'll easily knock x0 pounds off the bill. Here, let me print out the quote so you can compare 'em side-by-side."
Oh, you've got two expensive SUVs sitting on your lot, do you? I'm sure you're eager to get someone in one of them.
"I don't know, I was thinking of foregoing the GPS, anyway. I mean, I just got a SIM card for my phone so I can use that for directions..."
"But," my dad again, "it might be easier to use the built in."
And I kind of look at him and there's that look in his eye. The same look that he gets when he's working a deal, and I know the angle that he's working. I've seen it so many times. He plays Good Cop, eager to spend money and suck in the salesperson with an easy sale. He needs a Bad Cop for leverage. Someone else who can be a hardass and force the salesperson to come down. If it was just me, saying "no", the agent would just cut me loose and leave me to my choice; but there's my dad being his advocate, giving him hope. Normally, when buying cars or houses, my Mom's in this seat, but I've seen her work it long enough, that I've learned the rules by osmosis.
The sales agent just stays in, looking for other arguments. "You know," he says, "I'm a golfer too, and you have some lovely clubs. It'd be a shame if someone just saw them in the backseat of a smaller car and just smashed the window."
"Oh, that's fair, that's why we'd like an upgrade, but for the right price."
"Ah, but those clubs look expensive. What's a little extra money for the cost of replacing them?"
Oh, let me appeal to alternate math, dear customer. Let's expand the equation.
"That's what insurance is for. I mean, look, I think we're close; but you're eating into most of the budget that I was planning for souvenirs. It's either your upgrade or a bottle of Lagavulin, you know?"
Nice try, friend. But, hey, I don't want to just drag this out. Let me give you a target.
"Well, that math I can respect." The agent tore up his quote and looked back down at his terminal. "Oh, and you know, it's Memorial Day in America isn't it? I think if you were on holiday in the US, you'd be getting some sort of special rate; but it doesn't change the fact that you're on holiday. Let me see if I can ... why, yes, I can take another 5 pounds off the daily rate. How does this look to you?"
He pushed the new quote across the counter, and both my dad and I looked it over. My father points at an item in the quote. "What is this? 'refueling service'?"
"Oh, that's just an amenity. We'll just let you pre-pay for a full tank of gas so you won't have to worry about refilling before you return the car. You'll be driving all over creation. Just return it to us with an empty gas tank and you'll be all set."
Oh, sneaking in prepaid gas at an arbitrary fuel rate? Nice try. "It's not a problem to pump some gas. Take that off and I think we're good."
In the end, we walked out of the airport with an upgraded car for just a third of the original upgrade fee. It's still a little more than what I'd pay if it were just me, but it isn't just me. As I drove my dad south to our first destination in Ayrshire, and listened to him talk about how he excited he was to be here, how this course that we were headed to was built by one of his idols, and how great the rest of our vacation was going to be, I felt like that fee was just fine.
This is how I found myself leaned over a Hertz rental counter in Glasgow, early in the morning and looking into the blue eyes of a sales agent who was trying to get me to buy the upgrade and me saying, but not saying, " oh you want to play? Right now? Ok, friend, let's go."
When researching rental options, I knew two things: my dad tends to pack heavy, and we both have had bad luck with people breaking into our cars when luggage was packed in. Despite my usual proclivities, I wanted something that could take in two golf bags plus luggage without using a back seat, which nearly put us in SUV territory. It was less for my anxiety, than for my dad's peace of mind and the subsequent avoidance of arguments. However, the difference between a midsize and the next class up for a week long, one-way rental was nearly $x00, and my dad's potential worries were not worth that.
So, I went for the midsize and then met my dad in Glasgow, and walked over to the rental counter with our baggage train. The agent looked at me, then his gaze wandered over bags and he said, "If I may ... I think it's going to be a tight fit with your bags. You know cars in Europe are a wee bit smaller, yeah?"
"Oh, I know, but I think we'll be ok," I said.
"But," my dad chimed in, "do you have any available upgrades?"
Our sales agent brightened, "Oh, I think, we just might. Let me check."
"well," I said, "when I was looking online, the next upgrade that I saw was more than double the fee of this car."
"When were you looking? A month ago? There may have been some last minute cancellations. Can't hurt to check."
Why, no it can't hurt. We're just talking hypotheticals. And I looked over at my dad, and he looked ready. Ok, friend, let's play.
"Ok, what do you have?"
" ... oh, I've got a Nissan crossover and it's yours for only x0 more pounds a day."
My dad smiles, "that doesn't sound so bad."
"Ah, but, dad, multiply that by 7 days and that's almost x00 pounds. That's like $(x00 * 1.5) more."
"Oh, but, Mr. C., I see you've also opted for our supplemental GPS system. I should say, that I've also got a Mitsubishi. Same size as the Nissan but it's got a built in GPS. So I can take the supplemental off. That'll easily knock x0 pounds off the bill. Here, let me print out the quote so you can compare 'em side-by-side."
Oh, you've got two expensive SUVs sitting on your lot, do you? I'm sure you're eager to get someone in one of them.
"I don't know, I was thinking of foregoing the GPS, anyway. I mean, I just got a SIM card for my phone so I can use that for directions..."
"But," my dad again, "it might be easier to use the built in."
And I kind of look at him and there's that look in his eye. The same look that he gets when he's working a deal, and I know the angle that he's working. I've seen it so many times. He plays Good Cop, eager to spend money and suck in the salesperson with an easy sale. He needs a Bad Cop for leverage. Someone else who can be a hardass and force the salesperson to come down. If it was just me, saying "no", the agent would just cut me loose and leave me to my choice; but there's my dad being his advocate, giving him hope. Normally, when buying cars or houses, my Mom's in this seat, but I've seen her work it long enough, that I've learned the rules by osmosis.
The sales agent just stays in, looking for other arguments. "You know," he says, "I'm a golfer too, and you have some lovely clubs. It'd be a shame if someone just saw them in the backseat of a smaller car and just smashed the window."
"Oh, that's fair, that's why we'd like an upgrade, but for the right price."
"Ah, but those clubs look expensive. What's a little extra money for the cost of replacing them?"
Oh, let me appeal to alternate math, dear customer. Let's expand the equation.
"That's what insurance is for. I mean, look, I think we're close; but you're eating into most of the budget that I was planning for souvenirs. It's either your upgrade or a bottle of Lagavulin, you know?"
Nice try, friend. But, hey, I don't want to just drag this out. Let me give you a target.
"Well, that math I can respect." The agent tore up his quote and looked back down at his terminal. "Oh, and you know, it's Memorial Day in America isn't it? I think if you were on holiday in the US, you'd be getting some sort of special rate; but it doesn't change the fact that you're on holiday. Let me see if I can ... why, yes, I can take another 5 pounds off the daily rate. How does this look to you?"
He pushed the new quote across the counter, and both my dad and I looked it over. My father points at an item in the quote. "What is this? 'refueling service'?"
"Oh, that's just an amenity. We'll just let you pre-pay for a full tank of gas so you won't have to worry about refilling before you return the car. You'll be driving all over creation. Just return it to us with an empty gas tank and you'll be all set."
Oh, sneaking in prepaid gas at an arbitrary fuel rate? Nice try. "It's not a problem to pump some gas. Take that off and I think we're good."
In the end, we walked out of the airport with an upgraded car for just a third of the original upgrade fee. It's still a little more than what I'd pay if it were just me, but it isn't just me. As I drove my dad south to our first destination in Ayrshire, and listened to him talk about how he excited he was to be here, how this course that we were headed to was built by one of his idols, and how great the rest of our vacation was going to be, I felt like that fee was just fine.