Buena Vista Galactic scooters

[Selket]

Ok those overlays on the scooters are very cool - even if I'm an average Star Wars fan. I wonder if other scooter companies will try something similar? If there was a way to personalize the scooter so you know it's yours (something removable after the rental) that would be a cool idea too.... or something they could probably up-sell people at least - lol! Like if it was $10 or $20 for an overlay or what not I might consider it.

I hesitate to wade into the this vs. that but I've only rented from BV or Gold. I like that BV had the pouch with the charger on the back so when they added that it was a plus in my book. My last Gold rental (in October) had a slip pocket and I didn't want to put anything in it cause it would get soaked in the rain (and I'd forget it was there). I also didn't need to carry my charger so it didn't matter that much. My overall experience with BV went downhill over the years - Gold has been great but they have messed up once with me (brought me the wrong scooter but switched it the next day)...but they still tick all my boxes for what I want. No company is going to be perfect - unless you know what you want always good to look at a few and ask questions. I think it's more complicated now that only one company can leave scooters at the bell services at Disney resorts (last I checked).

The only thing I'd bet for sure on is that I expect Gold and other companies will at some point be similar in price. I wonder if Gold has tried to price on the low end to gain customers and will eventually go up. Nothing wrong with that...at least nothing uncommon about it.

 

[serenitynow]

We had an issue with Buena Vista in 2015. The ECV they provided wasn’t holding a charge very well. Full charge overnight and by lunch the meter was showing less than 1/2 charged. I called them, they tried to insist the problem was me.

On the second day, after a full overnight charge, at noon the meter was in the yellow. We stayed at our resort, POFQ that afternoon swimming and relaxing as we had tickets to the Halloween party that night. I charged the ECV during the break.


We left for the Halloween Party at 6:30 and the meter reflected a full charge. By 9pm the scooter was struggling up the MK hills. We called Buena Vista and left a message. The ECV finally died outside Be Our Guest. The CM there called guest services who sent over a really nice guy to look at the ECV, who seemed to know a lot about the devices. He couldn’t get it going again, even though the meter was showing that it was still charged. He thought there might be a short. He had a couple of emergency numbers for Buena Vista, so we called those numbers and spoke with their answering service and left our cell phone numbers. No one ever called back. Between voice mail and the answering service, we left six messages for Buena Vista that night.

By 11:30, with no contact from Buena Vista, my DH had to push me on the ECV set in neutral, free wheel, to Guest Services, from BOG through a crowded Halloween party packed with other guests. It was a nightmare.

The cast members at Guest Services were really nice, giving us candy since we didn’t get to trick or treat that night. They suggested leaving the ECV with them so Buena Vista could pick it up in the morning and lent us a wheelchair to get to the resort bus. At Port Orleans a CM gave us a lift back to our room in one of their little golf carts.

We called Buena Vista first thing in the morning. They were upset we had “abandoned” the ECV at Magic Kingdom. We gave hem the name and number of the supervisor who advised us to leave the scooter in their locked wheelchair area. At first Buena Vista refused to replace the scooter until they had the defective ECV back in stock. After many less than pleasant phone calls between all parties, including Disney, they finally agreed to deliver a new scooter to the resort ASAP.

ASAP turned out to be about 2:30. We missed all our morning Fast Passes and our Sci-Fi lunch reservation. Luckily Guest Services at Hollywood Studios got involved and replaced our FPS and refunded the $10.00 missed ADR fee.

As compensation, Buena Vista agreed to refund one days rental. They failed to do so. I called and wrote Buena Vista. They finally credited my credit card for a day’s rental when I threatened to contact the Better Business Bureau.

We had used Buena Vista before this experience in the past with no issues. We have, however, not used them since. Not because they rented a ECV with a problem, that can happen with any mechanical device. But because of their lack of after hours assistance and their poor customer care when something went wrong. No one ever even apologized.

 

[kaytieeldr]

I'm sorry all that happened to you, @serenitynow. Thank for your actual awful experience report.

 

[kaytieeldr]

If there was a way to personalize the scooter so you know it's yours (something removable after the rental) that would be a cool idea too.

I slip a t-shirt over the back of the seat, and fasten it around the pole with a scarf or hairtie or something (to keep it in place and make it harder to steal). Doesn't have to be Disney, just something unique. And inexpensive, in case it gets legs

 

[mamabunny]

I slip a t-shirt over the back of the seat, and fasten it around the pole with a scarf or hairtie or something (to keep it in place and make it harder to steal). Doesn't have to be Disney, just something unique. And inexpensive, in case it gets legs

Yep - even a cheap cotton bandana tied to the handlebars can help you spot your ECV in a sea of similar rentals. You can get them year round at most Wal-Mart stores for $1. Or, tie some big bows in your characters colors using grosgrain ribbon. Personally, I love @kaytieeldr's idea, because you could really do something cute with a custom shirt to cover the seat back.

I think that the Star Wars overlays are very clever, and no doubt, they will justify a higher rental price. I have a feeling that they will be less desirable in a few months when they are scuffed up and showing wear from heavy rental rotation; that's human nature.

I wish that before they focused on things like cupholders and sunshades, that both manufactures/vendors and the people who rent these devices would think first about safety and usability. I will take better braking, more responsive steering, tighter turning, and longer battery life all day over amenities like cupholders, sunshades and USB charging outlets. I don't even care about storage! Yes, I have a cupholder on my personal device that is aftermarket, as is the undercarriage lighting, and headlights & tail lights (which I have had for *years* now, and consider to be a safety item for the Parks after dark) and I will always have those items because I can. But when I bought my mobility device, it was because I have actual brakes that I can use to stop if someone runs in front of me. I have the tightest turning radius of any ECV out there. And my battery life is easily good for a full Disney Day, and that's at my (now former) heaviest weight; I expect I will have no need to bring along a spare battery on my next trip.

Sorry... /end rant /end soapbox

The "Galactic Series" is cute and fun, but is it anything more than cosmetic?

Can it at least make the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs?

 

[wiihoo888]

Completely agree! The bells and whistles are nice, but the overall performance on all of the ecvs should be much better. It’s not even the people running in front of me. For some reason, I seem to attract people that love to drop dead stop in front of me for no apparent reason. Defensive driving is everything in Disney

I ended up going with Gold again. After calling both them and BV, I got the best deal from them ( yay repeat customer discounts). And honestly, the thought of scheduling around the new BV drop off and pick up schedule started stressing me out. Don’t need that on vaca.

Now....just have to decide on something to tie to my chassis to make it more recognizable down there. Do still have my lime green bandana from my last Dis event

Yep - even a cheap cotton bandana tied to the handlebars can help you spot your ECV in a sea of similar rentals. You can get them year round at most Wal-Mart stores for $1. Or, tie some big bows in your characters colors using grosgrain ribbon. Personally, I love @kaytieeldr's idea, because you could really do something cute with a custom shirt to cover the seat back.

I think that the Star Wars overlays are very clever, and no doubt, they will justify a higher rental price. I have a feeling that they will be less desirable in a few months when they are scuffed up and showing wear from heavy rental rotation; that's human nature.

I wish that before they focused on things like cupholders and sunshades, that both manufactures/vendors and the people who rent these devices would think first about safety and usability. I will take better braking, more responsive steering, tighter turning, and longer battery life all day over amenities like cupholders, sunshades and USB charging outlets. I don't even care about storage! Yes, I have a cupholder on my personal device that is aftermarket, as is the undercarriage lighting, and headlights & tail lights (which I have had for *years* now, and consider to be a safety item for the Parks after dark) and I will always have those items because I can. But when I bought my mobility device, it was because I have actual brakes that I can use to stop if someone runs in front of me. I have the tightest turning radius of any ECV out there. And my battery life is easily good for a full Disney Day, and that's at my (now former) heaviest weight; I expect I will have no need to bring along a spare battery on my next trip.

Sorry... /end rant /end soapbox

The "Galactic Series" is cute and fun, but is it anything more than cosmetic?

Can it at least make the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs?

 

[SueM in MN]

I’ve seen scooters (wheelchairs and strollers too) where people tied curling ribbon like this in various places. Just have to be careful it won’t be in places where it won’t get caught on anything.
500 Yards Green Crimped Curling Ribbon Shiny Metallic Balloon String Roll Gift Wrapping Ribbon for Party Festival Art Craft Decor Florist Flowers Decoration
by DOLM
Learn more: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07KK32KJR/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_zJ58DbB3AEZNA