Dollar rent a car?

[disneysmyhappyplace]

I rented a crown Victoria from dollar for our upcoming trip do you think that is what we will get? Or will we get a smaller car? We rented it for the sheer amount of space in the truck. I don't think we could go much smaller. Anyone have any experience with dollar?

 

[Denise W]

I have rented from Dollar several times and never had any issues. I always got the size car I had reserved.

Denise

 

[disneysmyhappyplace]

I am having such a hard to time finding a rental car that will fit 5 plus 5 large pieces of luggage for a good rate. The crown Victoria seems to fit the bill in space and price. Just worried we will get something we won't fit into

 

[Ladcassidy]

We had no problem with Dollar at MCO. A few weeks ago, they did not have the big SUV we reserved on a trip to Texas. They gave us two options: wait for them to get one, or take a smaller SUV and a discount. We took the smaller vehicle so that we would not have to wait. My sister faced the same thing when she arrived. But with 2 parents, 5 kids, 8 suitcases and a stroller, downsizing was not an option for her. Fortunately, they "found" her a Texas-sized SUV pretty quickly.

 

[disneysmyhappyplace]

Thank you for your responses. I am going to keep the reservation and hope for the best. It is half the cost of any other rental car company so it is worth the chance

 

[DanieD0909]

I have had great success at the dollar rent a car at Mco...one recommendation is to sign up for their dollar express membership and then link your current reservation...you can skip the line inside and head straight for the kiosk in the garage...no wait and they seem to be a little more helpful in getting what you want/need. The last three times we've been upgraded without even asking! Good luck!!

 

[pieface]

They left me stranded years ago and flat out lied to me. Complaint letter to them ment nothing. Not getting what you rented is their normal way they operate I don't think that is anyway to do business. I have rented from alamo ever since that time never had any problems. Just check in on line and skip the counter just walk over and pick up your car. You don't have to join some stupid club for that benefit.

 

[nancydrew79]

We had a wonderful experience with Dollar recently. Plus their week rate was $100 lower than every one else!

 

[gmeh1]

I am having such a hard to time finding a rental car that will fit 5 plus 5 large pieces of luggage for a good rate. The crown Victoria seems to fit the bill in space and price. Just worried we will get something we won't fit into

They don't make Crown Vics anymore. Dollar lists cars that do not exist anymore, IE: Galant and Crown Vic. You would probably be fine in an Impala or Taurus. While some agencies have them still in the fleet, you might want to realize that is not going to be available everywhere and they also say Crown Vic or similar (all agencies use that caveat). Their trunk is large, however, some of that room is being taken by the spare tire kept on the right hand side upper part of the trunk.
The Impala will hold at least 5 pieces of luggage 18.6 cf trunk and a cabin that holds 5 people.
The Taurus has a 20.1 cf trunk and the spare tire is not compromising the space .
All car manufacturers have the specs on their respective web sites and car rental agencies list the capacity of their vehicles. Just click on "cars" or "fleet".

 

[nancydrew79]

2 adults and 3 kids and their luggage can fit comfortably in a Taurus, we've done it before!

 

[disneysmyhappyplace]

I agree that we probably won't get a crown vic, which is fine. They say a maxima is their alternative, which is most likely what we will get. That car is big now too! We will make it work somehow.

 

[jgraney106]

Our most recent rental with Dollar was in Tampa airport in June 2013. We also rented a premium vehicle and we got a Crown Victoria. It was a 2011 model, but we had no problems with it and the service was fine.

 

[wiigirl]

I have rented from Dollar several times and never had any issues. I always got the size car I had reserved.

Denise

I have always gotten the car size or better.

 

[disneysmyhappyplace]

Our most recent rental with Dollar was in Tampa airport in June 2013. We also rented a premium vehicle and we got a Crown Victoria. It was a 2011 model, but we had no problems with it and the service was fine.

Thanks. I am sticking with the reservation as it is so much cheaper than any other company! By almost 50%!

 

[gmeh1]

I agree that we probably won't get a crown vic, which is fine. They say a maxima is their alternative, which is most likely what we will get. That car is big now too! We will make it work somehow.

The maxima has a 14.2 cf trunk, which small compared to the Impala or the Taurus. You are renting a Premium, which does not mean bigger, it means premium features. I am not sure how any of the agencies get away with saying it will hold six bags, trust me, it does not. I watched too many people try to jam 4 bags in the trunk, give up and go to something with a larger trunk.

 

[gmeh1]

Thanks. I am sticking with the reservation as it is so much cheaper than any other company! By almost 50%!

Dollar is an ok company, don't get me wrong. BUT, they have a very limited selection of cars at MCO. I would hate to see you disapointed. When are you going?

 

[mdsd8700]

The maxima has a 14.2 cf trunk, which small compared to the Impala or the Taurus. You are renting a Premium, which does not mean bigger, it means premium features. I am not sure how any of the agencies get away with saying it will hold six bags, trust me, it does not. I watched too many people try to jam 4 bags in the trunk, give up and go to something with a larger trunk.

Would agree the Maxima trunk is quite small compared to the Impala or Taurus. We had a full size car this summer (at LAX) and our luggage could not fit in the trunk of the Maxima or several others in the premium section. Now we pack a lot (2 large, 2 medium, 3 small plus tote bags/personal items). No way did it fit in the trunk of the Maxima. It did fit in an Impala with no room to spare and the 1 small suit case and totes/personal items in car with us.

On a side note we have used Dollar before at MCO and never had an issue.

 

[disneysmyhappyplace]

Do you think they will let us change cars without additional expense if our luggage does not fit? I guess the kids could have luggage on their laps. I really don't want to spend a ton on a four day rental. Very torn!

 

[leebee]

I currently am driving a car rented from Dollar at the airport in Dayton, OH. I reserved a FULL sized car, as I knew we'd have a 27" suitcase, a 25" suitcase, a 22" suitcase, a Vera Bradley Grand Traveler (qualifies as a carry-on, but it's big), two VB Miller bags (hold a 17" laptop and other stuff), my DH's computer bag, and three passengers in the vehicle. They had NO full sized cars on the lot or expected to be turned on the day we were renting. We ended up with a midsized Dodge Avenger, with no gasket in the trunk (so it was leaking) and a bald tire, with 60K miles on it. My DH went back in and said NO. They gave us the same model car only newer, with 22K miles on it. It took some creative loading, but all the luggage fit into the trunk with the exception of one Miller Bag.

I am not happy that Dollar didn't have the car I'd reserved (MONTHS in advance) when I needed it. The Avenger is sufficient, and they gave us a $25 discount off the really good rate I'd already had for the full-size (so ended up with a rate of $92 for the week), but we wanted the full-size vehicle for comfort. THis is a driving vacation... legs of 6-8 hours... and we really would have been far more comfortable if we'd had the vehicle I'd reserved. I contacted Dollar customer service and they basically said too bad, so sad to be you.

 

[loveswdw]

We picked a Maxima last trip (through Alamo). It is not a large car. We had rented Grand Marquis (same as Crown Vic) the two trips prior and the Maxima was way smaller. Plus, we didn't like it at all. Hated the way it drove and I really disliked the push button ignition (used to having a key!).

It was totally our fault since that was our choice of car but I'd not choose one again.