Wednesday, July 25, 2007

Vacation's Over

Ugh... I may be short, but that doesn't make a 12-year-old Toyota Tercel any more comfortable for me than anyone else. Except my poor hubby, whose 6'4" self did most of the driving. On one occasion, he commented: "I wonder if people see me getting out of this car and just laugh?" My guess: probably! Thinking of the money we saved on a rental car and gasoline, however, was enough to justify using the Tercel for a week. I just had to talk louder... hubby couldn't hear very well with his knees in his ears.

There was one day we had to rent a car. I didn't think the Tercel could keep up with city traffic and/or highway speeds, having an acceleration/clutch issue, so we called the friendly local way-overpriced Budget branch. (It was the only one in the area except for an alleged rental place way out on one of the islands; their phone was disconnected.) The Budget website listed Dodge Chargers as rental options, so I asked for that first. Nope, didn't have any. I then asked what they DID have. The gentleman hemmed and hawed and said I could pick when I arrived, but couldn't give me anything specific; he only guaranteed availability of at least one vehicle in my rental class.

My rental experience might be limited, but I've never encountered one that couldn't even tell a customer what kind of car would be available at a given point in the future. Granted, if Joe Tourist neglected to return his Aveo on time, it wouldn't be there for the next customer to abuse, but a rental agent should be able to say what vehicles are *expected* to be on the lot. I like knowing this so I can book something I haven't driven before.

As it turned out, the only one my agent would admit to having was the one I got: a white Pontiac G6. My other option was a Ford Taurus, which I steadfastly refused. I hate Tauruses. (Taurii?) Just a personal opinion, don't send me hate mail. So I got the Pontiac and it turned out to be zippy, reasonably comfortable, and quite capable of both highway driving and stop-and-go city traffic. Hub enjoyed it more than I did, though we were both disappointed that we didn't get a Charger for the day. I would never consider the G6 for my personal car. It's just not visually appealing to me, but for anyone looking for economic yet sporty transportation it could be just the thing.

One morning we Tercel'd to a flea/farm market, where there was no shortage of "vintage" (read: beat to heck) 80's and 90's transportation to look at. I know I saw a Pontiac Phoenix, beaucoup Olds Cutlasses and three El Caminos. But the one I just had to photograph was this impressive repair job- probably State Farm subsidized- that just screamed "redneck."*

Yes, that's duct tape wrapped around the smashed-up bed, and what appeared to be household wall primer on the cab. Add the donut tire and a handicapped parking spot and it just becomes a work of art...

*There are ways to tell if you are one, and I are one.