My car was being repaired nearby so I chose to rent here for the convenient location. But it took…read morenearly an hour before my car was ready and I drove it off the premises -- Staff apologized repeatedly for the delay, saying they were picking it up from an oil change place, but the car had been reserved for weeks in advance and should have been ready within a more reasonable timeframe. The delay caused me to be late for an appointment.
The Staffer checking me in said "...the last driver left it between a 1/4 tank & empty, so I'll just write down it's empty and you can bring it back empty, too." That put me in two bad positions: needing to get gas immediately, causing me to be even more delayed, and trying to gauge how much gas to buy to insure I wouldn't run out, but also to not leave TOO much unused gas. It seems like a risky tactic Enterprise uses to save money on fueling, (if they fuel at all,) because most drivers will buy more than needed to prevent the car conking out in traffic or getting stranded somewhere, leaving free fuel for the next customer. The Staff should have made sure the car had at least a 1/2 tank so I could go about my day without rushing to a gas station or worrying about being put in an unsafe situation. The best scenario would be for Staff to fill-er-up! Then customers can just top it off -- no guesswork on how much to buy with little risk of running out. Besides, what good is a car without fuel? Isn't that "Rental Cars 101?"
Once the car was ready, the Staffer rushed to do the walk-around inspection, missing a 2" ding on the passenger door, so I pointed it out. He rushed while telling how the gas tank door worked, and when I didn't understand what he meant, he repeated himself rather than SHOW me how it worked, so I had to ask him to show me. He then gave me the key and took off, (at that time there were 4-5 other Staffers and only 1 waiting customer, so I don't know what his big hurry was. I was being patient and friendly, in spite of the long delay, so I know it wasn't me!)
When I got in the car, I saw the windshield had a white film on the interior, causing a hazy view, even though the car had just been washed. (I bought Windex Wipes at the gas station and cleaned it.)
I sat there trying to learn the car's unique gear shift, and other basic features like adjusting the seat, steering wheel, exterior mirrors, headlights, AC, radio, etc., but no Staff seemed to notice that I'd been there for several minutes -- no one asked if I needed any help. Yes, I could have gone back into the office to ask for help, but the Staff's rushed behavior wasn't welcoming and I was already made late, so I fumbled my way through...
I finally realized a tiny pull on the gear handle changed it to "D" (the gearshift itself didn't move to a different position, it electronically shifted, which is hard to detect if you're not used to that.) Also, a faint light illuminated the "D" when it was in gear, which was impossible to see in the sun's glare. I had to cup my hand over the gear panel to be sure I was in the right gear.
To go in reverse, I had to stop while blocking traffic and figure out that I had to pull the gear while pressing a side button. That put me in an unsafe situation!
Another learning curve was parking -- it required me to push the gear up and push the "P" button, when the "P" was flat and didn't look like a button that'd push in!
Setting and releasing the parking break was also odd -- an unlabeled button near the gearshift needed to be pushed and although it lit up to indicate it was on, the light had a 2-3 second delay, so I was pressing it repeatedly before realizing it was on when pushed in and off when pulled up. Geez!
Staff should've taken 5 minutes to show me these quirky features to ensure I could operate the car safely before they gave me the key and split. Or at least give me a written "How-to start, stop and park the car" flyer!
To be honest, the only reason I'd probably use Enterprise again is because it's near my home, and because the only other rental car co. in town is Hertz, which is further away and they've earned the same low Yelp rating as Enterprise: 3 of 5 stars. I hope Enterprise will read this review and give their Staff a refresher course in customer service and "Fill-er-up!"
