Western Grand Loop

Overall, the car rental experience was pretty good.

As it was my first time renting a car in the US, the Dollar rental staff's unclear language caused me to end up with two extra insurances, a full tank of gas, and a daily fixed toll fee.

Arrived at night with no queue, service attitude was mediocre, there was upselling.

The service quality was the worst I have ever experienced in my life. We were left waiting under the scorching sun for hours before we got the car. The website promised on-time car pickup, which simply doesn't exist. The Ford Focus mentioned on the website wasn’t available; instead, we got a small Toyota, an Economic model. We were also required to pay for a full tank of gas and basic insurance. After paying 840 yuan in China, we arrived in the US only to wait a long time and were forced to pay an additional 184 dollars. If I had a phone at the time, I would have definitely called to complain, but unfortunately, I had just left LAX airport, didn’t know anyone, and didn’t have a phone number. Dollar is terrible, I think Hertz might be a good choice since it is one of the biggest car rental companies. Everyone should try Hertz next time.

Arriving at the airport branch before 8 AM meant no queues, but I still faced persistent upselling. They added a lot of insurance for me to sign. Thanks to QEEQ's pre-rental reminders, I knew I didn't have to pay extra as I had already paid in full. Despite repeatedly telling the counter staff that I had purchased comprehensive insurance in China, they insisted it wasn't valid, which was quite annoying. When I picked up the car, it didn't seem to match the model I had selected. A few days later, I rented the same model from AVIS and realized it had much more space. Lesson learned: you get what you pay for.