There is perhaps no worse feeling in the automotive world than being stuck with a shabby rental car. I flew into Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson airport, the largest airport in the world by passenger traffic, and rented a car with no idea what I was getting in return. It was a gamble, I knew it was coming, but I threw the dice on the table and a snake eye appeared. This wonderful silver machine is my home for the shuttle from Atlanta to Dahlonega for a play in the mud, and back. It kicks ass.
After waiting in line for over two hours on Monday at the Avis counter where my reservation was held, I was finally rewarded by a surprisingly funny rental waitress. Thanks to his help I was able to get what I was told was the last car available in the lot. While standing with him, I shuffled a few options before they were all of a sudden brushed aside by fellow desk workers. “Do you want a truck? Oh, it’s over. How about a corolla? No, they take that too! ”
When they finally secure me a truck, I literally take whatever they have. As it turns out, getting a Sienna is completely random. When I entered the garage to pick up the truck, I was informed that three other people at the airport were heading to my destination, and there were no rental cars available for them to take to where we were going. I oblige and select three passengers, editors and writers from other power sports-oriented publications.
Fits four people and all the gear needed for a day of trail driving will fit perfectly into a Corolla or Tacoma or whatever. My other recent rental was a Jeep Gladiator, and it was just a bad experience, but it would fit our stuff better than a Corolla.
In any case, I’ve had a total of about four or five hours driving the Sienna this week packed full of people and stuff, and it’s possibly the best rental car I’ve ever had. Not only is it comfortable and quiet, but it’s also equipped with Apple Car Play and radar cruise, which are absolute must-haves in my eyes these days. And in just 200 miles round trip, I only burned a quarter of a tank of gas. Amazing.
