I do sympathise with Charis’ blog Speechless or clueless?
Regular readers may recall I’ve had issues with Hertz in the past but in these budget-conscious times, I was tempted into “giving them another go” by a promotion on the .co.uk site which promises a 20% discount on rentals booked 30 days in advance.
I checked the prices prior to booking my airline tickets and the prices looked good. I returned to the site a week later (still well ahead of the 30-day cut-off) and went through the identical process but instead of the keen prices, I got the following message:
Not all requirements for the Rate Code - LITE requested have been met. We have removed the Rate Code from your request to provide you with the best rate returned. If you would still like to take advantage of the Rate Code, please refer to the offer details to meet all necessary requirements. [DRX142]
After trying again several times to try to work out what I’d done wrong, I filled in a query form since I couldn’t find a telephone number to ring. I was promised a reply within 2 working days. 1 week later - nothing.
My wife then found a telephone number on the Hertz.com website. The customer service chap at first told me that the promotion had ended! I pointed out that it was still being displayed on the website and then he investigated further and came up with the following explanation:
“It probably means that the particular location’s office has removed itself from the promotion…”
I can accept that the fine print in the terms and conditions covers this possibility, but the complete lack of clarity in the rate code message is in itself a customer services disaster. The absence of a ‘call me’ facility on the website which instead features innumerable FAQs is a also a failing and then the lack of contact within the stated 2 working days is abysmal.
To top this off with a customer services representative who doesn’t even know whether the promotion is running…..
Book with Hertz again? No.
Recommend to a friend? No.
Blog about the miserable service? Yes.
Hertz.co.uk - FAIL
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| Main image: CARS by Stephen Bayley. Inset: Sparing a Panda its blushes. |
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Despite the title, let me assure you that this post has nothing to do with the untimely demise of actor David Carradine. No, this is a different kind of auto-erotic experience - the type that you get from Stephen Bayley’s latest book: CARS - Freedom, Style, Sex, Power, Motion, Colour, Everything.
This gorgeous book has already been described in the Sunday Telegraph as ‘autoporn at its most lascivious’ so I’m not ashamed to say that I have spent some quiet me time lingering over the pages which are set off so beautifully by Tif Hunter’s photographs.
During a recent coffee break browse however, I have to say that my state of bliss was suddenly ruined, nay spoiled, by the sight of a disgusting protruberance on page 347. For whatever reason, the Fiat Panda featured is fitted with some kind of nasty aftermarket spoiler which completely destroys the purity of Giugiaro’s original design.
The appendage in question is simply too shocking to display here so the image has been censored.
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| Top: Z4 app on iTunes, Middle: Artwork I created with the app, Bottom: The real Z4 as tested |
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I promised I’d keep you posted (literally) on interesting car-related iPhone apps so here’s an update on my experience with BMW Z4 - An Expression of Joy - Lite (available free of charge on the iTunes Store) in comparison with my real-world drive of the BMW Z4 which I got to try out at Millbrook last week.
My own background is creative: I excelled in art at school and went on to study Industrial Design at degree level, so I can appreciate BMW’s desire to follow a different (more artistic) path with its iPhone app than the obvious track or road-based driving game which has pretty much been done to death.
The problem for me is that this ‘expression of joy’ is simply lacking in the joy department. It’s actually dull. Painting a vast virtual canvas using the Z4’s tyres as rollers is about as much fun as watching…well, I guess the only redeeming feature is that the app doesn’t require you to wait for the virtual paint to dry.
In contrast to my joyless iPhone drive, I’m delighted to report that the real thing is a completely different kettle of fish.
I tested a Z4 sDrrive 30i and liken its performance to a Mike Tyson punch (in his heyday, of course) delivered in a velvet glove.
The stats are pretty impressive too: 258 bhp, 310 Nm, 0-62 mph in 5.8 seconds and a top speed electronically restricted to 155 mph. In light of these, 33.2 mpg economy on the Combined Cycle is not to be sniffed at either.
Artistically, I have to say I prefer the boldness of the original Z4’s styling to the subtlety of the new car, but I suspect I’m in a minority with that view. The adoption of the folding tin-top rather than the fabric roof also makes for a compromised coupe design, so I think the Z4 looks its best with the top down.
So BMW hasn’t lost the plot when it comes to sportscars, it just needs to make sure that the essential fun element present in the roadster remains undiluted throughout its creative advertising and marketing campaign - right the way down to its iPhone app.
PS:
I note that there is now a paid for app (59p) available called the BMW Z4 Experience which may well have appeared as a response to some who share my point of view but I’ll have to check that out another day.
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What’s the coolest wedding gift you can think of? If money were no object, I guess we could all think of some crazy ideas like a gift-wrapped Lear Jet or a pearl-encrusted Bugatti Veyron, but when I tied the knot with my other half a few years’ back, one of my dearest chums surprised me with an absolute cracker of a present - a customised Scalextric set.
He’d swapped out the standard rally cars for versions of our own road cars, a VW Beetle and a SEAT Ibiza, which he’d painted and correctly number-plated for added authenticity.
Well it seems that VW’s marketing gurus have been thinking along the same lines in seeking out target customers for their new Golf GTI ahead of its launch on May 22. They’ve created a massive virtual Scalextric layout in a hangar in a secret location where you can sneak in and test the new car’s ‘on-track’ performance.
The track is the work of a team of 60 modellers and features over 200 scale buildings in a space occupying 25ft by 30ft. My only gripe is that VW have created the car in 1:43 scale rather than the 1:32 of my classic boyhood sets (anorak alert) - but this in no way spoils the experience.
You’ll have to take it a little steady at first since the lab-technician will only replace your car a limited number of times when you come off.
If you set a decent lap time you can enter a draw to win use of the real GTI for 3 months. Log on to GTI Project to take a speedy Scalextric trip down memory lane without having to go into a dusty loft and then spend hours setting up your track. Enjoy!
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David Martell (of Trafficmaster fame) has set up the Electric Car Corporation (ECC) to launch what the company describes as the UK’s first full 4 seat electric production car - the ev’ie (or evie, depending on how lazy you are with pretentious punctuation marks).
The launch took place at a West London hotel which gave us the chance to try out the Citroen C1-based car slap bang in the middle of the Congestion Charge zone - an area in which ECC hopes the evie will find many friends.
The brief presentation was well attended by council officials as well as journalists. Mary Toffi, Transport Policy Manger of Richmond Council explained that ECC has been approved as a Car Club. The Borough is planning to double its allocation of car club bays over the next year (mainly at the expense of residents’ parking) so ECC is clearly hoping to occupy as many of these as possible.
Although our brief drive was confined to a small area in and around Hyde Park, we were able to get a feel for the responsiveness of the evie’s power unit as we accelerated away from the lights and blended effortlessly into the lunchtime traffic flow.
The controls couldn’t be simpler. The ‘gearstick’ (there are no gears as such) has just two positions: forward and reverse. The pedals are just stop and go.
ECC’s Technical Director Jeff Solomon accompanied me on the drive. I was concerned that the severity of the regenerative braking (as you lift off, the car decelerates instantly without you touching the brake pedal) might catch out following drivers but Solomon reassured me, “As soon as the regenerative braking kicks in, the brake lights are activated.”
As you’d expect from an electric car, the motor was pretty much silent. In other respects, the car was as comfortable and refined as a regular Citroen C1. The only apparent compromise is the reduction in boot space to accommodate the battery pack, an overnight charge of which will give you a realistic driving range of 60-70 miles.
At almost £17K, the evie could look expensive, but it seems like an absolute bargain when compared to the Lithium-ion version of the toy town inspired G-Wiz quadricycle which is far smaller, has never been near a crash-test, yet still retails at just £1,000 less!
The evie’s price does include a 3-year warranty and even if you achieve half the annual savings of £7,000 touted by Martell, you can see that the numbers begin to add up.
All we need now, I hear you say, is some serious investment in infrastructure so there are enough charging points to meet the potential demand. Well, they’ve thought of that too, setting up a separate company called ECC Infracharge to assist with the installation of more juice points at a reduced cost.
ECC Board member, Christopher Ross, bullishly told me that the evie would be available from Citroen showrooms, but the Citroen PR team on hand seemed to suggest it was not yet a done deal. Either way, if you’re keen on the idea of electric motoring, the evie certainly seems to make a lot of sense.
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| Nissan Cube bravely doubles as a safety net |
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……someone shows you a photo of a street entertainer walking a tightrope and your immediate response is,
“Is that a Nissan Cube?”
I think I realised that the cap (or hood) fitted me years ago, so I may have to create a specific category to contain my geekier posts.
Watch out for them floodgates!
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| VW Polo revved up and ready to go on your iPhone |
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Along with the launch of the all-new Polo at Geneva, VW announced that it was releasing a free iPhone game which has now become available as a download on the App Store in iTunes.
Developed by Fishlabs, it’s called Volkswagen Polo Challenge, and offers eight tracks with full, detailed 3D visuals. The game play is very straightforward: users have just basic touchscreen left and right steering and brake controls to contend with.
It’s a bit slow to load each track and I find the fact that the iPhone’s motion sensor is not utilised, somewhat disappointing. But let’s not forget - it’s free.
On the promotional side, the game also allows you to find your nearest VW dealer on Google Maps to book a test-drive of the new Polo.
I’ll be keeping an eye on various manufacturers’ iPhone activity and letting you know which apps are worth their salt. Stay tuned (…or is that iTuned?)
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| Arnold Schwarzenegger at the 2009 Geneva Motor Show |
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If we told you there was something big and foreign at the Geneva show this year, you’d probably picture a gas-guzzling Hummer. But actually we’re talking about California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, who popped in to show support for American carmakers and non-polluting vehicles before a visit to his native Austria.
We joined the media frenzy, catching up with the ‘Governator’ at the Volkswagen stand. When asked if he planned to visit any motor shows in the future Arnie replied, “I’ll be back.”
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| Fiat 500 Cabrio prototype recharging |
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Rumours abound re the forthcoming open-topped version of the Fiat 500.
The latest is that Fiat may offer a plug-in electric version. An eagle-eyed reader spotted this apparently undisguised prototype during a break in warm weather testing in the Canaries.
The cable to the left of the picture is the big giveaway, suggesting that the baby Fiat was on charge while the test drivers grabbed a spot of lunch.
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| Honda Prius vs Toyota Insight at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show |
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We read a lot about Chinese manufacturers plagiarising existing designs like the smart and the BMW X5. Last year at the Paris Show, I saw BYD Auto’s facsimile of the Toyota Aygo which they nattily named the f0. The same car was on display again at the Detroit Show this month but it narrowly failed to win the ‘Best Lookalike in Show’ award.
That accolade went to Honda for its new Prius…oops, I mean Insight.
Creative Chief Designer, Motoaki Minowa, said he was delighted when, at the Paris Show, some onlookers likened the profile of the car to a Lamborghini Countach. “That is a big compliment,” says Mr Minowa.
You’re not kidding. I too was delighted when I was recently mistaken for Tom Cruise.
Oh, per-lease! Enough of this.
Insight - hindsight more like. It’s the spitting image of the Toyota Prius which just happens to be the world’s most successful hybrid car. It simply looks as though the same clay model was presented twice with two different sets of graphics.
This, from a company that sells itself on the ‘Power of Dreams, is a major disappointment.
If you’d like to judge for yourself, our Detroit video news special captures the likeness beautifully (around the 2 minutes 40 mark).
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