Fox Rent-a-Car Revisited

I gave Fox Rent-a-Car another chance. This went better than last time but I still can't recommend this company. See my previous posts here and here.

At San Diego Airport, there is no main car rental depot. The rental agencies are spread out in the community around the airport. So, you must take the shuttle bus for your rental company.

• Problem #1: While waiting for the Fox shuttle, it seemed as if 5 Hertz and Avis shuttles passed by, along with 3 each for Dollar, Budget, National and even one called Advantage.

When I got to the agency, I told the agent about my prior experience with their company in San Jose. Then, he left the room twice to speak to his boss and I overheard him speaking in hushed tones over the walkie-talkie to a co-worker. I gleaned from the whispers that they didn't have a Honda Civic Hybrid for me, the car I reserved. He quickly arranged an "upgrade" to a Prius. I was okay with that.

The car was great. I drove about 100 miles, mostly freeway. I loved watching the display of my fuel efficiency as I drove. I averaged a slightly disappointing 43.3 mpg. I was happy however about how little I was polluting the air.

Dropping the car off was a bit time consuming as well. The other major rental agencies do the check-out process at the car with a hand-held computer. At Fox, you have to go inside and wait in line to check-out.

Here are my overall ratings for Fox Rent-a-Car:

• San Jose:
• Don't count on them having the car you reserved.
  
• I have been assured by the franchise owner/manager that in the future, they will actually help you find another car (at a comparable price) if they are unable to provide you with one.

• San Diego:
• Don't count on them having the car you reserved.
• Definitely call them from the baggage claim area to confirm that a shuttle is on its way.
• Make sure you let them know if you are at the commuter air terminal.
• Leave extra time for pickup and drop-off.