We arrived at the Christchurch location to be given a 10-year year-old hybrid, apparently just delivered Japan, with all the instructions - the screen and various written instructions on the car - only

A Terrible Experience

in Japanese.

There was no way to change the screen to English or French (our second language).

Of course, no one can safely drive a car when you cannot understand neither the safety instructions nor the way to operate the navigation system nor even the simplest things, like how to set the clock or change the brightness level on the dashboard, which was set at dim.

The contract states that renters are fully responsible if car instructions are not followed for overheating or oil loss etc.

But we could not understand the instructions on the dash, so no way to know what any warning light might mean.

The contract (Clause 9b) states that the contract is null and void if a vehicle is unroadworthy.

It was.

We wanted out.

The local manager in Christchurch was excellent and put us in touch with headquarters, who argued for 20 minutes that the car was roadworthy and to trust them that the screen instructions were irrelevant, and not part of the contract. That was ridiculous: all parts of a vehicle are part of the vehicle, screen and safety instructions included.

Finally, after much argument, the contract was cancelled.

Three hours lost.

We did appreciate the goodwill of the local manager: she was understanding and delightful but caught between us and a very unpleasant manager on the phone from HQ.

Advice: read the fine print and stand up to the bully tactics. Yes, James Blond is a few dollars cheaper but buyer beware, “Gold Economy” may get you a secondhand car worth $6000 according to used car sites with no place to charge your phone and with all instructions in a foreign language.

We have just rented from Budget, a brand-new SUV with excellent insurance coverage and only nominally more expensive.

Off we go to hike.

Date

Reviewed 11 months ago