@Triedaq, if and when you need another car and might be interested in a sedan, drive a Ford. They have always surprised me with their upright sitting position. I find it quite comfortable. When we bought my wife’s Sable, the seating position was the selling point, she just wasn’t as comfortable in other cars. Mechanical reliability and durability weren’t even part of the equation for her, that’s my problem.
Article today in the WSJ about how rental companies are keeping their cars longer, and how folks should check tires, etc. before heading off the lot. So this type of thing (getting a badly-maintained rental car) is probably just going to become more common.
I remember that the Charles Schultz’ Peanuts Characters were featured in the advertisements for the Ford Falcon. The whole point was that the Falcon could be driven for peanuts. Mad Magazine made fun of these advertisements and ran a parody about the ad. In the ad, Mad magazine referred to this Ford product as Foul Car instead of Falcon.
The only problem I have ever had with a rental car was a Chevrolet Vega that I rented. A rear tire was low, so when I noticed it, I drove to a service station and added air. The Vega was the only car I ever rented that had a manual transmission. On the other hand, I did have problems with a national rental agency claiming that I had put a dent in its car. This happened to me twice with this agency and happened to my wife once. We were able to prove that the dents were there when we rented the car and didn’t have to pay for the damage. An agent for this same rental company rented me a car from the downtown location and said that I could drop the car off at the airport for no charge. I was then charged $50 for not returning the car to the point of origin. I did protest to the rental company and had my $50 returned. The same agent called me on my cell phone while we were in heavy traffic and wanted the VIN of the vehicle immediately. When my wife said that we were trying to negotiate traffic, she insisted that we pull over right away and get the number. We hung up the cell phone and turned it off.
@asemaster–when my wife was on the road for our institution, she always requested a Ford Taurus. She preferred the Taurus to the Chevrolet Malibu models in the fleet and liked the Taurus much better than the Honda Civic Hybrids. The last vehicle I had from the fleet was a Ford Fusion. It’s been more than two years, but it seemed to me that the seats in the Fusion were more comfortable for me than the seats in the Dodge Avenger. However, I like the high seating positions in our 4Runner and Sienna vehicles.
The times I have rented a car, I really didn’t care anything more then if it had decent seats. Because I don’t have to live with it, it’s just basic humanoid transportation at that time, and I never think to form an opinion about it. If it gets me home safely for a reasonable price, it served it’s purposes.
I see German Village is near the Arena district.
@Triedaq if you ever find yourself down there again, I’ve heard some good things about the Spaghetti Warehouse on west Broad street, Buca di Beppo’s on north Front street, and BD’s Mongolian BBQ on Marconi avenue. Or, if you’re adventurous, you could hop on 71 to Polaris and hit up Quaker Steak and Lube for some wings or a really good burger; they hae car shows every now and then, too, so you might luck out and see some old hot rods on display
The ONLY rental car I hated (from years ago)…was a Dodge Omni. Mechanically it ran fine…but the ergonomics was so messed up. In order for my legs to have enough room I had to put the seat all the way back (which is normal for me)…but then I had to lean way forward to grab the steering-wheel. The car was designed for someone who’s 5’11 and who has a 25" inseam.
Real maple syrup can be purchased online from Richard’s Maple ( richardsmapleproducts.com ) in Ohio where I used to live. We always had real ‘‘maple surple’’ when I was growing up…now it’s a rare luxury.
I get my real maple syrup at Sam’s, about $8/pint.
I remember watching the ‘maple syrup’ content of Log Cabin drop through the years to 0 (started at about 15% in the late '60s, I think).
@bscar2–Thank you for the information. I had been going to Columbus for a convention every other year–the alternate years the convention was in St. Louis. I am retired now and not going to this convention. I thought I would have more travel time, but with all our activities I’ve become involved with, I don’t have much time. I may go find a job to have more time.
@texases–I remember how good I thought Log Cabin syrup was back in the 1950s. The last time I bought Log Cabin syrup, it didn’t seem to taste any better than the house brand that cost a lot less. At any rate, I did get into the real maple syrup I brought back from our trip to New England. When I use it up, I’ll make the 60 mile trip to the nearest Sam’s club for the syrup.