I have never rented a car from SIXT or Europcar before, but recently signed up for their free elite status match to Hertz President’s Circle (SIXT) (Europcar). I was able to get the cheapest rental price from SIXT for my recent trip to the Azores where I stayed at the beautiful Octant Furnas (review).
The vehicle I booked with SIXT before the trip
I have booked a Skoda Kamiq or similar vehicle on the official SIXT website (see image below).
Guaranteed Vehicle Upgrades for SIXT Platinum Members
Many car rental elite programs say they offer guaranteed vehicle upgrades, but not every company enforces the rule. For example, despite having Avis President’s Club status, I did not receive any vehicle upgrades at Madeira (FNC) airport. So far I’ve had the best luck with Hertz President’s Circle in Europe (review).
To my surprise, the Hertz counter at the small Ponta Delgada (PDL) airport not only offered a free upgrade, but also gave me a choice of 5 vehicles to choose from on a tablet at the counter.
My Free Upgraded Vehicle at PDL airport
I ended up choosing a Nissan Qashqai hybrid, which had an amazing ride quality and excellent gas mileage. I declined the CDW offered at the rental counter and paid with my Atmos Summit Visa card (Atmos Rewards Summit Visa Rides My Wallet Overseas).
Detailed vehicle inspection report of the rental vehicle
I heard about the in-depth vehicle inspections (computerized) performed by SIXT both at the time of renting a vehicle and returning it.
Detailed inspection of the vehicle when I returned it
I made sure to come early to the airport to allow enough time for the vehicle inspection by the SIXT agent (since I heard horror stories). The agent took a good 10 minutes to look through every door, open the front hood and trunk and carefully inspected the chassis before making me sign the release documents. I received the final invoice in an email 4 days after I returned the vehicle without any surprises (see image below).
Conclusion
I am open minded about car rentals and not loyal or disloyal to any particular company despite hearing bad experiences from travelers. I believe that these negative experiences are typically location and agent specific. I enjoyed my first SIXT rental with elite status and was surprised at the wide choice of vehicles they offered me at the counter. My advice to readers who are planning to rent a SIXT vehicle is to come back early to the airport and expect a lengthy inspection.