During our last trip to Florida during the summer of 2008 we chose to organise the rental of a mid sized SUV from Thrifty car rental, bookable via this website (http://www. orlandovillas. com/car_hire. aspx) . We organised for a collection at the Radisson Parkway in Kissimmee with a drop off at Orlando International Airport. Just like the mini vans (MPVs), SUVs are very spacious and really make it easy to transport the luggage and family from airport to villa. In the past we had always rented standard sized SUVs so had little conception of just what type of vehicle we would be offered, particularly its size.
After dispensing with all of the paperwork we were handed the keys to a very new Suzuki XL7, an SUV that I had no prior knowledge of. My first impression was very positive. The car was very stylish looking indeed with its metallic brown paintwork and tasteful chrome finishing giving it an exceptionally classy appearance. With good height, width and length the vehicle seemed a good size and even had a third row of seats making it a competent 7 seater. These seats could be folded flat giving rise to a huge boot with compartments for storing small items, and with the rear glass all being of the darkened type the boot (trunk) space seemed pretty secure.
The current model XL7 was only launched in 2007 making it a relatively new model and the flagship of the Suzuki range through a partnership with General Motors. The interior cabin is very pleasing indeed and we found the car a delight on our journey over to Kennedy Space and back. The driving position was just perfect with an excellent view of the road and all instrumentation laid out clearly and ergonomically. The on board stereo system provided a premium sound with bass and treble controllable individually plus the added bonus of an auxiliary socket for plugging in an ipod or mp3 player.
Driving the XL7 was very pleasant indeed. With a 3. 5 litre V6 engine coupled to a 5 speed automatic gearbox the car always felt willing with a good combination of power and confident road handling. Cruise control made highway driving very relaxing with easy controls to accelerate, decelerate, cancel and resume. Fuel economy was around the 20 miles per gallon mark.
We really enjoyed this car which was perfect for 2 adults and 2 teenagers. It felt comfortable and the kids loved the independent air conditioning controls located in the back (middle row) seats. Worth considering when you’re next looking to hire an SUV.
After dispensing with all of the paperwork we were handed the keys to a very new Suzuki XL7, an SUV that I had no prior knowledge of. My first impression was very positive. The car was very stylish looking indeed with its metallic brown paintwork and tasteful chrome finishing giving it an exceptionally classy appearance. With good height, width and length the vehicle seemed a good size and even had a third row of seats making it a competent 7 seater. These seats could be folded flat giving rise to a huge boot with compartments for storing small items, and with the rear glass all being of the darkened type the boot (trunk) space seemed pretty secure.
The current model XL7 was only launched in 2007 making it a relatively new model and the flagship of the Suzuki range through a partnership with General Motors. The interior cabin is very pleasing indeed and we found the car a delight on our journey over to Kennedy Space and back. The driving position was just perfect with an excellent view of the road and all instrumentation laid out clearly and ergonomically. The on board stereo system provided a premium sound with bass and treble controllable individually plus the added bonus of an auxiliary socket for plugging in an ipod or mp3 player.
Driving the XL7 was very pleasant indeed. With a 3. 5 litre V6 engine coupled to a 5 speed automatic gearbox the car always felt willing with a good combination of power and confident road handling. Cruise control made highway driving very relaxing with easy controls to accelerate, decelerate, cancel and resume. Fuel economy was around the 20 miles per gallon mark.
We really enjoyed this car which was perfect for 2 adults and 2 teenagers. It felt comfortable and the kids loved the independent air conditioning controls located in the back (middle row) seats. Worth considering when you’re next looking to hire an SUV.