Last updated on June 19th, 2024 at 10:36 pm
I knew we would be driving around a lot for our post-fire visit to Maui, so I wanted something comfortable and (hopefully) fun to drive. Thankfully, I was able to book a luxury vehicle for not much more than a compact car, which is how we ended up with an Alamo Kahului Mercedes-Benz GLC 300.
Booking Our Alamo Kahului Mercedes-Benz GLC 300
I always, ALWAYS do my rental car search via Costco Travel, Alamo, and National. In my experience, Costco is always the cheaper way to go, but sometimes, booking directly wins out, especially with the Chase Sapphire Reserve discount rate. Plus, if I can get National, it gives me access to their Emerald Aisle, which often has at least some interesting options in it. This time, Costco Travel won out.
Initially, I had booked a compact car (Corolla or similar) for a bit over $200 and a luxury car (Audi A4/BMW 3 Series or similar) for around $250. However, as our dates got closer, the prices kept changing. In the end, I probably canceled and rebooked around a dozen times. By that point, the price of the luxury car fell to about $167, while the compact was hovering around $140. That was a no-brainer. I settled on the luxury car and stuck with it.
That said, inventory dried up in the last two weeks before our pick-up date, and prices went soaring. This is why I always book as far out as possible and check periodically. Waiting until the last minute can be disastrous.
Picking Up Our Alamo Kahului Mercedes-Benz GLC 300
After retrieving our checked bag in record time, we headed across the street to the Kahului Airport Consolidated Car Rental Facility (Kahului CONRAC) tram station. Walking from here to the CONRAC would’ve taken roughly 10 minutes, but the tram’s sign said the next arrival was in a minute, so we decided to wait. Unfortunately, once the tram arrived and we got onboard, it sat for another five minutes. Factoring in the stop at the departures station, we probably could’ve walked and beat the tram. But we were already onboard, and as hot as it was inside (no a/c), it was way worse outside in the sun.
Eventually, we made it to the CONRAC, and thanks to Alamo’s online check-in service, we headed straight to the garage on the ground floor. There, we approached the Alamo kiosk by a warm, friendly associate who scanned my Apple Wallet reservation ticket. From there, she led us over to the National section of the lot and informed us that we could pick any vehicle we wanted. Honestly, the selection was small. There was what I think was a Cadillac XT5, two Audi Q5s, and the Mercedes-Benz GLC 300.
Having already driven the Audi Q5 and not wanting to drive a GM product this trip, I settled on the GLC 300. This, my friends, was a decision I would regret a little, though it was nice to try something different. Truth be told, I was disappointed we were offered SUVs instead of sedans, especially with a trek up Haleakala on our itinerary. Moreover, I hoped to sample a BMW 3 Series after driving Audis so often. Oh well. This is such a first-world problem; I wasn’t going to complain.
The Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 Interior
I’ve never driven a Mercedes product before, so this was a first for me. And I must say, I was disappointed. Now, I think I should preface this by saying that this wasn’t exactly a new vehicle. I believe our particular GLC 300 was a 2020 model-year example. But what the hell? Was this some rental car stripped-down spec? The interior of the car was, well, not as nice as the Q5 I rented before. Not even close.
For example, here’s an interior shot of the Audi Q5 I rented way back in 2019
Compare that to these interior shots of my Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 rental.
Both vehicles have nice metal switchgear and large infotainment screens, but that’s where the similarities end. The dash in the GLC 300 looks cheap as hell. I’ve seen better-quality dash materials in late-model Toyotas. The wood grain in the car also looks really cheap and fake. The leather on the steering wheel? It felt plasticy and was tearing. It was a far cry from the supple, smooth leather steering wheel in the Audi.
The seats, while fine, weren’t particularly comfortable. I think I may have even preferred the firmer seats of the Audi. That said, the sound deadening was phenomenal – you could barely hear anything outside, which was a good thing, as this car’s engine sounds awful… But more on that later.
Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 Conveniences
One of the first things I noticed about our Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 is that, while it has a key fob with remote unlock functions, it doesn’t have a smart key. You have to use the button on the fob to unlock and lock the doors. There is no touch sensor on the door handles to auto lock and unlock the doors without taking the fob out of your pocket. That’s wild, considering that a $23,000 Toyota Corolla Hatch has a smart key as a standard feature. Though, that doesn’t seem to be unusual, as all German luxury marques seem to charge for this.
However, whereas the Audi Q5 (and all the A4s) I rented have full dual-zone climate control, including temperature and fan speed, the Mercedes-Benz GLC 300’s dual-zone climate control only allows you to set the temperature independently. I also didn’t care for how useless the multifunction display between the analog tachometer and speedometer was. I also couldn’t figure out how to move through your audio tracks using the steering wheel controls. Equally confusing was the multifunction display’s controls and menu system.
One of the things that threw me for a loop early on, too, was the Mercedes-Benz GLC 300’s mobile phone connectivity. Yes, it has Apple CarPlay; however, it’s wired CarPlay only. Moreover, the only USB ports the car has are USB-C ones. I didn’t have a USB-C to Lightning wire on me, and since I couldn’t connect to CarPlay wirelessly, I ended up having to make a stop at Target Kahului to buy a damn cable. The Audi A4 I rented two years ago had wireless CarPlay. It also had a heated steering wheel, which this car doesn’t – not that I needed one this trip.
Another difference between my Mercedes-Benz CL 300 and Audi A4 experiences is that the last A4 I rented included a 360 top-down camera, while the GLC only had a reverse camera. On the other hand, the GLC has blindspot monitoring, while the A4 doesn’t.
Mercedes-Benz CL 300 Performance
Our particular Mercedes-Benz CL 300 came equipped with a turbocharged inline four-cylinder engine, producing 255 horsepower and 295 ft/lbs of torque. Power is sent to the front wheel via a nine-speed automatic transmission. On flat ground, this setup performed well. The vehicle felt peppy and responsive enough, but as we began the climb up Haleakala, and especially after we got past Pukalani/Kula, the car really began to struggle. It also didn’t feel the best going through the many switchbacks on the way up, forcing me to slow down to the suggested 15 MPH advisory speed limit quite often.
Given my experience with the Mercedes-Benz GLC 300, I feel that the Audi Q5 performs better. While I didn’t drive one up Haleakala, I did drive it all over Washington and Oregon, including through some fairly mountainous areas. It didn’t struggle nearly as much, and Audi’s Quattro all-wheel-drive system gave it better handling than this front-wheel-drive GLC.
Now, remember how I mentioned the GLC’s engine earlier in this post? Standing outside of the car, the GLC’s motor sounded like a tractor engine. It was quite rattly and clanky, so I was thankful we couldn’t hear it inside the cabin. I don’t remember any of the Audis I rented sounding like this.
Alamo Kahului Return Experience
When it came time to return our Mercedes-Benz GLC 300, we headed to Kahului’s CONRAC and pulled into Alamo’s return lanes. There, several employees were waiting to check our vehicle in. Unfortunately, the one assisting us couldn’t figure our vehicle out. I think she had a hard time getting to the odometer, so we hung around for a bit. A few minutes later, someone else walked by, and she asked them for help. Shortly thereafter, we were heading up to the tram to get to the departure station to tag our bag back to Honolulu.
Alamo Kahului Mercedes-Benz GLC 300, Final Thoughts
Overall, this was another positive, inexpensive experience with Alamo Rent-A-Car and Costco Travel. Yeah, I didn’t really care for the Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 I ended up trying, but I did want to try something different, which I did. That said, I wouldn’t choose a Mercedes again, nor would I consider one if I were looking to buy a German luxury car. This car was a pretty big letdown in many ways, and it left me thinking that Audi is the better manufacturer, even if their cars are all based on VWs. I just hope I can finally get a BMW the next time I rent a luxury car.
Visiting Maui Post-Fire
- Introduction
- Southwest 3524 Honolulu to Kahului
- Alamo Kahului Mercedes-Benz GLC 300