Just Back From The Us Of A

[WylieCoyote]

Hi everyone. Just got back from a week long trip to Vermont and New Hampshire in the states. Have I missed much?

Got a few things to report.....

Northwest Airlines don't have seats on their planes, they have rocks which they arrange to look like seats and you're supposed to sit on which they've made as uncomfortable as possible. Leg room was pitiful and food awful and the self service check in seems to have been made unnecessarily complicated!

Every time I go to the states, why, and maybe it's just me, but I always feel like the security and border protection make you feel like a criminal. You're processed like sheep by some emotionless and smile-less drone that gives you a thorogh interrogation about what your purpose of travel is, have fingerprints taken and a mugshot from a webcam. Then when you've cleared immigration and they're relatively convinced you're not a criminal, you get stopped by some 12 year old at customs who insists on searching you bag wanting you to account for your every movement whilst you're there, demands to know what job you do, who you live with, how many times you've travelled before, scans your passport and asks you about each and every stamp in it - what did you go for, how long and so on. Once the toddler is happy you're not going to bring down George Bush you're free to leave and go through the misery of getting your hire car. You stand in a long queue and when it's your turn the clerk writes a 25,000 word dissertation on the computer and then gives you your paperwork and finally gives you a car.

Enough moaning though because a trick I learned a long time ago when getting a car is be nice, polite and friendly and then just ask casually whether there's any spare upgrade cars and 90% of the time they'll give you a better car for free. This time we ordered a Chrysler Sebring Convertible and after asking very nicely we get a free upgrade to a brand new Ford Mustang convertible. We were offered a Hummer H3 too but we chose the Mustang. Where can I start on that car - in essence it's a dreadful car albeit wrapped up in a pretty body. Everything about it is just old and dated. For example, it has an 'Overdrive' button - haven't seen one of those for 20 years, it's crude, heavy, the interior is ghastly and seems to have been made by melted down milk cartons, it's slow, dimwitted and you'd be better off strapping a couple of torches to the bonnet to replace the headlights for all the use they were. Having said all that, it's a lovable car which really grew on me and I was quite sad to see go at the end and it ended up averaging about 23mpg which I don't think is too bad at all. So all in all it's a dreadful car but one I'll look back on fondly and I can think of few ways better than crusing America in one. Here's a quick phone cam snap - I'll upload full images when I've downloaded all the stuff. Excuser picture quality.

[Anees]

Welcome back! :D

Glad to see you are still your cheery happy self :D

[Parthiban]

Not a bad hire car! Got to agree about the border control though, they aren't the friendliest, they even once broke open my suitcase (although that did get me a brand new one so not really complaining too much)

Was Northwest not great then? Considering using them for a flight to the US later in the year because they're pretty cheap...........

[spikes]

welcome back :)

[spikes]

welcome back :)

[DJ Wozza]

Enough moaning though............

Oh I'm glad about that, I nearly slit my wrists reading that.

So in summary

You didn't like the Airline Seats, Legroom, Food or Self-Check-in.

You didn't like the Border Control/Immigration staff, you didn't like the fresh faced Customs Staff, and you didn't like them being thorough.

You didn't like the queue at the Hire Car desk, or waiting for the paperwork.

You then didn't like the Hire Car (even though you got the upgrade for free & had a choice...BTW you'd have loved the Hummer :winky:)

You hated the Interior, and the Headlights.......but

it's a dreadful car but one I'll look back on fondly

Much the same way as other members of LOC see you Keith Welcome back mate :D

[Lexus2D]

Welcome Back your car sure does P*** all over the 1 i had

pmsl @ Wozza

[Anees]

psml @ Wozza!! :D

[maneesh]

Hello grumpy old man,

Sorry to hijack your thread with MY pictures, but since I'm an egotistical fool, you just have to put up with them :-)

You should have shelled out for a H2..now that was great fun intimidating other road users and pretending to be in CSI. It also wouldn't fit in some of the drive thru lanes..haha!

yes that is me with a bobble hat in the peak of summer 2008..

I bet you didn't have fun colleagues who had number plates like this one?

I also managed to blag one of these by flirting with the lady on the booth at National..got it for 17 quid a day! haha!

3.5V6 toyota highlander - fwd version but a nice ride.

Saw this dude at the BMW factory in South Carolina

And saw this dude there too (was a big annual Z4/Z3 meet)

This guy's car was actually funny

You'd have more fun if you took the Stang in the drive thru Starbucks!

You would have definitely had more fun if you levitated above the Mustang like I did!

For the money to a US consumer, the base spec Mustang is bloody good value for money, and everywhere I went (2000 miles in a week across 7 states), I got nothing but admiration and compliments everywhere I drove. I believe Ford have done well, it's a very good car for the US market. I drove all night long with the roof down on the interstate with cruise control and it was perfect for the job.