Porsche Enthusiasts Club Forum

I actually remember once lending my 968 Club Sport to a customer with a 964.. He was in a spot with his car letting him down (we had advised him it would happen, he ignored us) and he needed a car..

When he left with the 968 it had a full tank of fuel and he knew it was one of my personal cars... When I got it back he had parked it behind some other cars as far as he could from reception... anyway, after he had gone I went off to it and found that it was covered in mud (inside and out) the fuel light was on and he had eaten all the mints I had in the cubby hole under the radio!!

The real killer was his bill was for £50 for removing his alarm system and he used more than that amount in fuel!!!

Sigh...

I think it's a total lack of respect with a garage-owned car. It would be a different situation if these people borrowed a friend's car. The same seems to apply to borrowing anything i.e books, clothes. It's somebody else's, it doesn't matter. Ironically, it should be exactly the opposite. If it's somebody else's, it needs to be kept in perfect condition, if it's yours, only you are responsible.

I totally agree a complete lack of respect and courtesy i dont even treat hire cars like that!

With hire cars they walk you round the car inspecting for damage when you pick the car up and when you drop it off. Any damage must be paid for, it's as simple as that. Five minutes with the customer and the loan car before and after would put paid to that awful tale of your 968 Clubsport

With a fleet of old beaters it is difficult to spot if the customer has caused any extra damage in their possesion, but with a couple of nice new Smart cars on lease it will be very easy to spot if they have crumpled one of the bumpers. Knock up an agreement for them to sign before the loan and charge them a 10% handling fee on any repairs they cause to cover your hassle time. I think in general people will treat shiny new cars with much more respect than a used and abused runaround

I remember about 10 years ago I borrowed a new Mercedes A Class from Jonas at JZ Machtech when my S2 was in for service and I clipped the rear bumper on my Mums driveway wall They charged me the £100 it cost them to fix and six months later when I borrowed the exact same car it looked good as new ( I took more care that time )

Your absolutely right Paul.

With the Smart cars I will look at them with a completely different view as per your comments.. Just a shame people are like that.

The other problem we have found, as long as someone has a loan car, they are not in a hurry to collect theirs when it is ready, so I was thinking about charging hire car rates which only start as soon as their car is ready for collection, what does everyone think to that?

My Club Sport and the way that customer was really miffed me, since then no one gets to borrow my own cars.. I would not mind with some of my beaters that I use to haul the dogs in... But my Club Sport was like a showroom car by that point, I even ended up selling it simply because it was too nice to enjoy anymore once it hit a certain level of prep (if that makes sense)

My company cars get serviced 2 or 3 times a year on average.

The loan cars are signed in and out by both parties, times are agreed for return. Driving license copied and my credit card details are taken to cover fines etc. The fuel range is checked before I leave and must be returned with a similar level in the tank. Under level is charged at current price + £1 a litre.

Be tough mate, it's the only way.

I also agree to being a bit more strict. I doubt you will appear unfriendly, it's just efficient business technique.

Good idea about charging for the loan car if late collection.

Mid Sussex OPC charge nothing for a courtesy car but you pay the first £10K if you have an accident. However, you can pay £25 per day to bring the insurance excess down to £250.
Nice loan cars are worth the extra outlay and will get treated with more care.
Takes more time to book in the cars but worth it

Can I reserve a nice 968 for when I get my car down to you

There is an independent in Glasgow who has said I can have one of their Boxsters if I take mine for a service. What about Boxsters instead of Smart cars Jon?

When I had the Cayman from OPC as a courtesy car last month, they viewed both theirs and my car with me and agreed how much petrol was in the Cayman. I had to sign saying it was mint and I was only allowed to do 75 miles a day in it.

I was thinking that myself Boxsters are getting cheap enough.

Not as a cheap as a smart car though, and I like the idea of removable body panels.