Intermediate Listening Power

Activity 1.

Listen to the file.

Car Rental

Activity 2.

Listening Comprehension. Answer the following questions.

1. Why did the man settle on renting the full-size car?
A. It was roomy enough for him.
B. It was more economical than the minivan.
C. It had more features than the other vehicles.

2. What was one of his major concerns about renting the car?
A. He couldn't add an additional driver to the rental plan.
B. He was only limited to a certain number of miles per day.
C. The vehicle would probably consume a lot of gas.

3. How would you describe his rental car?
A. It was a little larger than he expected.
B. The car doesn't look very attractive.
C. The engine has problems and runs poorly.

4. In which situation would the car protection plan NOT help the customer?
A. The car is stolen from a store parking lot with all of your valuables.
B. The driver loses control of the car and crashes it into power pole.
C. The car's exterior and windows are damaged in a hail storm.

5. What can we infer from the closing statement about roadside assistance?
A. You should call the police in case your car has mechanical difficulties. 
B. Getting assistance might require some time and patience.
C. The company will compensate you for delays in your travel.

Activity 3.

Listening to Details. Listen to the file for the last time and fill in the blanks with the correct answer.

Rental Car Agent: Hi. How can I help you?

Customer: Yeah. I'd like to rent a mid-size car for three days.

Rental Car Agent: Okay. Let me check to see if we have one available. Hmmm. It's doesn't look like we do. We have a couple of economy, ⁽¹⁾, and full-size cars available, or a nice minivan.

Customer: Well, what is the main difference between these cars?

Agent: The main difference is size. The economy car is the smallest, and it ⁽²⁾ fewer passengers and can hold less luggage. [Okay.] How many people are with you?

Customer: Just me and my son.

Rental Car Agent: Well, the economy car would work. We have one right out front.

Customer: Where? That one? It looks more like a shoebox to me. I'm really tall and trying squeeze into that thing . . . I don't think so.

Rental Car Agent: Well, if you need more room or comfort, I recommend the full-size car. It also has a nice stereo system, CD player, [Alright] safety rear door locks, and ⁽³⁾control, and power locks and windows.

Customer: Well, I'm not so concerned about how it's equipped. I just want to make sure it is ⁽⁴⁾ to drive. And what is the daily rate for that anyway?

Rental Car Agent: Well, let's see here. Oh, yeah. It'll come to fifty-seven ninety-five a day.

Customer: Wow, a little expensive. But what's the cost for ⁽⁵⁾?

Rental Car Agent: Hey, all of our cars have unlimited miles, but of course, that doesn't include gas.

Customer: Yeah, right. I bet that car probably eats up gas, and now that were in the middle of the vacation season, gas stations are gouging ⁽⁶⁾ with astronomical prices.

Rental Car Agent: Well, as they say, it comes down to the law of supply an demand.

Customer: Well, anyway, can you ⁽⁷⁾ a car seat in one of those cars? I have a 3-year-old son with me.

Rental Car Agent: Sure, and that'll only be one dollar extra per day.

Customer: I'll go with the full-size car. Wait, uh . . . what does it look like?

Rental Car Agent: Uh, it's right out there in the parking lot. [Which one?] The one over there next to the sidewalk.

Customer: Do you mean that old lemon with the missing hubcap? Ahhh.

Rental Car Agent: Sir, excuse me. We take pride in our vehicles. It's just that it's one of the last cars on our lot, but it runs like a dream. Don't let the ⁽⁸⁾ fool you. Hey, I'll even give you an extra fifteen dollars off the daily rate to show you we are serious about pleasing our customers. Will there be any other drivers?

Customer: No, I'm the only driver.

Rental Car Agent: Okay. Would you like to purchase our daily car protection plan?

Customer: What's that exactly?

Rental Car Agent: Well, the car protection plan is a complete ⁽⁹⁾ package covering damage to the vehicle, [Okay] injury or loss of life to you or your passengers [Oh]. It even includes incidental road damage caused by, let's say, a huge boulder rolling down the mountain and crushing your car. [Oh, uh, well . . . ]. However, it won't cover loss of property due to theft. Too much crime in the area anyway. [What? Wh . . . What about this crime? What, what?]. Don't worry about it. And the car protection plan is only seventeen ninety-five per day. [But you were saying?] And the nicest thing about this coverage is that you can rent the car without the worry and hassle of making a complicated claim in case you do have a problem.

Customer: But wouldn't my own car insurance cover those problems?

Rental Car Agent: It might, but each insurance policy is different. With our car protection plan, however, you deal directly with us in case there is a problem [Well . . . ], and we ⁽¹⁰⁾ everything quickly, and you don't have to contact your own insurance company.

Okay. Let me just confirm this. A full-size car with a car seat for three days [Yeah], plus the car protection package. Is that right? [That's right.] Okay, I'll have our mechanic, Louie, check the car over and pull it up to the door.

Customer: Push it up to the door? I hope this car really runs.

Rental Car Agent: Well, in case it does break down on some out-of-the-way, deserted road, just call the toll-free number for assistance. They'll come to assist you within . . . two business days. [Two business days!!!] Enjoy your trip.

Activity 4

Vocabulary. Read and study the following words.

• eat up (phrasal verb): use or consume a lot of something like fuel or electricity 
  - My parents sold their truck because it ate up so much gas that is was no longer affordable to drive.

• gouge (verb): make people pay a lot for something
  - During natural disasters, some stores tend to gougeconsumers by charging high prices for everyday goods.

• lemon (noun): a poor-quality car that is useless
  - My brother knows nothing about cars, and he bought a used car, but it turned out to be a real lemon because it broke down only two hours after he bought it.

• like a dream (verb): very well
  - The minivan runs like a dream; it handles smoothly, and you feel like you are driving a luxury car.

• incidental (adjective): unplanned or unexpected
  - You should budget enough money for maintaining your car because there are often incidental expenses you don't anticipate, like repairing a cracked windshield or fixing a flat tire.

• boulder (noun): a large rock
  - The road was closed for two hours because road crews had to remove several large boulders that tumbled into the road as a result of a major rock slide.

• hassle (noun): trouble, difficulty, or bother
  - It was such a hassle to drive my dad's truck because there was always something wrong with it.

• out-of-the-way (adjective): far away from people or cities that is not traveled much
  - I really enjoy driving to out-of-the-way places because I can get away from large crowds.

Activity 5.

Discussion. Answer the following questions related to the conversation.

• What are your major considerations when deciding on renting a specific car?