Renting cars in Europe

We have had wonderful luck renting with Auto Europe and recommend them. But, there are some problems that come along with renting a car in a foreign county.
     Ireland is one of the most expensive places to rent a car due to the high price of insurance and accident coverage. They do, however, speak English which is a help to Americans abroad.
     Italy is one of the less expensive places to rent a car, but chances are good that your rental agent will have limited English, especially if you rent in an out of the way community. We rented a nice Mercedes B class diesel in Verona Italy and used it to drive the alps in the Sud Tyrol, Austria, Lichtenstein, Switzerland and around the Italian Lakes. The young woman communicated clearly at the office in Verona, but we picked the car up a block away.
     Now, the Mercedes had bells and whistles that ring and whistled in German. The manual in the glove box was in Italian. The only way to learn was by trial and error.  It is not difficult, but the diesel is programed to shut off at idle to save gas. For the first miles I was unaware of this and felt the car died at each stoplight. The various controls were in different places. This not a European thing, it is different from to car. Turning on headlights and windshield wipers is a seek and ye shall find mode.
     My advice is to drive back to the agency and have someone orient you to the car. This is even true in the United States and Canada. Every car is different.
     That being said. That Mercedes was a sweet ride on those alpine roads as well as the autostrada.