As the days get longer and warmer, you may be dreaming of a summer road trip. Driving is a great way to see the country, and if you want to be careful about the weather, you might want to rent an electric vehicle (EV). An EV uses an electric motor instead of an internal combustion engine. It is powered by a large battery (no gas!) that needs to be recharged.
In addition to saving money at the pump, electric vehicles are more environmentally friendly than regular cars: electric vehicles have no tailpipe emissions and reduce air pollution, and they don’t use gasoline-based fluids of fossils such as motor oil or other toxic chemicals, which can end up in the environment.
“Renting an electric vehicle is a great way to experience this new technology in a way that allows you to see what it’s like without having to buy one,” says Greg Bannon, director of automotive engineering and industry relations of the American Automobile Association (AAA). .
If you’re considering an electric vehicle for your next vacation, here’s what you need to know before you hit the road.
Rent and charge an electric vehicle
Bannon says more rental car companies are adding electric vehicles to their fleets, so finding one is much easier than it was a few years ago, and they’re priced to encourage consumers to try them out. Major rental companies such as Hertz, Enterprise and Avis offer electric vehicles. Turo, which is like Vrbo for cars, also offers electric vehicles nationwide.
Hertz, which has the largest fleet of electric vehicles in North America, expects to lease nearly 2 million electric vehicles this year, five times the number of leases in 2022, and aims to have a quarter of its electric fleet in late 2024. vehicles are priced roughly the same as other cars in our fleet that are the same make, model and class,” says Laura Smith, executive vice president of global sales and customer experience at Hertz.
If you want to rent an electric vehicle, you have to decide whether you want to get a Tesla, the largest seller of electric vehicles (which has its own charging network) or another brand such as Polestar, Nissan LEAF and BMW (and use a public vehicle) . net).
Aside from Tesla, the largest direct current (DC) open charging network in the United States is Electrify America. Direct current (also known as Level 3) chargers, often found on the highway, are the fastest and can charge an EV to 80 percent in 20 minutes to an hour.
How you pay depends on where you load the car. With Hertz, if you charge at a Tesla station, the fees are charged to the credit card you used to rent the car. If you’re at a third-party charging station, swipe a credit or debit card at the station.
