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Four Tips for Renting an Electric Vehicle for Holiday Travel 

Renting an electric vehicle is a great way to take one for an extended test spin. Doing so lets you pick from a variety of vehicles and experience the daily reality of driving an electric car that you won’t get from a perfunctory test drive at an auto dealer.My New Year’s resolution in 2024 was to only rent electric cars when traveling, and I’ve rented a dozen over the past 12 months — Chevrolet Bolts, Kia EV 6s, a few Polestar 2s, a Hyundai Ioniq 5, a Tesla Model 3, a Tesla Model Y and even the luxe Genesis Electrified G80.With many people about to rent a car for holiday travel, here’s what you need to know before you drive off the lot with one that runs on electrons. The car you reserve isn’t necessarily the car you’ll be drivingWhen you book a particular model, there’s often a small-print disclaimer that you’ll get that car “or similar.” This is true for all rentals, not just EVs. But with fewer EV models and fewer of them on rental lots, the downside is that if you had your heart set on a Ford Mustang Mach-E, you may end up with something else. (Electric cars account for less than 10% of Hertz’s fleet, for instance.)Read More: Bloomberg Green’s Electric Car RatingsThat’s not necessarily a bad thing, though. I booked a budget Bolt at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport in April but ended with a sporty Polestar 2. That’s because when I arrived at Hertz to pick up the Bolt, an agent told me to just go to the EV section and select any car. Earlier this year, Hertz said it would sell a third of its electric fleet due to lower-than-expected demand and high repair costs, though it’s unclear how that will affect the availability of high- vs. lower-end models.If your rental isn’t fully charged, insist on another carHertz and Avis say they aim to provide cars that are at least 80% charged, which is what automakers recommend as a full tank to avoid battery degradation. In my experience, that’s not always the case. I've received vehicles with batteries below 50%, including an upgrade Avis offered to a Mercedes EQB electric SUV. Cool, but I asked to switch to a car with more juice and the agent pointed me to a Tesla Model Y.On another occasion, it took three tries to get a vehicle with optimal charge at the Seattle airport, while on another, I was offered a Bolt with just 156 miles of range — nowhere near enough for my day of far-flung appointments.This doesn’t happen with every rental, but it’s not an uncommon experience. “After just an hour or so of driving, I was already starting to look for a charging station,” wrote travel blogger Aaron Wong about his experience picking up an EV that was 50% charged. Having a less-than-full battery can mean building in a charging stop traveling from the airport to grandma’s house, something that could make you late for dinner depending on how fast the charger is and how far it is off-route.Avis declined to comment. Hertz said in a statement that, “Renting an EV from Hertz is a great way to try before you buy, specifically at one of our neighborhood locations where you can rent closer to home and see if it fits your lifestyle.” It’s worth it to pay the refueling chargeRental companies want you to return your electric ride with anywhere from 70% to 80% of the charge you left with, much like bringing back a conventional car with a full tank of gas. That can be a challenge if a charging station isn’t close to the airport or you’re running late since it takes longer to top up with electrons than gas.At first, I dutifully found a charging station before returning a car; Whole Foods was my go-to. But most often, I just didn’t have time to hunt down a charger and hang out for up to an hour. Electric refueling fees range from $25 to $35, though, far cheaper than spending, say, $75 in California to return a fossil fuel car with a full tank. The reduced hassles and relatively negligible cost difference of charging in the wild make the electric refueling fee a no-brainer. There can be a learning curve before driving off the rental lotAutomakers tend toward the futuristic when designing EVs, which can make figuring out how to start an unfamiliar car or even adjust the side mirrors frustratingly complicated. The fact that many EVs are controlled through touch screens – each configured differently – doesn’t help.In some cases, you may not even be able to leave the lot: I sat in a Polestar 2 for more than a few minutes flummoxed by the absence of a start button until a Google search told me to just put the car in gear and go. If you book a Tesla and have never driven one, you’ll want to review how to unlock the doors, start the car and adjust the mirrors before arriving at the rental agency. Intuitive it’s not. Hyundai’s luxury brand, Genesis, offers the most old-school experience with actual push buttons and physical knobs.Despite occasional EV exasperation, renting electric is now my preferred route. The cars are quiet, fast, fun and climate-friendly, and renting one is a great low-carbon holiday gift to give yourself