I rent a lot of cars for work. Several rental companies are expanding their fleets with EVs. I have not rented one yet. But I've noticed more EVs in the rental lots each week, and I've had this growing sense of dread that one of these days I'm going to get Tesla'd at the Hertz counter. So I started thinking about that. Why wouldn't I want to rent one? I mean, I love the idea of owning and driving an electric car. But when I go picking it apart, I realize: I don't want to rent an EV at the airport and keep it all week while staying in a hotel and working in (some city) far from home, left to recharge the car from whatever public systems are available in the area. What I want is to rent a fully charged EV at the hotel each morning, and turn it in each evening. To say it another way: I want the full benefit of overnight home charging when I am nowhere near home. Otherwise just give me a dino-burner.
i agree on hotel charging. hilton just made a big deal with tesla, but it's gonna take years. marriott is woefully behind. i wouldn't mind renting an ev, but not if i had to be places for work and had to find charging too. we're not to that point yet. i just got an announcement from tesla that they installed their 50,000th charging station worldwide. impressive, but they also sent a route planner that would add (at least) 5 hours onto our florida trip, wheich would take us from 3 to 4 days. not gonna happen.
Yup. I travel a lot and have rental cars every week as well. Recently for SMX we have been told to NOT accept an EV. Period. Agreed for at the same reasons you mentioned.
Why do people even talk about using their ev for road trips? I don’t care if you have 600 mile range. Anybody who can afford an ev should have a good hybrid or gas road car as well.
I’ve used a BEV for numerous road trips. Longest one was a bit over 5000 miles. These trips were the most relaxing, enjoyable road trips I have ever taken. That said, I know there are some road trips that don’t work as well. So I am careful not to say BEVs work for all road trips. Likewise, I would suggest people don’t imply they don’t work for any.
EVs are different. With one exception, my Tesla has worked perfectly. That one exception, I foolishly thought at 114,000 mi, there might be a battery reserve (like shown on YouTube.) Understanding the charging network and your EV is key to successful operation. The BMW i3-REx has been perfect but it carries its own engine-generator. It is more expensive than EV to run long distances on gasoline, 36 MPG. But when you arrive, you have an efficient, affordable EV. Bob Wilson
