Discussion: Experiences Renting a Tesla Model 3 / Y from various companies

I have just come back from Florida where I rented a Model Y from AVIS from Orlando Airport. Here's what I thought about it all... I have a MY at home.

To start, I was surprised they were doing Teslas at all - I know Hertz do, but now AVIS as well it seems. I saw several MY's there and maybe a M3 too. The car had 92 miles when I picked it up, and I did around 700 miles during my stay.

All did not go well - although that is the subject of another post later on.

But in general:

You get one card-key in a relatively big clear plastic case. I did not get access through a phone and I could not assign my phone to be a key, so I was stuck with the card-key.

This means.... No walk-away locking, no auto-unlock, no pre-cool on climate, have to use the card-key every time to 'start' the card. Most annoying, but no different to a gas car I guess. How spoiled we are.

Supercharging was great... I guess Avis will bill me for it eventually!

Popped into Disney Springs one night, overjoyed to see some ChargePoint chargers... but they were CCS, so no joy there :-(

Avis do not have Premium connectivity, so no Satellite view, no streaming. Gah! And yes, I did connect to my phone as a hotspot to get around that, see my other posting in a few days.

Given that these cars are new, there are no ultrasonice sensors, which I found annoying, as I have them on my 2022 MY. It did have the trunk cover to keep things a bit more hidden and cool, so that was good.

Car came with the standard J1772 adaptor. No FSD obviously, and AutoSteer was disabled to start with.

Overall..... Good to drive 'the same' car as I own.....but annoyed to be back to 'basic' and having to set the car up as I wanted it.

So... thinking outside the box.... What does this look like for AVIS and Tesla? I think that Tesla and Avis need to do something about this 'basic' level of support and no App-access. It turns the Tesla from a tech-leader to an annoying expeience, which might put off future buyers. Avis probably don't want us using our phones as we can't then un-associate the phone, which is a security risk, but maybe Tesla needs to do something in this area for rentals?

There was (obvuously) no manual there - yes - I know why ! Not a problem for me as I have a MY... but what's a first-time Tesla renter supposed to do? It's not really a good experience, and that can hurt both Tesla and Avis. For the newbies, maybe a slip of paper saying 'Press here and here to see the manual'. If you know... you know.... if you don't... it's well hidden.

I don't know what Hertz do that's different, as I am Avis President's Club and so brand loyalty and all that.

Would I rent a MY or M3 from Avis again - yes! Great to get into a car that's almost identical to your own and drive through the night after a long journey. Discuss ;-)

"IMG_0765" by Robert T Bell is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
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[whitex]

What's the issue with lack of instruction? I imagine that if they are renting Teslas and putting a location in as their destination they would be routed to a Supercharger along the way, no? Is that how all EVs work? I mean, my wife's is from 2012 and doesn't even have a display other than the current radio station, but I mean cars you can rent today.

There is always some setup. Let me give you an example. My parents switched from an over a decade old Rav4 to a Model Y. They hated it for the first week of ownership because they have not discovered creep mode setting. This is not to debate whether single pedal to stop is better or not, but simply the fact that if felt different and uncomfortable to them. So someone used to ICE cars rents an EV with creep mode off, they form an opinion they hate the way EV's drive.

 

[Jim R]

Yeah, that's cause it's different for the S/X than it is for the 3/Y. The 2019 3/Y *had* CCS support before the global chip shortage, so Tesla kept making cars by leaving it out of the ECUs they were shipping them with. But the only diff is the CCS software, popping the one with the software in will add that functionality to your car. If you need an adapter you can then buy one from their store, you don't need service nor a kit...

The hardest part is getting the interior fabric out of the way enough to swap the ECUs

Well thanks for explaining to me what I just told you. And it's not "..the only difference is the CCS software.." It's a hardware part that is needed.

 

[gt2690b]

Well thanks for explaining to me what I just told you. And it's not "..the only difference is the CCS software.." It's a hardware part that is needed.

Also if Tesla shipped some to hertz during the chip shortage it may not be ccs capable

 

[Hiline]

Those that were given a key card when renting a Tesla, were you able to pair a phone key with the key card inside the car?

 

[gt2690b]

Those that were given a key card when renting a Tesla, were you able to pair a phone key with the key card inside the car?

No you have to use the QR code method

 

[Hiline]

No you have to use the QR code method

I see. What happens when you try it though? Does the rental company have a way to block you from adding a phone key?

 

[gt2690b]

I see. What happens when you try it though? Does the rental company have a way to block you from adding a phone key?

I don't remember.. I thought maybe you need app access to the car to add a phone key?

 

[Jejunjm]

I’m renting from hertz what I assume is a model 3 “midsize ev like Tesla model 3” San Diego. Priceline was 250 cheaper then hertz directly (50 ish a day including taxes and fees)

1) should I still expect a mobile charger in the trunk?

2) j-1772 adapter?

3) ccs2 compatibility (should I bring my adapter?)

Thanks! Bringing my 6 yo daughter so want to minimize silliness

 

[kpanda17]

I’m renting from hertz what I assume is a model 3 “midsize ev like Tesla model 3” San Diego. Priceline was 250 cheaper then hertz directly (50 ish a day including taxes and fees)

1) should I still expect a mobile charger in the trunk?

2) j-1772 adapter?

3) ccs2 compatibility (should I bring my adapter?)

Thanks! Bringing my 6 yo daughter so want to minimize silliness

depending on where you drive, no adapters should be necessary as Tesla's supercharging network is so expansive across the USA, especially in Cali
as for your 1-3, ill note here
1 - this is purely for emergencies, L1 for when you can only plug in, at a family's house, etc
2 - this is for L2 charging locations, hotels, etc
3 - this is for non Tesla L3 charging
I personally own all of these and for 16 months, I have not used any of them
note the industry is moving away from 2 and 3 as the Tesla connector, called NACS connector, is now the standard in the USA
Tesla's supercharging network keeps getting larger with new installs monthly
good luck

 

[Jejunjm]

depending on where you drive, no adapters should be necessary as Tesla's supercharging network is so expansive across the USA, especially in Cali
as for your 1-3, ill note here
1 - this is purely for emergencies, L1 for when you can only plug in, at a family's house, etc
2 - this is for L2 charging locations, hotels, etc
3 - this is for non Tesla L3 charging
I personally own all of these and for 16 months, I have not used any of them
note the industry is moving away from 2 and 3 as the Tesla connector, called NACS connector, is now the standard in the USA
Tesla's supercharging network keeps getting larger with new installs monthly
good luck

Thanks i own them all (adapters) and have never used the ccs2. J1272 at home (level 2) and random level 2s with my personal vehicle. President biden avd ev America etc have a ton of ccs going inl, stupid now imp but when can you do.

 

[laservet]

Thanks i own them all (adapters) and have never used the ccs2. J1272 at home (level 2) and random level 2s with my personal vehicle. President biden avd ev America etc have a ton of ccs going inl, stupid now imp but when can you do.

I have all three and in nearly 4 years of ownership have never used any of them.

 

[mcsenerd]

I have all three and in nearly 4 years of ownership have never used any of them.

I've had life insurance for over 25 years and haven't needed it yet...LOL

Just kidding...kinda. Really, the point of 'em for me is very similar to insurance. Do I "need" them all the time? Surely not...but when you do NEED one...then you're going to REALLY NEED one, and I'd rather it be there at that time then not.

 

[kpanda17]

I'm holding the opinion, no need
by our third Tesla, I did not buy any of these

 

[WhiteOnWhiteMY]

I’ve used all 3, all for non-emergency purposes. The mobile charger was great for road trips and camping! Rent an RV spot, plug in for the night. The J1772 adapter came in handy when I saw some great event parking with free charging, but it was a ChargePoint adapter. The CCS adapter when there was a free fast charger near where I live. Sure, you could solely rely on the Tesla network, but you’d be missing out on a few cases where having these adapters pay for themselves.

Regarding your question on if the car comes with them when you rent; I rented one a few days ago for the first time, and it came with nothing. Full review coming later!

 

[laservet]

I've had life insurance for over 25 years and haven't needed it yet...LOL

Just kidding...kinda. Really, the point of 'em for me is very similar to insurance. Do I "need" them all the time? Surely not...but when you do NEED one...then you're going to REALLY NEED one, and I'd rather it be there at that time then not.

Indeed. I carry all three in my car at all times. Just in case.

 

[gx9901]

My car does not have CCS enabled and I probably would never need it, but I would still like to have the hardware installed so I can buy a CCS adapter to keep in the car. What sucks is that Tesla website has been saying check back later for CCS retrofit availability for Model 3/Y for over a year, and now it doesn't even say check back later. Without the CCS retrofit, I won't be able to use 3rd party J3400 chargers in the future, which is stupid.

 

[Wattsisname]

Quite a blow for Tesla that Hertz and Avis will not be renewing their 3 and Y fleets.
Poor resale value and high insurance have scuppered that nice little earner.
Perhaps a formula will be negotiated whereby the risk and reward can be shared.

 

[Hiline]

Quite a blow for Tesla that Hertz and Avis will not be renewing their 3 and Y fleets.
Poor resale value and high insurance have scuppered that nice little earner.
Perhaps a formula will be negotiated whereby the risk and reward can be shared.

The resale value reason is so flawed. It is precisely that Tesla vehicles have become so much cheaper that the rental car companies should buy them now since they are unlikely to go down much farther in value.

Insurance, on the other hand, is a legitimate concern, but one that is likely offset by lower maintenance costs.

 

[SO16]

Quite a blow for Tesla that Hertz and Avis will not be renewing their 3 and Y fleets.
Poor resale value and high insurance have scuppered that nice little earner.
Perhaps a formula will be negotiated whereby the risk and reward can be shared.

Buying at the height of Covid prices seems to have exasperated this issue. It’s surprising to me that they wouldn’t want to buy model Y’s now that prices have come down.

After all, this police dept sees the value in it.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1707871481667977689

 

[Wattsisname]

The resale value reason is so flawed. It is precisely that Tesla vehicles have become so much cheaper that the rental car companies should buy them now since they are unlikely to go down much farther in value.

Insurance, on the other hand, is a legitimate concern, but one that is likely offset by lower maintenance costs.

Yes, I would have thought it ought to work as you suggest. Let's hope it is a negotiating tactic.