Real-time exposure of the challenges of EV use

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tmorris1 said:
Goto the next counter or walk? I always book ahead for a car, but realize maybe that wasn't possible.
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No cars has happened to us twice

Hmm…

When we Turo’d the Leaf last year it was NOT fully charged either but made it to my brother’s place.

Owner said all kinds of apologies but there was enough charge. I posted about this. 120V is slow!
 
I own an EV and wouldn’t rent one because of the same reasons the OP experienced. I doubt the rental lots at the airports have the electrical service to add a bunch of EV charging at this point so you end up getting partially charged cars because the prior renter was in the same spot when they picked it up.
 
RhondaHonda said:
I own an EV and wouldn’t rent one because of the same reasons the OP experienced. I doubt the rental lots at the airports have the electrical service to add a bunch of EV charging at this point so you end up getting partially charged cars because the prior renter was in the same spot when they picked it up.
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Agreed 👍
If they don't have onsite charging they don't need to be renting out EVs
 
GON said:
Even if the rental firms did have on-site charging stations, rental car companies charging a vehicle may be above their skill set.
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If I am not mistaken most of the people working in that car rental center at SeaTac don’t even work for the car rental company. It’s an odd place.

It was super convenient when the rental cars were on one level of the parking garage. Walk across the skybridge and one level up in the elevator and you were there. Then they moved to the new site which now requires a shuttle bus. Those are frequent though. If you have lots of luggage it is a bit of a pain.
 
Two thoughts come to mind:
1. We need better charging infrastructure which we all know we need.
2. They were stupid to give you a car not charged up.
 
PimTac said:
If I am not mistaken most of the people working in that car rental center at SeaTac don’t even work for the car rental company. It’s an odd place.

It was super convenient when the rental cars were on one level of the parking garage. Walk across the skybridge and one level up in the elevator and you were there. Then they moved to the new site which now requires a shuttle bus. Those are frequent though. If you have lots of luggage it is a bit of a pain.
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When I read replies on this and other threads reference rental cars, I often wonder the experience level of the Renter. It is very easy to spend one plus hour trying to check out a rental car, and at times two plus hours. I will rent 13 rental cars this month. I think I have it down to a science, but any "hiccup" and one is subject to a huge risk to time.

For a leisure traveler doing an occasional rental, maybe that is entertainment to go back to the counter and try to exchange a car, or to switch rental firms. To a person whose work requires them to travel, the challenges at a car rental counter are very far from entertainment.
 
PimTac said:
If I am not mistaken most of the people working in that car rental center at SeaTac don’t even work for the car rental company. It’s an odd place.

It was super convenient when the rental cars were on one level of the parking garage. Walk across the skybridge and one level up in the elevator and you were there. Then they moved to the new site which now requires a shuttle bus. Those are frequent though. If you have lots of luggage it is a bit of a pain.
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Lots of dynamics with car rental firms.

One example is franchise locations. I will use Avis as my rental agency for 9 of my 13 rentals this month. Yet, when I rent at Avis at Springfield, MO and Anchorage, AK this month- those locations are not corporate locations, but franchise locations. The "rules" at those locations differ from Avis corporate locations.
 
GON said:
Lots of dynamics with car rental firms.

One example is franchise locations. I will use Avis as my rental agency for 9 of my 13 rentals this month. Yet, when I rent at Avis at Springfield, MO and Anchorage, AK this month- those locations are not corporate locations, but franchise locations. The "rules" at those locations differ from Avis corporate locations.
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That is what we have done as well. That SeaTac car rental center tacks on a lot of charges and taxes versus a franchise location. It was actually cheaper to pay for Shuttle Express down to Tacoma at one of the Hertz franchises and rent from there. Much simpler too. In every case we asked if we could turn the rental back in at the airport and they okayed that. The cost difference was large.
 
Astro14 said:
This was going to be my point -
as much a failure of Hertz for creating the problem. Giving out an EV with 25% SOC and glib, uninformed assurances is atrocious customer service.
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Regrettably, that is common for rental car agencies. It is a tough business for all involved. From the counter agent having to tell a family in Orlando they can't get the car they reserved because their credit card is declined, to a Renter who beats the daylights out of a rental car, smokes in it, and leaves bio stuff in the car.

I always have great empathy for people that work at airports, especially major airports. Likely underpaid, have to park miles away and take an employee shuttle, crazy bad hours, and dealing with travelers with problems. I wish an airport job on no one.


And I get these after every Avis rental. I just delete.
avis.webp
 
GON said:
When I read replies on this and other threads reference rental cars, I often wonder the experience level of the Renter. It is very easy to spend one plus hour trying to check out a rental car, and at times two plus hours. I will rent 13 rental cars this month. I think I have it down to a science....
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Absolutely.

It shouldn't take more than a few minutes to pick up a rental car. Joining your favorite rental company's rewards program lets you skip the counter and you can usually go straight to your car and/or find your name on the monitor and be out of there in about 90 seconds.
 
Leo99 said:
We're taking more and more ubers for business travel. Less drama, less liability, and often the cost is comparable.
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For personal travel, we’ve done that. Three days in Boston last month. Fly into Logan, Uber around. Rental cars there are outrageous. Gas is hard to find in the city. Parking is worse. Uber total cost is similar and the convenience is unmatched.

But the OP is traveling on DTS, I suspect. The federal government is rigid, and often out of date, on allowable expenses. He may not have the choice.
 
PimTac said:
That is what we have done as well. That SeaTac car rental center tacks on a lot of charges and taxes versus a franchise location. It was actually cheaper to pay for Shuttle Express down to Tacoma at one of the Hertz franchises and rent from there. Much simpler too. In every case we asked if we could turn the rental back in at the airport and they okayed that. The cost difference was large.
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The cost difference between renting at the airport and a off-site location can be monster large. The airport costs are usually taxes and fees charged by the airport authority, not the rental car companies' corporate surcharge. One use to be able to take a Uber from the airport to an off-site Avis, Hertz, etc and save a ton. Now the Uber is so very pricey, going off-site may not be a significant savings.

Typically, franchise locations will not permit "one-way" rentals for most of their fleet. Some corporate rental cars will end up at Franchise locations, and those cars may be eligible for one-way rentals. But the cars the Franchise owns typically are round trip (return back to point of origin) only.
 
Astro14 said:
This was going to be my point -
as much a failure of Hertz for creating the problem. Giving out an EV with 25% SOC and glib, uninformed assurances is atrocious customer service.
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Appears to be the norm.
 
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PF52 said:
Absolutely.

It shouldn't take more than a few minutes to pick up a rental car. Joining your favorite rental company's rewards program lets you skip the counter and you can usually go straight to your car and/or find your name on the monitor and be out of there in about 90 seconds.
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That is the way it is supposed to work. Reality is often very different.
 
Zee09 said:
Agreed 👍
If they don't have onsite charging they don't need to be renting out EVs
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I call this another example of the EV not being ready for prime time and the consumer pays the price for the insane push for all electric. It's sad! A customer votes with their dollars in the business world, when they take their dollars elsewhere it sends a message and hurts the offending business in the process. Given a choice I'd take my business somewhere else. If my back was against the wall and I had no choice the offending company would lose my business for good, and I'd make sure I alerted friends and family so they don't do business with the offending company. That's a small win if enough people do it, and it sends a message.
 
demarpaint said:
I call this another example of the EV not being ready for prime time and the consumer pays the price for the insane push for all electric. It's sad! A customer votes with their dollars in the business world, when they take their dollars elsewhere it sends a message and hurts the offending business in the process. Given a choice I'd take my business somewhere else. If my back was against the wall and I had no choice the offending company would lose my business for good, and I'd make sure I alerted friends and family so they don't do business with the offending company. That's a small win if enough people do it, and it sends a message.
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Yup! That is why we shouldn't have skipped over the "hybrid" generation.
 
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