Tesla has launched a rental program letting customers drive one of its cars for three to seven days starting at just $60 per day, plus taxes and fees. The deal comes with perks like unlimited mileage, free Supercharging, and access to Full Self-Driving (Supervised) while you’re behind the wheel.
The only restriction is that rentals must stay within the state where you pick up the car.
Tesla is sweetening the offer with a $250 credit toward a new Tesla if you buy one within seven days of your rental.
Available Models
Select Available Models
Tesla
Founded
July 1, 2003
Founder
Martin Eberhard, Marc Tarpenning
Headquarters
Austin, Texas, USA
Owned By
Publicly Traded
Current CEO
Elon Musk
Why Tesla is launching rentals now
Credit: Tesla
Studies show that once people get behind the wheel of an electric vehicle, they rarely go back. A recent Global EV Alliance survey found that 92 percent of EV owners wouldn’t trade their car for a gas-powered one.
Tesla has long focused on getting curious buyers to try its cars. The automaker already offers three types of test drives: a quick spin around the block, a 24-hour drive for overnight use, and a 48-hour weekend experience.
The new rental program is currently available at just a few locations, including Tesla Stores in San Diego and Costa Mesa, California. If it catches on, the service could expand nationwide faster than you’d expect.
How-To Geek’s take
Credit: Tesla
If we were visiting Southern California, we’d seriously consider renting a Tesla over Hertz, Enterprise, or Avis. Standard rental cars might be cheaper, but that usually means tiny subcompact models with almost no comfort or convenience features.
Paying $60 a day for a Tesla Model 3 with all its tech and gadgets seems well worth it. Free Supercharging is a big bonus, too—you know the pain of returning a rental with just a little less fuel than you started with.
Would renting a Tesla make us buy one? Probably not, at least not before trying other EVs on the market. Still, this kind of extended test drive beats a typical 15-minute spin, especially for anyone who’s never driven an EV before.
Source: Global EV Alliance, Teslerati, TopSpeed
