Listed: everywhere Australians can hire a electric car for holiday or test drive

Most of the big Australian hire car companies now have electric vehicles (EV) available.

Hiring one of these is a great way to enjoy an emissions free road trip, holiday or just rent the car for a day to see if you like it enough to buy it.

The following details which car rental companies in Australia offer electric cars as well as the brands and models they offer:

SIXT

SIXT has: BYD Atto 3, Tesla (Model 3 and Model Y), Hyundai Ioniq EV, BMW IX3 and the Hyundai Kona EV. This is a nice mixture of sedans and SUV’s.

Check with SIXT before you book what the WLTP km range of their Hyundai Kona and Ioniq is.

It’s likely these are older Ioniq and lower spec Kona models from a few years ago which have much lower range than the new Ioniq 5/6 and Kona 2023 model.

If they are the new models then enjoy the drive but if they’re the old ones choose a different SIXT EV instead.

SIXT electric car hire customers:

  • Are given a full tutorial before leaving the branch and can return their vehicle without full charge
  • Can use Chargefox (the largest fast charger network in Australia) for free
  • Receive NRMA roadside assistance with all rentals

The roadside assist and free charging offers are because SIXT is owned by NRMA which also owns Chargefox.

Currently Sixt hires electric cars from 5 airport locations: Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Brisbane and Perth.

Hertz

Hertz has the Polestar 2 and Tesla Model Y. The Polestar 2 is a fast hatchback and Tesla Model Y is a family SUV.

Both are long range cars, the Polestar 2 more suitable for a single or couple to hire and the Tesla Model Y more suitable for a family of 3-5 people.

I have test driven a Hertz Polestar 2 which was fun. While I haven’t had the time to try the Tesla Model Y yet, my EV reviewer friend Jason owns one and likes it.

Hertz electric car hire customers are given a full tutorial before leaving the branch and must return their vehicle with at least 90% charge

Currently Hertz hires electric cars from 8 airport locations: Adelaide, Canberra, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Hobart, and Launceston.

Europcar

Europcar hires out these electric cars: Mazda MX30 Astina EV, MG ZS EV Mk 1, Cupra Born and Tesla Model Y.

I advise against hiring the Mazda MX30 Astina EV and MG ZS EV Mk 1 as they are both short range EV’s that were launched a few years ago and don’t reflect current EV range and technology.

Unfortunately Europcar doesn’t seem to own a lot EV’s so all the models aren’t available in every major city.

On the plus side the Cupra Born is a superb long range car and the Tesla Model Y is a popular family SUV so these are good options.

Avis & Budget

Despite being major car hire brands Avis and Budget have no electric cars available at present in Australia.

Evee

There is one more way to hire an electric car in Australia but it’s not one of the traditional companies so check their terms and conditions carefully before hiring a car.

Evee is an all electric car sharing platform (mostly different Tesla models) that allows drivers like you to rent EVs directly from people who own them.

At the moment there are cars available in Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane, Gold Coast and more but note there are only a handful of cars are available in the non capital city locations.


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