Looking to lease a car for 1-3 months, should I be getting an electric?
Posted by 5tuff1e5@reddit | askcarguys | View on Reddit | 22 comments
I haven't really driven in \~10 years (I lived in a big city with great public transportation and didn't need my own car). I'm changing jobs and moving soon though and I'm looking to lease a car before eventually buying.
With gas prices the way they are, I should be looking to getting an electric right? I ask because in some conversations with friends, the majority of them are recommending gas without much explanation why. They mention something about gas being more reliable but my experience with cars is pretty minimal so I wanted to get some other opinions. Thank you in advance
MarsupialNo1278@reddit
Depends on your area infrastructure and how far you have to travel.
Admirable-Composer22@reddit
If you don't have a charger at your residence, forget it.
EntrySure1350@reddit
Are you looking to rent because you want to try it out long term before buying?
If so, then do you have a place to reliably and cheaply charge an EV? In other words, can you charge it at home, or do you have the ability to make home charging happen for you? If not, I would just consider the most fuel efficient vehicle you can afford.
MEMExplorer@reddit
Get a hybrid
AlternativeTwist6680@reddit
Wait, how do to lease a car for that less of a duration?
Striking-Working610@reddit
Car leasing has gotten crazy. You can subscribe to a dealer and drive a different car every day if you wanted to.
Quicksix666@reddit
I was at Jersey gardens mall this afternoon and there was a line of about 15 cars waiting for a charging station spot to open up LOL ..
pickandpray@reddit
My daughter said lining up a charging stations was a common occurrence for them especially on road trips
GeneMountain7128@reddit
If you have a place to plug it in at home whenever you're not driving, definitely electric for cost reasons.
When you say lease, you meant rent? From a rental agency like Hertz or Enterprise? Because I don't know anyone that "leases" cars for few than multi year terms. Anyway if you are renting, they will likely make you come in and sign a new rental contract and maybe even switch cars before you reach 30 days, and every month after that. That's to avoid treading into the business of long term leasing, which has legal considerations that are different than renting. Just something to be aware of
5tuff1e5@reddit (OP)
Thanks. Yes sorry I meant rental. My understanding is that with electric, long term maintenance costs are about the same as gas? I'm just thinking of long term when I eventually buy.
GeneMountain7128@reddit
Generally no, maintenance is lower. There are no fluids to change. Maybe brake fluid, if they didn't use DOT5 silicone. That alone will save you quite a bit.
They do tend to go through tires more quickly but that's something you can control by accelerating slowly. Most people get used to the instant torque of electric and gun it everywhere.
Batteries are turning out to last a lot longer than estimated. They aren't needing to be replaced every 10 years like some people thought would be the case.
So electric total cost can be quite a bit less. Again, as long as you have someplace to charge it. If you drive less than say 30-40 miles a day it only really needs to be a regular outlet. Electric is less compelling if you have to rely on public charging stations
5tuff1e5@reddit (OP)
Awesome, that's been super helpful. I'm going to do a bit more research and probably go the electric route
NickRR6@reddit
EVs don’t really have maintenance other than brakes, which last much longer than brakes on gas cars anyways. For that reason, maintenance costs are lower on EVs than on gas cars
SeminoleVictory@reddit
Will you be able to charge it at home?
At work?
Do you take long road trips?
If it's easy to charge, it will save you money.
Doublestack00@reddit
Not unless you have a garage with dedicated home charging.
UsefulCollection5038@reddit
Being able to charge it is a luxury not everyone has. For short-term rental it can be great if you can do that.
Long-term is a hard no from me. Initial buying cost, plus no backup if you are in an emergency. Where does that leave you in an evacuation scenario if it is not charged or when the power goes out? Hurricanes or ice storms can take regional power out for days or weeks.
NickRR6@reddit
If you can charge at home, and live somewhere with generally cheap electricity, an EV makes sense. Gas cars definitely aren’t more reliable than EVs, but considering you’re only renting, reliability shouldn’t be a concern.
ckeeler11@reddit
If you can charge at home and don't drive long distances all the time I would do electric.
Peterb-doggone1@reddit
You mean rent? There are not 3 month leases.
StandardMonk261@reddit
I had an electric truck last year while my gas truck was being repaired. It drove great and it was fancy. But I don’t have an electric charge at home so I couldn’t charge it over night. Having to go to Fast chargers was inconvenient and just as expensive as gas. Also even the fastest charger was not as fast and gassing up in 3 minutes.
Tony-cums@reddit
That’s called a rental. Can’t lease that long without getting bent over for the resr of the term.
bevipop@reddit
Electric would be the way to go if it makes sense for commute. Otherwise unless your a gear head, just get some hybrid.