Where to Rent the leaf in L.A.?

Yes I clicked on the search button and typed "rental" and "rent" to search the forums. It found nothing. Anyway: I'd like to rent the Nissan Leaf for a day. I checked both Hertz and Enterprise but both said they were sold out. Any other options?

Gee thanks for the help. I know you guys hate me, but you could at least help me find a rental Leaf.

I rent my LEAF through the peer-to-peer car rental website RelayRides.com - here's a link to the listing:

https://relayrides.com/car-rental/los-angeles/nissan-leaf/4404" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I would consider asking a dealer for an extended test drive

None of the dealers here allow me to drive more than 1 exit from their place. Nissan didn't. Freeway Honda didn't. Toyota Tustin didn't. When I asked "why" they gave me some bs about "insurance won't let us go further away than this".

Isn't there a rental place in California that deals with *nothing* but green cars? Hybrids, electrics, and such?

Hi There, when I was in LA in August, I really wanted to rent and drive a Volt, because I think it would be my next car, and there are several places'agencies in LA that rent EV's.

I ended up going with these guys: http://www.simplyhybrid.com/selection/show-all" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

on Wilshire Blvd, in West LA. They were pretty good, although I got kind of screwed on the insurance options. Just make sure you get a detailed quote before you sign for the rental.

Overall it was a great experience, They were willing to deliver it to my hotel around LAX both ways, and they were very professional and courteous. If you end up going with them, tell them 'Stefan' referenced you.

Good luck!

- stefan

theaveng said:

Yes I clicked on the search button and typed "rental" and "rent" to search the forums. It found nothing. Anyway: I'd like to rent the Nissan Leaf for a day. I checked both Hertz and Enterprise but both said they were sold out. Any other options?

Click to expand...

Both Connell Nissan in Costa Mesa, and Tustin Nissan rent LEAFs.

chex said:

I ended up going with these guys: http://www.simplyhybrid.com/selection/show-all" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Click to expand...

Excellent. I want to testdrive..... I mean rent a Volt too. Not sure why though. After the initial 40 miles of EV runs out, it probably drives like a Prius (zzz). Where's the stick shift? ;-)

And I'm not sure I want to rent a Leaf from a private owner. I guess it would be okay but I don't understand why someone wants to rent-out their "baby"? I don't let anyone drive my car except me. What if I got carried-away and ran the battery empty? I bet the owner would be p..... annoyed.

theaveng said:

And I'm not sure I want to rent a Leaf from a private owner. I guess it would be okay but I don't understand why someone wants to rent-out their "baby"? I don't let anyone drive my car except me. What if I got carried-away and ran the battery empty? I bet the owner would be p..... annoyed.

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I PM'ed "theaveng" to make him a special rental offer on my LEAF, which I have rented several times and continue to rent on the peer-to-peer car-sharing website RelayRides.com (https://relayrides.com/car-rental/los-angeles/nissan-leaf/4404" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false. He replied saying he would not be in the market until Jan. or Feb., but didn't express his objections to renting privately.

As to why I would rent my LEAF, it's simple. As an EV advocate, I want the experience to be more available to folks who are just curious, or are considering buying or leasing one -- people just like "theaveng." It's been shown before in this forum that "butts in the seat" of a LEAF can be persuasive. It's one way I can contribute to the adoption of electric vehicles. Also, there are days I don't need to drive it, and I don't mind earning extra income from it when I don't. I see it as a win-win for everybody.

I don't view my LEAF as my "baby" - it doesn't carry my genetic material. It's leased, it's going back to Nissan in 18 months, and I will then get a better EV (most likely a new-model LEAF). RelayRides insures it fully during the rental period - no risk to my private insurance coverage.

Before I entrust new drivers with it, I screen them to make sure their plans for the LEAF are compatible with its range, charging requirements, etc., and make sure I give them a 20-minute or so introduction/training session. Also, if there's any doubt in my mind, I monitor the status of their SOC and GOM miles remaining via CARWINGS, and give them a call if it seems problematic (I tell them beforehand about this capability to head off any "invasion of privacy" issues).

In short, the suspicion exhibited by "theaveng" is misplaced. It leaves me a little saddened that good intentions can be so misunderstood. The steady growth of interest in car-sharing and multiplying number of websites dedicated to it show that not everyone feels the same way.

timhebb said:

I don't view my LEAF as my "baby" - it doesn't carry my genetic material. It's leased, it's going back to Nissan in 18 months, and I will then get a better EV (most likely a new-model LEAF). RelayRides insures it fully during the rental period - no risk to my private insurance coverage.

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I would encourage you to read thru the Lease Agreement to ensure you are not violating any covenants therein.

The same for anyone who "owns" their LEAF ... if it is financed.


EDIT: I was asked via PM whether I knew of a particular problem or was I just "throwing it out there" ?

For everyone's benefit: I am guilty of the latter ! I am too lazy :lol: to pull out the Lease Agreement and read that tiny print myself. I am not an attorney. YMMV. ( Sorry, did not mean to create FUD, but I am simply being very conservative with this kind of stuff. )

LEAFer said:

timhebb said:

I don't view my LEAF as my "baby" - it doesn't carry my genetic material. It's leased, it's going back to Nissan in 18 months, and I will then get a better EV (most likely a new-model LEAF). RelayRides insures it fully during the rental period - no risk to my private insurance coverage.

Click to expand...

I would encourage you to read thru the Lease Agreement to ensure you are not violating any covenants therein.

The same for anyone who "owns" their LEAF ... if it is financed.


EDIT: I was asked via PM whether I knew of a particular problem or was I just "throwing it out there" ?

For everyone's benefit: I am guilty of the latter ! I am too lazy :lol: to pull out the Lease Agreement and read that tiny print myself. I am not an attorney. YMMV. ( Sorry, did not mean to create FUD, but I am simply being very conservative with this kind of stuff. )

Click to expand...

I'm only slightly more inclined to dive into my lease agreement than I am to actually read the latest Apple App Store agreement which, IIRC, at last viewing was some 50+ pages!!!

If Nissan wants to quarrel with me, they're welcome to have at it, regardless of what the lease says. On another thread in this forum, Second Amendment lunatics are raving about not just their right to bear arms, but our collective duty to...so I'm not prepared to back away from what I see as my prerogative to deploy my LEAF however I see fit. Hope this doesn't come off as TOO pissy - I'm just not in the mood to entertain infringement of my ego tonight, despite your valid and no doubt well-intentioned inquiry. I freely acknowledge that I'm an anarchist at heart (except when it comes to 2A).

timhebb said:

Before I entrust new drivers with it, I screen them to make sure their plans for the LEAF are compatible with its range, charging requirements, etc., and make sure I give them a 20-minute or so introduction/training session.

Click to expand...

Thanks for the kind words. My intention is to drive the Rental Leaf (and later an i-MiEV and Volt) on I 5 away from Los Angeles to see how it compares to my insight on the open road (it gets between 70 and 80mpg). Or the stick shift Civic Hybrid (60 to 70mpg). Basically just a long testdrive.

Good point about the Leaf lease. Somewhere in the fine print it might exclude renting Nissan's car since they are the official owner. I already drove a Leaf once but as mentioned before, Nissan wouldn't let me take it more than 1 exit. I find that odd because in Maryland I've testdriven Priuses and other cars for 100 miles w/o complaint from the dealers. I even topped-off the gas. (shrug)

I'm already planning to buy one used if I can find a sub-15000 pricetag (how much I pay for all my cars). I'll give it to my mom who only drives 10 miles per week. She'll probably love it. No more begging her husband to change the oil. ;-)

theaveng said:

chex said:

I ended up going with these guys: http://www.simplyhybrid.com/selection/show-all" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Click to expand...

Excellent. I want to testdrive..... I mean rent a Volt too. Not sure why though. After the initial 40 miles of EV runs out, it probably drives like a Prius (zzz). Where's the stick shift? ;-)

And I'm not sure I want to rent a Leaf from a private owner. I guess it would be okay but I don't understand why someone wants to rent-out their "baby"? I don't let anyone drive my car except me. What if I got carried-away and ran the battery empty? I bet the owner would be p..... annoyed.

Click to expand...

Pick Up Location;

Enterprise Rent-A-Car

1702 SANTA MONICA BLVD
SANTA MONICA, CA 90404-1907

Intermediate Electric - Chevy Volt, Nissan LEAF, or similar Call Tel.: (310) 315-1997 for Availability

Yeah every time I call Enterprise they never have a Leaf available. That's why this thread was created, in order to find alternate sources.

FYI only - I'm posting this email I received recently from the nonprofit organization DrivingElectric:

"We are very excited to announce that we are joining forces with RelayRides, a nationwide peer-to-peer car sharing service, to make it easier for you to share your EV with people around you. Together we’ll make EVs more accessible, spreading the EV grin to more drivers.
 
RelayRides makes it easy to share your vehicle with your neighbors, co-workers and people you meet. You set the rental rate, availability, and approve each rental request so you only rent at times convenient to you. Your vehicle is covered by a $1 million insurance policy and 24/7 roadside assistance during the rental period. 
 
As an added bonus, RelayRides will donate $50 for every new enrolled vehicle referred by DrivingElectric that is rented at least once. You can also set up automatic donations of your rental earnings to DrivingElectric by sending an email to [email protected].
 
REFERRAL LINK: http://bit.ly/RlYK9o

When you are ready to enroll your EV in RelayRides, please use the above referral link so we get credit for referring you. 

Once you've signed up, please update your DrivingElectric profile to include your new RelayRides username and make it even easier for people to rent your car."
 
Happy Sharing,
The DrivingElectric Team

theaveng said:

Good point about the Leaf lease. Somewhere in the fine print it might exclude renting Nissan's car since they are the official owner.

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By this logic, folks who haven't paid off their mortgage in full couldn't rent their house to a third party; I'm not familiar with any home loan lenders that try to pull off that restriction - it would certainly discourage investment in residential real estate. Just sayin'...

Here is some commentary from Wheelz, another of the several web-based peer-to-peer car rental companies:

"LEGAL PROTECTIONS FOR CAR OWNERS

California, Washington, and Oregon state laws exist that specifically protect the insurance and legal liability of car owners that share their cars on the Wheelz network. The laws have two primary protections:

1. Personal Insurance

The laws make it illegal for an insurance company to cancel or rescind an individual’s insurance policy solely based on participation in a vehicle-sharing program.

Translation: Your private insurance policy will not be impacted by participation in Wheelz.

2. Liability

The laws also require that vehicle-sharing programs, on behalf of their car owners, completely assume any liability that arises out of a vehicle being shared through a vehicle-sharing program.

Translation: Wheelz, not you, is on the hook for any liability that results from you sharing your car with other Wheelz members on our network."

The world is changing, guys; it's good to try to keep up!

timhebb said:

theaveng said:

Good point about the Leaf lease. Somewhere in the fine print it might exclude renting Nissan's car since they are the official owner.

Click to expand...

By this logic, folks who haven't paid off their mortgage in full couldn't rent their house to a third party;

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Correct. You need the bank's permission to convert it to a rental property. You are also required to carry insurance on your house and your car until the loan is paid off. You're not allowed to drop it.

More news reflecting the car rental paradigm shift...

Avis to Buy Zipcar for $500 Million

(http://nyti.ms/RsQByW" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false

The Avis Budget Group said on Wednesday [Jan. 2, 2013] that it had agreed to acquire the car-sharing pioneer Zipcar for $500 million in cash.
The deal represents a new direction for Avis in the fiercely competitive car rental market. Rivals Hertz Global and Enterprise each have hourly rental operations that compete with Zipcar. These rentals tend to have younger, more urban customers than traditional business or leisure travelers. And the Zipcar acquisition comes just months after Hertz clinched a takeover of Dollar Thrifty Automotive group.
"We see car sharing as highly complementary to traditional car rental, with rapid growth potential and representing a scalable opportunity for us as a combined company," Ronald L. Nelson, Avis's chief executive, said in a statement.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

By the way, I rented my LEAF, through RelayRides.com, for three days (in Los Angeles) over the New Year holiday to a visiting couple in Harvard's post-grad economics program. They loved it.

theaveng said:

timhebb said:

theaveng said:

Good point about the Leaf lease. Somewhere in the fine print it might exclude renting Nissan's car since they are the official owner.

Click to expand...

By this logic, folks who haven't paid off their mortgage in full couldn't rent their house to a third party;

Click to expand...

Correct. You need the bank's permission to convert it to a rental property

Click to expand...

Funny - you had to point this out explicitly for me to realize that, technically, it's probably true that most home loans include language to this effect.

But it never even occurred to me to consider that when I rented out my own home for a couple of years and moved into the guest home I had built at the rear of the property (also technically in violation of various laws - the structure was legal, but living in it was not). I suspect many homeowners who choose to rent their homes to others either aren't aware or simply ignore the fine print in their home loans.

Could there be insurance or other repercussions? No doubt - where there are laws there are lawyers slithering around. But it never came up as an issue for me, and I've frankly never heard of anyone having a problem with this. But then I'm not a lawyer. I'd be interested to hear of contrary experiences.