Frequently Asked Questions

Each vehicle can be rented for up to 30 days at a time. If you want to rent for longer than that, we will simply need you to check the vehicle back in at 30 days and re-rent it. We don’t do this to be a pain. Rather, our insurance requires it of us.

We accept most major credit cards. If you need to pay via different means (e.g., Venmo, actual paper money), let us know and we will try to accommodate you.

The biggest differences are: 1) charging and . . . yep, charging. Oh, and EVs are generally a lot more fun to drive. But back to charging. While there are thousands and thousands of charging stations across the country, charging is still not as easy or quick as putting gasoline in a traditional car. You have to be a bit more conscious of driving range and where you are going to charge, especially in cold weather.

You have several options: (1) Tesla-branded Superchargers, found mostly along major roadways to help you get through your road trip; (2) Tesla Destination Chargers, which are mostly found at hotels and restaurants (many of which require you to be a customer to use); (3) other charging networks, like ChargePoint, Electrify America, and SEMA Connect, among others; (4) plugging into a wall outlet. Other than wall outlets, the PlugShare app is very useful for finding chargers of all kinds.

Most of our guests use Tesla’s Superchargers, which are the fastest way to charge. Superchargers usually take between 20 and 45 minutes to charge a Tesla. Tesla’s Supercharger network is also usually the most convenient because they are also usually located near conveniences, like restaurants. We get billed by Tesla automatically for your Supercharger use and will charge your credit card on file after your trip ends. There is no way for you to pay Tesla directly at this time.

Tesla’s Destination Chargers, often found at hotels and restaurants, take much longer to charge a vehicle—on the order of 5 – 10 hours. These are often free, but often only for patrons of the establishments hosting them.

Other charging networks can be found in many, many places. These charges tend to be even slower—more like 5 – 15 hours for a full charge. This is very useful for overnight charging, but not very helpful for on-the-go charging. Some of these chargers are free; many are not. Again, the PlugShare website and app are both very helpful, particularly for locating these chargers.

Regular wall outlets can also be utilized using the Tesla Universal Mobile Connector, which is provided with each rental. Plugging into a regular 115v outlet adds about 3 miles (or so) of range per hour the vehicle is plugged in. Slow! But it’s still better than nothing, especially if you are sleeping or just hanging out at your Airbnb or VRBO spot. And in sub-zero weather, charging this way might add zero miles of range per hour, but it will prevent loss of range overnight. Plugging into a 240v outlet typically charges a Tesla in 6 – 12 hours, but these outlets are hard to find.

Not really. Superchargers cover most of your charging needs, while other chargers can fill in for overnight charging. Yes, a bit more planning is required than with a traditional car, but it’s not as bad as it sounds. We’ll show you below.

Here’s a common example: Pick up the car at ParkDIA after flying in to Denver; drive to Breckenridge for skiing or other fun. Your vehicle will have at least 80% of range when you pick it up and usually closer to 90%. This is usually enough range to get you to Breck with room to spare. About 10 miles from the airport, you will pass your first Tesla Supercharger (Denver). That was fast! No need to stop here; you should still have over 80% range.

About 20 minutes later, you will pass your second Supercharger (Lakewood) at Colorado Mills mall. You probably skip this one, as well. Next, about 20 minutes later, you will encounter the Idaho Springs Supercharger. If anyone in your group is hungry or needs to use a restroom, you may choose to stop here for a few minutes of charging. No need to fully charge, even if you do stop.

From here, you will climb up over 12,000 feet along I-70 and head through the Eisenhower tunnel. After about 45 minutes of driving from Idaho Springs or 90 minutes from the airport (depending on traffic), you will descend into the town of Silverthorne. This is a great place to stop to Supercharge. Going uphill uses a lot more energy, though you probably still have more than enough to get Breck. You consider pushing on to Breck, as it is only another 20 minutes or so of driving. But you realize that you may not have an easy place to charge in Breck and the vehicle will lose range just sitting around while you bike, hike, ski, or explore. Plus, someone in the car needs a quick break. Great news! The Silverthorne Supercharger is located next door to a Starbucks, across from a Chipotle and Which Wich, and adjacent to the Outlets at Silverthorne. Food, shopping, it’s all here.

After arriving in Breck, maybe you have local charging, maybe you don’t. But because you charged up in Silverthorne for 30 minutes or so, you can rest easy with no range anxiety. See, not that hard?

This is even easier. You will pass all the same chargers listed above. But because you’ll mostly be going downhill, you will hardly use any energy at all. Seriously, you’ll get the equivalent of about 250 miles/gallon. Whoa! Stop either at Lakewood or Denver to top up before return, and you should be good to go with more than 80% range remaining upon return to ParkDIA. That’s it.

The EPA-rated range of these vehicles varies from model to model, but usually about 300 – 325 miles. In the real world, that’s probably a bit optimistic. Also, we follow Tesla’s recommendation to charge to 90%, not 100%. If you really need to charge to 100% during your trip, you can, but it’s not great for the battery in the long run. At 90%, EPA range is going be more like 260 – 290 miles. And in the real world, your range will depend on lots of factors, including elevation gain/loss, speed, wind, and air temperature.

If you drive from the airport to Breckenridge in the middle of winter, you will probably use over 200 miles of range (about 70% or so) even though the trip is only 104 miles. Conversely, driving back from Breck to the airport, you will probably use only 70 miles of range or so, even though the trip is actually 104 miles.

Also, the faster you go, the more range you use, just like you—walking takes less energy than sprinting. Going 75 mph uses much more energy than going 65 mph. Going uphill reduces range considerably—again, just like most humans—as does driving into a headwind. All of this is also true for traditional cars, but we tend not to notice because we can stop and get gas almost anywhere.

It depends. We know, that’s a very helpful answer. Tesla’s Superchargers usually cost between $5 and $20, but even that depends on which charger your using and at what time of day you’re charging. Other charging networks vary widely in cost, and we really cannot provide much guidance on this due to the variability.

Once upon a time, yes. Now, Tesla charges for Supercharging on all new Teslas. Some of our vehicles do have free Supercharging because of when we purchased them, but most do not. If you incur Supercharging costs during your trip, we will bill you after your trip ends.

Yes—about a million! (Did we mention we’re passionate about EVs?) We are happy to answer your questions as they arise, but for now, we will point you to Tesla’s YouTube page, which has lots of tips and tricks.

You have several options, though we recommend Electrify America, ChargePoint, and EVgo for fast charging. For the Nissan Leaf, use a CHAdeMO connector at fast charging stations. For every other non-Tesla make and model, use a CCS connector at fast charging stations.

Fast charging is generally considered anything above 50 kW. Broadly speaking, you can expect fast charging to take about 15-45 minutes, depending on a variety of factors.

The cost of fast charging varies from station to station but will often cost somewhere around $10-$30. Some charging networks may require you to sign up for a membership, but most will let you pay with a credit card at the station.

Beyond fast charging (sometimes called “DCFC”), you have Level 2 charging. Level 2 chargers can be found all over the place — parking garages, shopping malls, and so on. These chargers are designed for overnight charging, as they usually take between 5-12 hours to charge fully.

PlugShare and ChargeWay are both helpful apps for finding charging stations. We are also happy to help you plan your charging stops for your trip to Colorado.