Bad traffic, decent public transport, easy access to ridesharing services such as Uber, prohibitive rego costs and damage to the environment – there are so many reasons it makes sense not to own a car in a capital city.
But sometimes having your own set of wheels is necessary: when you’re moving house, going on a road trip or doing a big grocery shop, for example. A number of car-sharing services such as Car Next Door, Popcar and GoGet have been helping us rent cars short-term for a while now, but so far it’s been tough to find an eco-friendly option. Enter Evee.
Founded in 2015, Evee was Australia’s first 100 per cent electric car-sharing company. It struggled to get on its feet because of high insurance premiums for electric vehicles but having worked that out it’s now offering out Teslas. It’s the only car-sharing company in Australia that offers customers the Elon Musk-produced electric cars. It operates in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Canberra, Perth, Adelaide, Hobart, Cairns and Alice Springs. While the company is still growing, there are currently 60 cars available on its website.
Evee works similarly to Airbnb: car owners advertise their vehicles on the platform, and the dates they’re available, and would-be drivers search and select when they want to drive it. Cars can be picked up from the owner’s house, or airport delivery can be arranged for an extra fee. The service benefits both owners and renters: car owners can offset the high cost of their vehicle (base-price Teslas can cost more than $60,000), and drivers can use an eco-friendly car when they need them, without forking out to own one.
Like Airbnb, prices fluctuate and are set by the owner. Renting a Model X in the first week of September, for example, might cost you anywhere between $299 and $431 per day. Customers can also review their experiences and give star ratings. Features such as Bluetooth, all-wheel drive, heated seats and free charging are indicated, as well as how many people and how much luggage the car fits.
Available cars include the Tesla Model X (the one with the winged doors), Model S (which can drive further on one charge than any other electric car) and the Model 3 (considered the most affordable of the car maker’s vehicles). In addition to the Tesla range, Evee also has Audi, Hyundai and BMW electric vehicles listed.
This article first appeared on Broadsheet on August 21, 2019. It has since been updated.
