Hertz - What is Hertz policy on using E85??

I was just wondering if I have an E85 approved car is it ok to return (or in my case most of the time exchange) the car with E85 fuel since in my Area E85 is down to $2.79 a gallon. I would not want to be the next renter of the car because of the fuel economy it would get.

Just wondering if Hertz had a policy on this or not?

I was just wondering if I have an E85 approved car is it ok to return (or in my case most of the time exchange) the car with E85 fuel since in my Area E85 is down to $2.79 a gallon. I would not want to be the next renter of the car because of the fuel economy it would get.

Just wondering if Hertz had a policy on this or not?

I don't believe Hertz has a policy, but I believe it falls under the everyday policy of "don't be a dick".

As long as the vehicle can run on E85, I see zero issues with using it as a your filing option.

EDIT: This should go without saying, but if you rent a performance oriented vehicle and it requires (note I say requires) premium fuel, please, to your fellow renters, fill with premium. I recently rented a Infiniti (I also own one) and it required premium fuel and someone filled it with regular before me. After about 100 miles of driving it, it started to stumble a bit under acceleration and the check engine light came on. I knew what was wrong, stopped off, filled the tank with premium (94) and it started acting much better. At a half tank, I again filled it up and never had another issue for the rest of the rental.

I probably wouldn't put 15 gallons in but nothing wrong with topping off.

As long as the car is rated to take that fuel, I don't see the issue; I have never seen anything in the contracts which specify what grade of fuel needs to be used; I always refill cars here with E10 since the cars are rated to take it

Dave

As long as the car is rated to take that fuel, I don't see the issue; I have never seen anything in the contracts which specify what grade of fuel needs to be used; I always refill cars here with E10 since the cars are rated to take it

Dave

Of course, the contract won't contemplate this sort of thing. Like lowfareair said above though, refilling with ethanol is not the most considerate thing you can do. If you want to use ethanol during your own rental, that's fine, but it's not really fair to condemn the next renter to worse fuel economy and more fuel usage just so you can save a couple bucks over filling with regular unleaded.

I was just wondering if I have an E85 approved car is it ok to return (or in my case most of the time exchange) the car with E85 fuel since in my Area E85 is down to $2.79 a gallon. I would not want to be the next renter of the car because of the fuel economy it would get.

Just wondering if Hertz had a policy on this or not?

I would bet that most of the people who return cars return them with the least expensive fuel they can find.

I would bet that most of the people who return cars return them with the least expensive fuel they can find.

Actually if I'm traveling on business I try to find a good fuel and top it up as much as possible. It really sucks to drive 1 mile and have the gauge go to 7/8. Been there / done that.

If I'm traveling on a personal rental, I try to find a good fuel at a reasonable price and top it up within reason like I do with my personal car.

Usually. There was one case where I was driving LGA - northern NJ - LGA the same day. (ORD-LGA was hundreds of $ cheaper than ORD-EWR.) Time was a little tight after the meeting. Before the meeting in NJ, I put about every drop of gasoline I could into the car. I then drove back to LGA without refilling. I suspect it still had more gas than in it than when I got it to begin with.

I don't believe Hertz has a policy, but I believe it falls under the everyday policy of "don't be a dick".

Putting the cheapest approved fuel in a car is being a dick?

Wow. I'm a dick.

BTW, if it's cheaper, doesn't that offset the lower MPG?

As long as the car is rated to take that fuel, I don't see the issue; I have never seen anything in the contracts which specify what grade of fuel needs to be used; I always refill cars here with E10 since the cars are rated to take it.

Putting the cheapest approved fuel in a car is being a dick? Wow. I'm a dick. BTW, if it's cheaper, doesn't that offset the lower MPG?

No. According to the government's website:


MPG. FFVs operating on E85 usually experience a 25–30% drop in miles per gallon due to ethanol’s lower energy content.

So instead of getting, for example 30 MPG, a full tank of E85 would yield only about 22 MPG. So 15 gallons will allow you to travel only 330 miles instead of 450 miles, requiring an additional 5.45 gallons of fuel. Just to break even, you would have to pay $1.00 less per gallon for E85 than regular gas. I have never seen a price difference that significant. So even if it is legal to do so, it would not be economical to do so if you had to fill the tank for your own travel. That being the case, it seems unethical to use E85 since you wouldn't use it in your own car.

No. According to the government's website:


MPG. FFVs operating on E85 usually experience a 25–30% drop in miles per gallon due to ethanol’s lower energy content.

So instead of getting, for example 30 MPG, a full tank of E85 would yield only about 22 MPG. So 15 gallons will allow you to travel only 330 miles instead of 450 miles, requiring an additional 5.45 gallons of fuel. Just to break even, you would have to pay $1.00 less per gallon for E85 than regular gas. So even if it is legal to do so, it would not be economical to do so if you had to fill the tank for your own travel. That being the case, it seems unethical to use E85 since you wouldn't use it in your own car.

But it is reasonable to assume that either Hertz or the person who had the car before you likely filled up with the cheapest available fuel, so YOU got 22mpg but the guy after you will get 30mpg with you paying extra for him.

That isn't very nice to the next guy.. but even worse would be to refill your rental that requires normal unleaded with E85. It will run like crap. I work in a shop, we work on cars for the rental company across the street, and have had several cars come in that needed the tank drained because of this.

That isn't very nice to the next guy.. but even worse would be to refill your rental that requires normal unleaded with E85. It will run like crap. I work in a shop, we work on cars for the rental company across the street, and have had several cars come in that needed the tank drained because of this.

Obviously the car should never be filled with unsuitable fuel.

I am betting some of the problem comes from drivers who come from places where the E85 isn't available simply thinking it is like the winter blend gasohol they sell in some places.

I would bet that most of the people who return cars return them with the least expensive fuel they can find.

Maybe in some parts of the country, but not in Washington, DC, at least when it concerns E85. I doubt most renters here have even heard of E85. We have just ONE gas station in the District of Columbia that even sells E85.