Tesla Model S Now Available To Rent At Thrifty – But Only In Canberra…

Thrifty rental cars has added a Tesla Model S to its fleet at Canberra Airport, with the luxury electric vehicle now available to rent in Australia through a mainstream rental firm for the first time.

The rental company may have been expected to choose Sydney or Melbourne as its first destination for a Rent-A-Tesla, but parent company - the NRMA - has good reason for siding with the Nation’s Capital. 

The Australian Capital Territory Government, now virtually assured of a fifth consecutive term (albeit as a minority government in a forced coalition with the Greens), has previously declared its intentions to earn more revenue through higher rates - rather than stamp duty which has proven to be a cash cow of eye-watering proportions in other states. 

To that end, the ACT is the only state or territory in Australia to afford buyers anything close to a ‘rebate’ for EVs purchases. 

It’s a small gesture in reality, but with no stamp duty on EVs registered for the first time in the Capital the Model S and Model X are cheaper in Canberra than anywhere else in Australia. 

Annual registration fees still apply, but a very modest discount on these fees is a further offering from the ACT government to drivers of ‘green’ cars (including those running on LPG).

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