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The reason isn’t generosity—it’s desperation. Budget’s mystery car program is designed to hide the type of vehicle until pickup. While presented as a fun surprise, it’s actually a clever way to offload EVs that are hemorrhaging money.
The Mystery Car Trap Customers Don’t Know About
Budget guarantees only that a mystery car will seat four passengers and hold a couple of bags. Beyond that, it’s a gamble—and most renters end up disappointed.
Slicer hit the jackpot with a Genesis, but many others haven’t been so lucky. Commenters on her video shared tales of frustration, including one traveler who ended up with a 15-passenger van for a solo trip. Another got stuck with a Ram 2500 pickup in New York City, impossible to park.
“I always do the mystery car, and they ALWAYS give me the biggest pickup truck they have. In NYC. I’m punching the air every single time,” one woman complained.
The pattern is clear: rental companies are offloading vehicles that are clogging lots—and right now, that means electric vehicles.
Hertz Burned $400 Million on Biden’s EV Fantasy
Budget isn’t the first company to suffer under the EV hype. Hertz announced in 2021 that it would buy 100,000 Teslas, celebrating the Biden administration’s goal of 50% electric sales by 2030. Two years later, Hertz had sold just 30,000 vehicles at staggering losses totaling nearly $400 million. The CEO overseeing the fiasco resigned in March 2024.
Customers hated the EVs for reasons industry insiders should have predicted. Charging stations were scarce at airports, inexperienced renters crashed EVs at four times the rate of gas cars, and repairs cost 56% more than conventional vehicles. Parts shortages left cars sitting idle for months.
“They couldn’t get parts, even simple things like an outside mirror,” said Alex Rojas, business agent for Teamsters Local 222 in Salt Lake City. “A single Autopilot radar assembly cost $1,500 to replace and another $3,000 just to calibrate.”
When Elon Musk slashed Tesla prices by 20%, Hertz’s entire fleet dropped in value almost overnight. They had overpaid for vehicles they couldn’t sell, couldn’t maintain, and customers didn’t want.
Budget Repeats Hertz’s Mistake
Instead of learning from Hertz, Budget made the same errors. EVs now fill rental lots, and the mystery car program is essentially damage control disguised as “fun.” Occasionally, travelers score a jackpot—a Genesis, Range Rover, or Jaguar for under $35 per day—but these wins are rare.
“I booked a mystery car for $19,” one commenter said. “Ended up with a Range Rover Sport.”
Most renters aren’t so fortunate. EVs in rental fleets only see utilization rates of 60-70% compared to 80-90% for gas vehicles. Many return cars with under 25% charge, and travelers treat them like disposable commodities.
The lesson is simple: electric vehicles do not meet the needs of most Americans, especially those who rely on dependable transportation. Rental companies learned a costly lesson chasing Biden’s green agenda, and now they’re practically begging travelers to take luxury cars for $25 just to clear their lots.
