LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – The rental car company Hertz recently chosen to sell off one third of its Electric Vehicle fleet, composed mostly of Teslas, and opted to buy more gas powered vehicles. 

Why the change?

In October, Hertz CEO Stephen Scherr acknowledged in an earnings call that high repair costs for EVs led the company to convert more of the non-traditional cars into the leisure segment of the company; however, the company is still losing on the investment. 

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“With hindsight, this left leisure over fleeted with EVs,” Scherr said in an earnings call this week. “As a result, RPD [revenue per day] for our electric vehicles in leisure dropped, which contributed to the lower RPD performance for the company in the quarter.”

Potential benefits to buying used EVs.

Interested buyers could find themselves a used Tesla for roughly half the full price of some models such as the Model 3, according to Inside EVs. 

“After the IRA’s used car $4,000 tax credit, it’s very possible to get an example into the $15,000 to $16,000 range, making them essentially half-off the price of a new Model 3,” according to Inside Evs. “Many of the cars are also part of Hertz’s rent-to-buy program, where a potential buyer can rent their example for three days before deciding. If they choose to purchase, that rental fee is waived.”

Despite the company’s move towards lessening its EVs in the fleet, it continues to advertise for the purported benefits of EVs over gas powered vehicles. 

“Obviously you know the impacts of combustion engines on the environment and if you’re hoping to play your part for a cleaner and greener future, an EV is a great way to go,” Hertz said in a statement. “Of course the price of gas, which is always changing and is regularly at risk of being too high, is another reason to switch to an EV.” 

Hertz also highlighted that the increase in charging ports in America would help make the transition easier. 

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“These days, more public charging stations for EVs from brands like Nissan and Chevy make the transition all the easier, while there are some financial incentives through tax breaks to choosing a qualified green vehicle,” the company said. 

Barriers to EV dependability.

Yet, the number of charging stations still appears negligible when winter weather is considered. In Illinois, the winter temperatures below freezing have proven to be a chilly reminder that EV technology still struggles to hold its own in colder temperatures.  Reports from Chicago indicate that many EV drivers struggled to charge, and some had to be towed. 

Michigan’s carbon future.

Michigan continues to be a leader in pushing EV ownership across the state, including the phasing out of gas powered vehicles operated by state employees, and has outpaced California in its race to have a carbon neutral energy goal by signing into law that would mandate energy from clean sources by 2040.