Rental car giant Hertz is committed to electrifying its fleet, having signed sizable purchase agreements with Tesla, General Motors and Polestar, among other companies.
Earlier this year, Hertz said it had 50,000 electric vehicles in its rental fleet---about 10% of the total number of vehicles it operates. And that's just the beginning, the company said. Hertz has the ambition of building one of the largest electric car rental fleets in the world, and GM EVs will play a major role in Hertz's electrification.
In September 2022, Hertz said it would order up to 175,000 electric vehicles from General Motors over the next five years, including from the Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, Cadillac and BrightDrop brands.
Hertz said it would purchase a wide range of vehicles, from compact and mid-size SUVs to pickups, luxury vehicles and delivery vans. GM has had problems ramping up Ultium EV production over the past year, which is why Hertz hasn't received any Ultium-based electric vehicles from the automaker yet.
That is about to change. Hertz said it will offer customers the Cadillac LYRIQ luxury SUV and the Chevrolet Silverado EV pickup as a part of its all-electric rental fleet in the near future. The announcement was made in a video featuring Hertz CEO Stephen Scherr and GM CEO Mary Barra in the Cadillac LYRIQ.
While Hertz did not provide an exact date as to when the LYRIQ and Silverado EV will be available to Hertz customers, the video does include some fine print which indicates the Silverado EV 4WT will enter Hertz's fleet in 2023-2024, followed by the Silverado EV RST later on.
There's no timeframe for the Cadillac LYRIQ either, but considering that the electric SUV is already in production, it is likely join Hertz's fleet starting this year.
The video has the two executives discuss the auto industry's transition to all-electric powertrains, with General Motors' head honcho noting "we're in the first turn of the first lap" when it comes to electric vehicles.
"There is so much more to come with EVs. I'm super excited about the opportunity for people to have their first EV experience with Hertz, especially in a GM vehicle," Barra said.
Abby Andrews