Hertz Dumping Tens Of Thousands Of Electric Vehicles, Replacing Them With Gas Vehicles

 Hertz, one of the largest rental car companies in the US, is removing thousands of electric vehicles from its fleet, citing low demand and high repair costs.

"The dramatic shift, after Hertz announced plans to buy 100,000 Tesla Inc. vehicles in 2021, underscores declining demand for all-electric cars in the U.S.," Bloomberg News reports. “EV sales growth slowed sharply through 2023, increasing by only 1.3% in the final quarter as consumers were put off by higher costs and interest rates.”

U.S. consumers have serious concerns about the electric vehicle market, ranging from the cost of vehicles and a severe shortage of charging stations across the U.S. to the potential for electric vehicles to suffer dramatic losses in their driving range during extremely cold or hot weather conditions. It is falling.

"The increased costs associated with EVs are here to stay," said Hertz Chief Executive Officer Stephan Scherr. "Efforts to deal with it proved more challenging."

The company hopes its decision to sell more than 20,000 electric vehicles will better balance “the supply versus expected demand for EVs,” it said in a regulatory filing.

Morgan Stanley analysts told Reuters that Hertz's move should be a warning to the entire auto industry about the reality of the electric vehicle market, that they are not that popular and expectations for their growth need to be significantly lowered.

The news comes after nearly 4,000 auto dealers across the US wrote a letter to President Joe Biden late last year that their effort to make two out of every three new cars sold electric by 2032 was too unrealistic. Was.

While there were good options for those looking to buy electric vehicles, “However, the reality is that electric vehicle demand today is not keeping pace with the large influx of BEVs [battery electric vehicles] coming to our dealerships due to current regulations. BEVs are piling up on our lot.

The dealership said they have seen a huge shift in demand for electric vehicles in the last year alone and that despite "deep price cuts, manufacturer incentives and generous government incentives", they are reaching sales faster than they are able to. It is said in the letter.

“Mr. President, no government agency, no think tank and no polling firm knows more about the automobile customer than we do,” it continued. “Some customers are in the market for electric vehicles, and we have the power to sell them. But most customers aren't ready to make the change.