Via Reader Mike L (thankee, squire), comes this little snippet that may just be the signal of something or other:
Hertz, which has made a big push into electric vehicles in recent years, has decided it’s time to cut back. The company will sell off a third of its electric fleet, totaling roughly 20,000 vehicles, and use the money they bring to purchase more gasoline powered vehicles.
Electric vehicles have been hurting Hertz’s financials, executives have said, because, despite costing less to maintain, they have higher damage-repair costs and, also, higher depreciation.
“[C]ollision and damage repairs on an EV can often run about twice that associated with a comparable combustion engine vehicle,” Hertz CEO Stephen Scherr said in a recent analyst call.
And EV price declines in the new car market have pushed down the resale value of Hertz’s used EV rental cars.
I lost count how many whammies are contained in the above, but it’s making parts of me tingle, and in a good way. Okay, let me count the ways:
Higher damage-repair costs, higher depreciation and lower resale value.
Any one of those Bad Things would make me (as Hertz) want to cut back on the Duracells. All together? Short-Circuit City.
Ol’ Elon’s not gonna be happy, because if Hertz sneezes, the entire rental business gets diarrhea.
And common sense pokes its head above the parapet.
I have about 20 to 25 years until I retire. Hopefully 20 if I am able to save well.
Two things I have decided
1 – In the rest of my working life, I do not want an electric vehicle. I don’t want to park a hazardous battery next to my house, I don’t want to install a charger and I don’t want to drive something that runs on giant rechargeable dildo batteries.
2 – This electric bullshit is one more step to taking away vehicles which are now able to last 10 to 15 years if taken care of, and transition people to throw away cars that every 5 years or maybe less get tossed away or traded for a new electric car.
Electric wheels are for kids, they are in the toy dept.
Adults drive gas powered vehicles.
And for those who say gas is obsolete and claim it pollutes, how are batteries made? How are the materials mined?
Drill baby drill. Drill drill drill. Get that has and fill up my vehicle and I want to keep running my vehicle on dead dinosaurs.
Preach it brother!!!! you’re absolutely right!!
The electric carts belong on a golf course, not our roads. A golf course of course being an absolute waste of some perfectly good rifle ranges, pistol ranges and sporting clay fields.
JQ
Hertz Stock (HTZ) Is off some 65% for the year from $20 to $ 8.34 . Down from a peak of $35 in 2021. After they emerged from a previous bankruptcy. ( COVID induced combined with a sharp drop in corporate and leisure travel ) That kind of performance generally has the board looking for a new CEO. ( along with his senior staff ).
I also expect that their customer base of repeat renters has tired of renting a novelty Car. Just how do you return your rental electric with a “Full Tank” and not incure the penalty?