Hertz CEO gambled it all on EVs, now he’s resigning in disgrace

American Thinker ^ | 03/19/24 | Olivia Murray

[ProtectOurFreedom]

“Did this CEO ever even think of the marketing implications of converting large swaths of his vehicles to electric today?”

You bet he did. He and the Marketing VP thought “We are going to get ahead of this EV craze and be big winners. The public will LOVE us. We will clobber the competition with EVs.”

They drank gallons of the EV Kool-Ade.

[Carriage Hill]

Yes it is. And they’re back to fully-sponsoring Team Jota’s Porsche 963 HyperCar, at well over $15m+ a season in the FIA’s WEC/ IMSA races for 2024. They also partially-sponsor an IndyCar in its 2024 season.

https://www.thedrive.com/news/why-hertz-is-getting-back-into-racing

[Sicon]

"On the positive side, those people who would like to try out an EV can probably pick one up from Hertz for half the cost at least, and maybe still qualify for the EV tax credit"

I wouldn't park one of those incendiary devices in my garage if they gave it to me for free.

[mewzilla]

If he gets a golden handshake and/or some high paying sinecure, he’ll be laughing all the way to the bank...

[Starboard]

Golden parachute. He will be fine.

*************

Exactly right. Its easy to deal with a little opprobrium when you have tens of millions to cheer you up.

[gibsonguy]

Herz was already on life support so they go all in and spend billions on EV’s. Such an obviously bad idea. No one renting a car wants the hassle dealing with charging sheesh. Now they are screwed twice because it’s easier to sell an 8 track player than a used EV

[OSHA]

I was a Hertz customer (business travel) for years and they had the best rewards program in the industry. My first post covid trip to the UK all they had at LHR was electric vehicles. No thanks.

[old school]

Common sense is a prized commodity nowadays!

[vpintheak]

Did a trip to the Nashville area and reserved a “mystery car” from Herz because it was the cheapest option. When I showed up for the car they told me it was an EV. Nope! I told them to get me something else. I don’t care care if it costs more; I’m not wasting vacation time stressing about charging stations and all that garbage.
I am not surprised this failed. Who couldn’t see that coming? This fired CEO I guess.

[Jeff Chandler]

I agree with you about renting EVs.

I did rent a hybrid last year and it was very nice.

[Ezekiel]

Hertz... reversed its bet on electric vehicle rentals...

Too late. Hertz doesn't deserve one more second of your time.

[Alberta's Child]

Good post. To be fair to the guy who made the worst business decision of the last ten years outside of Anheuser-Busch, the car rental industry is one that is almost completely “commoditized.” Your customers are always looking for the cheapest option for the size and comfort level they want, so there are very few options for a major player like Hertz to set itself apart from its competitors. This is one that might have actually worked if they had done it in small steps instead of one big step.

[GOPJ]

You’re right. It’s more power for corrupt white liberal ‘elties’...

[TalBlack]

This guy can offer no reasonable rational explanation for what he did except that he thought it was the way the government wanted him to go.

[norwaypinesavage]

"I didn’t go to Harvard, Yale or one of those big Ivy League schools where every graduate has all the right answers"

I appreciate the sarcasm, but you aren't keeping up with the times. Universities like those are no longer graduating students based on merit, they're graduating based on melanin. The Harvard president couldn't even produce a high school term paper properly, much less a PhD thesis. Their graduates are worth less than their carbon equivalent in coal.

[Chode]

LOL 100,000??? maybe 1000cars to NYC, Boston, Miami and LA as a test market might have been in order...

[Dr.Deth]

With current DC, Hertz drops to 0.

[PGR88]

so there are very few options for a major player like Hertz to set itself apart from its competitors.

Exactly.

Americans' love of fantasy,fictional heroes and political slogans extends to the corporate suite. A CEO who instead focused on steady incremental improvements, basic cost controls, and operational efficiency (necessary for any commodity business) would be declared "to have no vision."

[HamiltonJay]

Disgrace, and I am sure a golden parachute worth more than most people will earn in their entire lives of working

[boop]

Hybrids are fine. I had a rental that was a hybrid.

An all EV rental would be a nightmare.

Unless hotels had a large number of charging stations for their guests, I have no idea how it would work.