Sustainable Car Hire by Hertz

Making the shift from petrol to electric can be daunting, but the switch to sustainable car hire is simpler than you might think.

Hertz are here to help explain all you need to know about charging an electric vehicle, including step-by-step instructions, where to charge, how long it takes to charge and how far a charge lasts. We’ll also cover the different charging station output levels, the average cost of charging an EV and how to monitor your charge status.

As Hertz analyses its rental data for Travel Management Companies (TMC) in Australia and New Zealand, a notable revelation emerges as around 75% of all rentals had the potential to be an electric vehicle (EV). This indicates that our fleet of Polestar 2 EVs, with an average range of 349km, consistently operated well below their maximum range. For instance, in the case of one-day rentals, the majority of customers didn’t surpass 100km, leaving the battery charge at a substantial 60 to 70% of its capacity, given the EV’s ample 349km range.

EV’s can also benefit from regenerative braking, commonly called one pedal driving. One pedal driving means you do not use the brake pedal. By deaccelerating the electric motor will reverse bringing you to a stop. This works like a generator and feeds energy back into the electric system to help replenish a little bit of range. It also does not stop you using the brake pedal in the case of emergency.

Understanding the km’s used, total range and amount of charge is something the Hertz Polestar 2 does for you. The central tablet uses Google Maps with voice control and once you add your destination the car will calculate route, time and amount of charge the car will use. It’s the ability to understand the basics of EV Driving like charge use and distance travelled which will eliminate your Range Anxiety.

Range anxiety refers to a driver’s fear that their vehicle will run out of battery power before they reach their destination. If you’re thinking about renting an EV for the first time, you might be wondering how long electric car batteries last, and how far an EV can go on one charge.

This concern is understandable – no one wants to be stranded with a flat battery.

Where to charge my EV?

With the Polestar 2, the central tablet features a charging icon. No matter where you are, pressing the icon will tell you where the next charging station location. If it is not on your direct route, the tablet will even tell you the amount of time for the side trip before rejoining your planned journey. However, if you are keen to pre plan your journey and want to research your charging stations, then Hertz have associations with Evie and Chargefox in Australia and ChargeNet in New Zealand.

Globally we have partners with BP Pulse, Shell Recharge and Tesla and this will continue to expand as infrastructure grows. One of the better apps in the marketplace is PlugShare which offers global charging station maps; zoom in on Australia or if you happen to be travelling to the US you can zoom into the State and know where every charging station is.

What if I don’t have time to charge?

Hertz provides a convenient recharging product for electric vehicles (EVs) in case you run out of time to recharge. The associated cost is competitive when compared to public charging options, and it varies based on the amount of charge needed. If you find yourself pressed for time, Hertz has you covered, so you can enjoy your journey without worrying about charging delays.

If you want to try and recharge the car yourself, it will take approximately 15 minutes to achieve a 50% charge with a 150kw/h DC Fast Charger.

So, we have explained some of the basics of the Polestar 2, range, charging infrastructure and costs associated with running an EV. At this stage, only 1% of TMC customers are booking EVs.

However over 40% are upgrading at the airport and we call this the “try before you buy” experience. To pave the way towards more sustainable car hire, we need our customers to understand how easy it is to operate an EV, lets call this step one of the hurdles.

Sustainability

While we have covered a lot of information on EV’s, you are probably wanting to take an EV to reduce your co2 emissions. We are here to support your “Clean and Green” policy and make the transition into a more sustainable future.

As a customer who has Hertz contracted rates, we provide Carbon Emission reporting to assist you with driving down your co2 emissions. Carbon Emission reporting is also essential in the New Zealand market due to the New Zealand Government Emission Trading Scheme.

When we compare a traditional petrol (ICE or Internal Combustion Engine) to an EV, the energy required to travel 100km is far more efficient with less wasted energy for an EV. 5% waste for an EV compared to 80% waste for an ICE vehicle.

Most importantly, the energy cost is 84% down and the emission reduction is down by 72%.

Sustainability can be gauged in diverse ways, spanning from emissions to ensuring the safety of human life. Most companies will have a Wellness Program and EVs support the health of employees. Not only are there no emissions, the interior sound is minimal, but technically an EV has many great safety features included. They can range from the Polestar 2 Satellite Navigation being available on your normal car dash display and voice control activated.

This means you simply glance at the Sat Nav in a forward direction rather than turn you head right or left and reduces your distraction.
Electric Motors also have advanced traction control features which switches between right to left or front to rear wheels and controls the cornering traction in unstable conditions such as wet weather or cambered roads. While it does not make an EV car infallible, it is certainly an improvement in safety.

These are just a few which makes our range of Polestar 2 EV’s sustainable for our customers. For a more sustainable car rental future, let Corporate Travel Management (CTM) and Hertz work together to bring you a program which suits your needs.

*All figures’ quotes are correct at time of publication and can vary from country.