Hertz signs up Polestar to add another 65,000 EVs to its global car hire fleet

Rental car giant Hertz has further cemented its commitment to electric car hire with a new partnership with Polestar to buy up to 65,000 of its electric vehicles over five years.

Hertz announced the new partnership with the Swedish premium electric performance car maker on Monday, and said customers could expect to see Polestar EVs in its fleet in late 2022 in Australia, and a bit sooner in Europe.

Hertz said the partnership was part of the company’s October promise to offer customers one of the largest EV rental fleets in the world, including via rideshare drivers.

Hertz backed up its October promise with a landmark order for 100,000 electric vehicles from US giant, Tesla – a $US4 billion order that would include 350 Model 3’s for Australia, and which coincided with Tesla’s stock value tipping over the $US1 trillion mark for the first time.

Conversely, the announcement of Hertz’s deal with Polestar has rather unhappily collided with the news that the EV maker has sold out of the Polestar 2 in Australia, Europe and Korea, due to huge demand in those markets. Polestar assured The Driven on Tuesday, however, that the two events had no bearing on each other.

“Polestar is committed to accelerating the move to electric mobility with a fascinating and innovative product portfolio,” said Polestar CEO Thomas Ingenlath in comments on the Hertz deal this week.

“The partnership with a global pioneer like Hertz will bring the amazing experience of driving an electric car to a wider audience, satisfying a broad variety of our mutual customers’ short- and longer-term mobility requirements. For many of them it may be the first time they have driven an EV, and it will be a Polestar,” he said.

Hertz CEO Stephen Scherr said the partnership with Polestar further built on the company’s ambition to become a leading participant in the modern mobility ecosystem.

“By working with EV industry leaders like Polestar, we can help accelerate the adoption of electrification while providing renters, corporate customers and rideshare partners a premium EV product, exceptional experience and lower carbon footprint,” he said.