Polestar, Tesla electric car battle takes to the rental fleets

April 5, 2022April 30, 2022 Toby Hagon 2247 Views polestar

EV newcomer Polestar is taking the electric car fight to Tesla at the car rental checkout.

The Swedish-based startup that is part owned by Volvo – itself owned by Chinese car maker Geely – has struck a deal to supply 65,000 cars to rental car giant Hertz between 2022 and 2027.

It comes six months after Tesla inked a deal to supply 100,000 cars to Hertz.

While many of those cars will be the Polestar 2 that is already on sale, there are more models coming, including the Polestar 3 SUV.

Many of the 65,000 cars will be available for rent in Europe and North America, but Hertz will also start offering Polestar rentals in Australia from late 2022.

“Today’s partnership with Polestar further builds on our ambition to become a leading participant in the modern mobility ecosystem and doing so as an environmentally-forward company,” said Hertz CEO Stephen Scherr.

“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.”

Polestar 3 large SUV with camouflage — Hertz has committed to putting the Polestar 2 on its Australian rental fleet, but the soon to arrive Polestar 3 could be included in future

Rental car companies are increasingly adding electric vehicles to their fleet, no doubt because they realise they’re good for business.

Some private renters and businesses prefer to hire EVs for their performance and to trial the tech – and rental prices of around $300 per day for a Tesla suggest people are prepared to pay a premium. Some rental deals, including those offered by Sixt, include free charging.

It also helps that residual values of EVs have improved markedly over the past couple of years, led by Tesla. Some Teslas are currently selling for more than people paid for them due to long waiting lists and an increasing interest in EVs that appears to have accelerated as fuel prices touched record highs.

Car rental company Hertz has committed to buying 65,000 Polestar electric cars between 2022 and 2027

After five years and 80,000km valuations expert Redbook forecasts that a Polestar 2 will retain 51 percent of its initial purchase price, versus 50 percent for a Mercedes-Benz C200 and 45 percent for a BMW 320i (a Tesla Model 3 has forecast Redbook resale of 68 percent at the same time).