Hertz will order up to 175,000 EVs from General Motors, including BrightDrop vehicles

Eco-conscious car renters can soon expect to see EVs from GM brands Buick, Chevrolet, Cadillac, GMC and even BrightDrop’s commercial transportation division at Hertz rental locations.

The car rental giant said Tuesday it plans to order up to 175,000 electric vehicles from General Motors over the next five years, with first deliveries. Chevy Bolt EVs and EUVs expected to debut in the first quarter of 2023. Given GM’s extensive lineup of upcoming electric vehicles, everything from small cars to SUVs to trucks to luxury cars will be available for rental through Hertz by 2027. Specifically, the new GM BrightDrop franchise will make its Zevo 600 available at Hertz.

GM’s order is the latest in a series of deals aimed at growing Hertz’s EV portfolio.

Hertz previously signed deals with Polestar and Tesla to order up to 65,000 and 100,000 EVs, respectively, in the service of its goal of having 25% of its fleet be electric by the end of 2024. The scale of this plan is greater and indicative of GM’s production plans.

Historically, automakers have not shown purchase agreements with daily lease fleets since cars, trucks and SUVs are typically sold at a discount. However, the market has treated other recent EV deals differently perhaps because they are considered a sign of growing electric vehicles. The Tesla-Hertz partnership, for example, was well received by investors.

GM shares are down 5.77% to $39. Hertz shares fell 2.76% to $17.98.

“Our work with Hertz is a major step forward in reducing emissions and EV adoption that will help create thousands of new EV customers for GM,” said GM chairman and CEO Mary Barra in a statement. “With the choice of vehicle, technology and driving range we bring, I am confident that each lease will further increase the purchase consideration of our products and promote the growth of our company.”

After the initial delivery of Chevy Bolts next year, GM’s deliveries to Hertz are expected to increase rapidly in line with GM’s production increase between 2023 and 2025, when GM’s Ultium Cells battery cell plants in Ohio, Tennessee and Michigan is expected to be opened. GM has said it plans to have an annual production capacity of 1 million EVs in North America by 2025.