Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Chinese EVs Coming to Hertz NYC Rental Fleet

Chinese EVs Coming to Hertz NYC Rental Fleet Before long, New York City tourists may have a chance to rent electric cars made by Chinese automaker BYD. While the automaker’s plan to enter the U.S. market hasn’t always been clear, its journey will start with the e6 electric car entering Hertz’s rental fleet in New York City.

Chinese EVs Coming to Hertz NYC Rental Fleet

Chinese EVs Coming to Hertz NYC Rental Fleet

 Chinese EVs Coming to Hertz NYC Rental Fleet

Chinese EVs Coming to Hertz NYC Rental Fleet

Chinese EVs Coming to Hertz NYC Rental Fleet

The BYD e6 EV was on display at Hertz’s booth at the 2012 New York auto show, providing NYC residents a glimpse of what will be roaming their streets in the near future. The New York Times reports that the BYD e6 could enter Hertz’s NYC fleet by the end of this year, should it pass all the necessary certification.

“We feel the E6 is clearly ready for the American market,” Hertz senior vice president Rich Broome told the newspaper. “The performance, style, and size are all very good.”

Hertz currently offers the BYD e6 for rent in Shenzhen, China, where the company receives a number of attractive incentives from the government. In the U.S., the e6 should be cheaper than the $58,000 MSRP the car carries in China, where BYD hopes to have 1500 rental cars on the streets by the end of 2012. The e6 has a range of 150-190 miles per charge depending on driving conditions and the 60-kilowatt-hour battery pack will only need 30 minutes to fully recharge when connected to a D.C. fast-charging station.

BYD hopes to offer the e6 to American consumers once it feels the charging network has improved. The company has set up its North American headquarters in downtown L.A and provided a fleet of e6 EVs to the Los Angeles City Housing Authority in 2010.

Source: The New York Times, 2

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