Rental firm Hertz Global Holdings (HTZ.O) said on Thursday it would sell about 20,000 electric vehicles, including Teslas, from its U.S. fleet due to higher expenses related to collision and damage, and will opt for gas-powered vehicles.

Shares of the company, which also operates vehicles from Swedish EV maker Polestar among others, fell about 4%. Tesla’s (TSLA.O) stock was down about 3%.

Hertz also expects to book an about $245 million charge related to depreciation expenses from the proposed EV sale in the fourth quarter of 2023.

Hertz’s decision underscores the bumpy road EVs have hit as the growth rate on sales of those vehicles has slowed, causing carmakers like General Motors (GM.N) and Ford (F.N) to scale back production plans of those vehicles.

Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas in a note said the car rental firm’s move was a warning across the EV space and it was another sign that EV expectations need to be “reset downward across the market.”

“While consumers enjoy the driving experience and fuel savings (per mile) of an EV, there are other ‘hidden’ costs to EV ownership,” Jonas added.

  • Snot Flickerman@lemmy.blahaj.zoneEnglish
    187·
    11 months ago

    The main hidden cost is that regular ass people aren’t going to be able to afford one for another twenty years or more.

    I’m in my forties, and I’m still driving a car from 1999.

    I have never owned a new car, all my vehicles have been used, and I’ve bought them in cash, outright, no car payment.

    The prices will never come down on a used EV enough for me to justify the purchase, especially since I can find cars from 20 years ago that don’t have excess features that will cost me more money to repair. Like a bunch of rear-view cameras and sensors, often placed inside the bumper, make a small fender bender into a costly repair bill because it’s no longer just a bumper, it’s a bumper with all kinds of expensive shit inside of it.

    You can’t find an EV with roll-down windows, no extras, and just a radio. They don’t fucking make 'em. EV’s were just the first step of the auto industry fully embracing that all vehicles are luxury, and economy cars just don’t exist anymore.

    Add to all this that charging networks haven’t exactly rolled out nationwide and you’re left with feeling stuck with ICE cars longer than you’d like.

    I would have loved an EV a decade ago, but literally nobody is making an EV I can fucking afford before I croak.

    Long story short: As with everything, the blame will be put disproportionately on the poor while ignoring that buying an EV is something most poor people simply cannot afford.

      • Snot Flickerman@lemmy.blahaj.zoneEnglish
        105·
        11 months ago

        Ring me when I can buy it with $3k-5k in cash like I’ve been doing most of my damn life or I will continue to not give one fucking shit.

        $18k, what a fucking joke and a half, for a vehicle that’s way more costly to repair.

        • ironhydroxide@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
          9·
          11 months ago

          My fiat 500e is worth ~$5k.

          Simple car, minimal extra features when compared with new. And as of this year a decade old.

          I Love it, never had issues with it, and since I bought it 5 years ago has saved me it’s current value in not buying gas alone, not including oil changes, brakes, etc.

          I’m not saying ev is for everyone right now and I agree the current ev available new don’t seem to be likely to be good used cars. Just that this one seems to be one that doesn’t fit a lot of your complaints.

          • Snot Flickerman@lemmy.blahaj.zoneEnglish
            6·
            11 months ago

            This one is finally going to be available in the US in 2024, but I have a deep dread that import costs are going to make it not so cheap of a used vehicle in the US.

            Europe and China have blown the US out of the water on affordable EVs and I guess maybe I should make clear I’m speaking very, very Amerocentrically on this issue.

            There’s literally a number of affordable Chinese EVs that don’t have a bunch of extra features, but the cost of getting one to the US and making it street legal is basically more than a conventional EV.

            • ironhydroxide@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
              7·
              11 months ago

              I think you misunderstood me. I have the gen1 500e. Not the facelift model. Mine is a 2013 model year.

              They were sold in California and Washington almost exclusively.

              • Snot Flickerman@lemmy.blahaj.zoneEnglish
                6·
                11 months ago

                Wild, I was unaware of that. Looking at the Seattle craigslist, it looks like the Seattle area has a handful of used ones in that price range, 2015 models.

                • reddig33@lemmy.world
                  4·
                  11 months ago

                  The older 500e was a “compliance car” that only gets about 80 miles of range and doesn’t charge very quickly m. Fine for going to the grocery or maybe work if it’s nearby. That’s about it.

                  The 2024 model isn’t much better. Only about 120 miles of range and hella expensive for what it is. You’d be better off getting something else with fast charging and 200 miles or more of range.

                  • Snot Flickerman@lemmy.blahaj.zoneEnglish
                    2·
                    11 months ago

                    I mean that’s fair about the earlier model, 80 miles would be tight, even for a local commuter.

                    However, I really am a local commuter, it’s part of how I keep low miles on my vehicles post-purchase, and while 80 miles of range feels a little tight for a busy day. 120 miles, well… I think I’ve maxed out a daily trip of “getting shit done” at 100 miles, so in my particular use-case, 120 miles would leave me about a 20 mile buffer on my busiest of days.

                    So, for me at least, the newer model is actually relatively in-line with my needs, but still several years away from being affordable used, considering the cheapest 2015 model I see is $5000 (with more of them in the $7k-10k range), and its a 9 year old vehicle. I’ll still be pushing my sixties before I can really afford one, likely. Which is in line with my original point: most poor people will spend their lives still driving ICE vehicles.

      • AbidanYre@lemmy.worldEnglish
        51·
        11 months ago

        I’m seeing ~$33k for Model 3s. I thought that’s what they were supposed to be new. No way I’m paying that for a former rental.

        • TheIllustrativeMan@lemmy.world
          2·
          11 months ago

          Yeah, Hertz’s pricing on their EV sales seems to be at the absolute upper end of the market, which is crazy for rentals. I was hoping their 20,000 unit sell-off would drive down used prices, but if anything it’s going to cause them to go up.

    • Diplomjodler@lemmy.world
      61·
      11 months ago

      EVs are a lot cheaper to run so maybe you shouldn’t concentrate exclusively on the sticker price. Also, in the long term EVs will be cheaper to buy than gas cars too. Right now the limited availability of batteries puts limits on EV adoption. That will change in the next few years. Then EVs will be both cheaper to buy and to run than gas cars. The problem of increasing complexity and worse repairability applies to all modern vehicles, regardless of drive train.

      • Snot Flickerman@lemmy.blahaj.zoneEnglish
        59·
        11 months ago

        The problem of increasing complexity and worse repairability applies to all modern vehicles, regardless of drive train.

        EV’s were just the first step of the auto industry fully embracing that all vehicles are luxury, and economy cars just don’t exist anymore.

        Golly gee whillickers, it looks like I’m already aware of that.

        Also, in the long term EVs will be cheaper to buy than gas cars too.

        Once again, not before I fucking die. I’ve been waiting for one most of my adult life.

        Right now the limited availability of batteries puts limits on EV adoption. That will change in the next few years.

        How, by couping a country with a lot of lithium like Bolivia?