GM, Nissan Plug-In Deals Power Battery Car Sales Jump

General Motors Co. (GM) and Nissan Motor Co. (7201), the biggest sellers of rechargeable cars, posted record U.S. plug-in sales in August as their low-cost leases pushed battery-vehicle deliveries this year past 2012’s tally.
GM delivered 3,351 Chevrolet Volt plug-in sedans last month, up 18% from a year earlier, and Nissan’s all-electric Leaf hatchback sales more than tripled to 2,420, the companies said Sept. 4. U.S. plug-in hybrid and battery car sales totaled 57,976 in 2013’s first eight months, more than the 51,938 for all of last year, data compiled by Bloomberg and Autodata Corp. show.
Initially sluggish sales of rechargeable cars are accelerating on cheap leases and price reductions. GM, Nissan and Honda Motor Co. were already touting leases on plug-ins of $199 to $299 a month when Toyota Motor Corp. in August added a $299 a month deal for its slow-selling RAV4 EV, powered by aTesla Motors Inc. (TSLA) powertrain. It also set a sales record last month.
“It just becomes a matter of how much money you’re going to throw at it,” said Kevin Tynan, an analyst for Bloomberg Industries. “There’s no great change in the product or the market. But this is how you get people into the showroom to look at it.”
Through August, the Volt from Detroit-based GM leads the Leaf produced by Yokohama, Japan-based Nissan, 14,994 to 14,123.

Sales Increase

U.S. sales of electric-drive cars and light trucks --ranging from hybrids to plug-in hybrids to battery-only cars --are up 28% this year through August to at least 399,070, based on Bloomberg and Autodata figures. Toyota City, Japan-based Toyota, led by the Prius, dominates the segment with 248,134 such sales this year.
Prices of such vehicles range from $30,000 to more than $100,000 for Tesla’s premium Model S sedan before U.S. and state tax credits and government discounts.
Prius, the world’s best-selling hybrid, had a 30 percent increase last month to 27,358 units, the company said. Sales of the line, including the main hatchback version, v wagon, c subcompact and Prius Plug-in, totaled 170,866 through August. Toyota has said it plans to sell a record 250,000 this year.
“That’s more than last year’s Acura and Volvo sales combined,” Bob Carter, Toyota’s U.S. senior vice president, told reporters yesterday at an Automotive Press Association event in Detroit. “While hybrids makeup just under 4% of the auto market now, we believe the segment can and must grow.”
Ford Motor Co. (F)’s electric-drive auto sales in August almost quadrupled, rising to 8,292 from 2,137 a year ago, according to company figures. So far this year, sales of hybrids, plug-in hybrids and EVs for Dearborn, Michigan-based Ford are up 375 percent to 61,306 units, the segment’s biggest gain.
Tesla delivered 1,950 Model S electric sedans last month and 12,351 this year through August, according to estimates by Autodata that the Palo Alto, California-based carmaker doesn’t confirm.

Source : Bloomberg, by Alan Ohnsman, September 5, 2013

Prius Plug-in Hybrid Sales More-Than Double In August to 1,791 Sold

As of yet Toyota’s Prius Plug-in Hybrid is available in 14 key states, but that did not stop it in August from setting its second-best sales month of 1,791 units sold – a level to which the 50-state Nissan Leaf and Chevy Volt are more accustomed.

This volume was a more-than-doubling from July’s 817 units sold, and significant in that the car has not broken past the high-900 unit mark all calendar year.
Last month’s 1,791 sold was better than its previous second-best month of November 2012 with 1,766 sold, and made for a new second-best next to October 2012 sales which consisted of 1,889 sold.
For what it’s worth, the PHV’s August 2013 sales also top last month’s Volt sales of 1,788 units, although this month the Volt smashed its record with 3,351. They also come close to the Leaf’s 1,864 Leafs sold in July, although again, Leaf outdid itself in August as well, with a new record of 2,420.

What this really means is uncertain. Frankly, August was a good month to be a car seller in America, and saw a number of records tumble in alternative and conventional segments.
And for now the Toyota is hunkered down in states that follow California’s Zero Emissions Vehicles rules, as well as a few neighboring states chosen for logistical convenience, according to Toyota’s Bob Carter, Senior Vice President, Automotive Operations, Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc.
These states are: California, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, Maine, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, and Virginia.
The car may be ordered in any U.S. state however, Carter said, but it would need to be traded from a stocking dealer in one of the core states at customer request.
In a February 2012 Toyota press release, the company stated plans were for a 50-state rollout, but we heard no whisper of those plans during our talk with Carter and other Toyota executives at a Toyota media event last week.

Toyota is otherwise bullish on the long-term forecast even if it’s not establishing high-volume levels just of yet.
The company’s intent to focus on its core strengths of hybrids and ultimately plug-in hybrids and fuel cell cars is part of its vision to maximize volume (ASAP), and not spend excessive effort on what it sees as cars with limited market potential, such as pure EVs.

Source : HybridCars, by Jeff Cobb, September 5, 2013

Zipcar offers car sharing options for CCU students, staff

Whether it's to run an errand to the store or take a trip down to the beach, Zipcar is giving Coastal Carolina University students more flexibility to get around.

Zipcar is a car-sharing program new this year to the campus. Students, faculty and staff ages 18 and older can purchase a $25 membership online. They will be given a key-card, and from there, they can rent a car for as little as $7.50 and hour, up to four days at a time for $69 a day.
It's an option students say they are glad to have.

"I'm in the PGM program at Coastal and traveling around to a lot of golf courses takes up a lot of time," says freshman Ryan Howard.
With an electric car option, the University says the partnership with Zipcar compliments the school's sustainability program and cuts down on traffic.
"We want to be a walking campus, especially within our core," says Sandy Baldridge, the manager of Contractual & Business Services. "This helps by now requiring as many students to bring their vehicles to campus as well as our faculty and staff."

Zipcar has already partnered with hundreds of other Universities across the country. The two cars came in last Monday when school started, and while no one has rented them so far, CCU says membership requests are in already in high demand. You don't need to be a CCU student to rent a vehicle. Anyone with a Zipcar membership can take advantage of the program.

Source: WMBF, by Theo Hayes, August 27, 2103

Zipcar launches car-sharing service in Denver

Car-sharing service Zipcar is launching in Denver.
The announcement furthers a trend that has seen multiple car-sharing services launching in Denver in recent years.

"The city of Denver has long been a leader in sustainability, so we're thrilled to now bring our 'wheels when you want them' to the Mile High City," said Mark Norman, president of Zipcar.

According to Norman, more than 30 Zipcars can be reserved from a minute up to a year in advance, for as short as an hour or for multiple days.
Seven Zipcars will be parked in curbside spots in the downtown area. In addition, other Zipcars will be parked at centrally located private lots and garages throughout the city and Denver International Airport.
"We are very excited to welcome Zipcar to Denver," said Jose Cornejo, manager of Denver Public Works.

Among the cars available are the Ford Escape, Toyota Prius and Mazda 3 Hatchback.
Car sharing has recently been gaining momentum in Denver, as well as the nation. eGo CarShare came to Denver in 2009, about the same time as Evergreen-based Occasional Car. Car2Go came to the city in June.
With the launch of Zipcar on Thursday, the firm now provides service both in Denver and Fort Collins.

Source: The Denver Post, by Howard Pankratz, August 1, 2013

Car-sharing app Lyft may find hurdles in Minneapolis

Lyft, a car-sharing app that has spurred regulatory fights and taxi protests in cities across the country, could encounter similar obstacles in Minneapolis.
The San Francisco-based company connects willing drivers and would-be passengers via a free smartphone app. It isn’t operating in Minneapolis just yet but is already soliciting drivers on Facebook and other social media sites.
“Join the Lyft community and earn up to $20/hr while meeting great people around Minneapolis,” reads an online ad from the company, beside a photo of a car bearing one of Lyft’s signature pink mustaches.

Minneapolis’ head of business licensing, Grant Wilson, believes Lyft drivers would need licenses in order to operate in the city. He said Minneapolis has not been contacted by the company, however, nor has the city discovered Lyft operating.

Obtaining taxi licenses would run against Lyft’s business model, which relies on easily signing up people with a vehicle and time to drive. Lyft’s website says drivers must be 23 years old and pass through a phone screening, in-person meeting and background checks.

Lyft, which is now live in six U.S. cities, said it has not determined a launch date for Minneapolis.
“As we always do, we will review all city and state regulations prior to launch,” Lyft spokeswoman Erin Simpson said in a statement. She noted that California regulators have recently proposed rules to accommodate services such as Lyft, as long as they adhere to certain safety and liability requirements.
Minneapolis City Council Member Gary Schiff, the council’s authority on taxicab ordinances, said licensing taxis is important to ensure that drivers are not fugitives, that vehicles are inspected, and that consumers can lodge complaints.
That means licensing drivers and the company itself, regularly inspecting the vehicles and installing meters.
“It’s a little dumbfounding to me that this start-up company has this business model that leads them to get into fights with cities all across the country,” Schiff said.

“I don’t know what they’re thinking. It’s a very basic accepted piece of regulation for every city in the country to regulate driving services.”
St. Paul may be a different story. Licensing Inspector Tom Ferrara said licensing requirements depend on whether there is a meter in the vehicle, per city ordinance.
“If there was no taxi meter, we would not require them to have a license,” Ferrara said. St. Paul has not, however, been contacted by Lyft.
Rather than a meter, Lyft’s model relies on a suggested “donation” that appears on the passenger’s smartphone at the conclusion of the ride. The donation is “voluntary” and can be adjusted, according to the company’s website.

A similar app
Lyft isn’t the only smartphone car-sharing app expanding into the Twin Cities. Another popular national service, Uber, began operations in Minneapolis last year.
A key difference? Uber’s Minneapolis general manager, James Ondrey, said the app only partners with limousines and sport-utility vehicles that are licensed through the state Department of Transportation.
Still more apps have made it easier to hail a traditional taxi around town. TaxiMagic and a new app, iHail, use GPS to connect people with licensed taxis in the area without calling a dispatcher.

Source: StarTribune, by Eric Roper, August 5, 2013

RelayRides Launches Airport Parking And Car-Sharing Service

RelayRides is launching a new airport parking and car sharing service, after recently launching car sharing at airports.
The move brings it into direct competition with Y Combinator startup FlightCar, which also provides a peer-to-peer parking and car sharing service.
Moving into airports makes sense for RelayRides, because airports provide larger transactions since people rent cars longer than other transactions. For comparison, the $25 billion traditional car rental industry is made up of about half done at airports–which shows how big the market is.

With RelayRides’ airport rentals, the average rental length is 6.5 days and $300 per transaction. With regular car shares, people tend to just be on shorter day trips. RelayRides believes that the airport business–including its original car sharing at airports and its new parking service–will be the majority of its business within six to eight months.
Adding the airport service and emphasizing weekly over hourly or daily rentals has resulted in RelayRides expecting a 50% increase in revenue in July compared to June and its largest revenue month ever.
About a month ago RelayRides added the ability for car owners to list cars at airports nationwide. That made it possible for car owners to choose which airports they would show up in searches for. It also allowed travelers to search for cars at airports. Prior to that people had to put manually the airport in the description of the car but they were hard to find.. Now the airport listings has 2,000 cars in 180 airports.
But with that service, car owners still have to drive to the airport to give the car to travelers.
With the new service launching today–first only at San Francisco International–car owners don’t drive to the airport to hand off their cars. Instead car owners use RelayRides as a free substitute for long-term airport parking when they travel. The cars are then shared with travelers coming to that airport. In essence, RelayRides is getting into the parking business.
So Bay Area travelers can drive to Millbrae (the city next to the airport) to get free parking and drop off their cars at RelayRide’s parking lot next to the Westin and Loft hotels. They get a shuttle to the airport and save because they don’t have to pay for parking–compared to the typical $15 per day for long term parking. However, they don’t get paid for renting out their cars through RelayRides as they do in the traditional RelayRides car sharing. RelayRides also provides a exterior car wash and interior cleaning.
For car renters, the new service should provide cars that are 40% cheaper than traditional car rental service.
As for regulations in airports, which have been a problem for competitor FlightCar, RelayRides says it is compliant with SFO’s rules. However, the company hasn’t talked to SFO officials to be sure. First, SFO does not allow businesses to send their own car service from a lot to the airport. RelayRides gets around this by putting its passengers on hotel shuttle buses, which are already licensed to drive to the airport, said Aaron Platshon, head of strategic products at RelayRides.
Secondly, SFO doesn’t allow rental car services stationed off-airport to deliver customers directly to the airport. They have to go to a car rental center–which triggers a $20 charge per customer. But RelayRides believes that because it uses existing shuttles to the airport it is not required to pay that $20 charge.
Finally, SFO charges companies that primarily serve airport customers a “concession fee.” Different business such as restaurants, hotels and rental car companies pay different fees. The fee for off-airport car rental is 10% of revenue. “We will comply with that,” Platshon said.
A SFO spokesman said that RelayRides has contacted them but that the company has not been licensed to operate at the airport.
FlightCar was sued by San Francisco for operating at SFO without a license and not paying fees that they say are owed.
RelayRides’ airport service doesn’t fit neatly into categories of either a parking company or a rental car company. That’s because it provides car parking for people departing from the airport, but provides those cars through car sharing to travelers who arrive at the airport. “We are not a car rental company,” said Platshon. “It’s hard because they have regulations based on history and precedent and there’s no bucket you neatly fit into. We’re a car sharing marketplace augmented with a parking lot with this service.”
RelayRides, which recently acquired competitor Wheelz, plans to scale this parking/car-sharing service quickly to other airports. The company recently stopped operating in New York after the state said it was not in compliance with insurance laws.

Source: FORBES, by Tomio Geron, July 30, 2013

Hertz Drives to Be King of Anytime, Anyplace, Any Duration Rental Cars

In the near future, when you swing by the drugstore or home improvement center, renting a car could be as easy as picking up shampoo or a new ratchet set.

On Thursday, Hertz announced a broad expansion of its rental car services, with plans to roll out vehicles and technology making it possible to rent at any hour of the day, for any time period desired, in nearly five times as many neighborhood locations as the company currently operates. The “game changer,” as Hertz inevitably calls the plan, would mean an elimination of the usual need to pick up a rental car during normal business hours from a standard location like the airport. Within a few years, Hertz wants to have its cars in as many as 12,000 U.S. locations—including parking lots outside retailers like Walgreens and Lowe’s—that can be rented via computer or mobile device with a quick and easy reservation system. “The company estimates that by 2016, it will have ‘self-serve’ vehicles within minutes of the majority of the United States population,” a press release states.

A Bloomberg News story characterized Hertz’ move essentially as an attack on Enterprise, whose 5,500 U.S. locations are mainly in residential neighborhoods, as opposed to airports and other spots catering to travelers. A recent Polk study, summed up in Auto Rental News describes a significant portion of Enterprise customers as locals who “rent from neighborhood locations because their cars are in for body work or mechanical repairs.”

As you might guess, Enterprise renters are far more likely than customers of other rental agencies to buy a new car after renting—55% more likely, to be precise. “This research confirms that, for many consumers, renting a car is truly an extended test drive,” said Mark Pauze, senior product marketing manager for Polk. And for now at least, Enterprise dominates this extended test drive scene.
By dramatically spreading out into neighborhoods and offering convenient 24/7 rentals, Hertz is obviously demonstrating it wants in on this local market. The expansion isn’t meant just to step up the competition with Enterprise, however, but also with Hertz’s traditional rival, Avis—or rather, the car-sharing company Avis-Budget purchased in January, Zipcar.

Zipcar is the world’s largest car-sharing service, offering rentals for as short as one hour in more than 20 cities and dozens of college towns. The service also recently began opening up airport locations, long considered the domain of Hertz, Budget, Thrifty, and other traditional rental outfits.
With Hertz’s new plan, its cars will be spread out in many of the same neighborhoods as Zipcar, and Hertz’s vehicles will be available for rent 24/7, on an hourly, daily, weekly, or monthly self-serve basis, just like Zipcar. The Hertz press release points out that its services have “no membership fees,” which sure seems like a swipe at Zipcar, which generally charges $60 per year, plus a $25 application fee. Hertz also highlights the fact that it offers one-way rentals (pick up in one spot, drop off in another), which Zipcar doesn’t allow.

For that matter, Hertz’s expansion could also be seen as an attempt to encroach on the business of peer-to-peer rental services like RelayRides. RelayRides was originally envisioned as way people could affordably rent cars for brief periods from their neighbors—when in need of a car to run errands, for instance. Hertz’s hourly rental service competes directly with that, though, presumably, RelayRides rates will be cheaper.
While RelayRides has encountered some legal complications like many other “sharing economy” businesses, it has also enjoyed great success, partly because owners and renters have expanded far beyond the company’s original vision—with long-term rentals and airport rentals, in addition to the more typical neighborhood car hires. With Hertz’s reinvention, it’ll theoretically be able to compete on all of these fronts as well.

Source: TIME, by Brad Tuttle, July 1, 2013