Hybrid Cars Now Available to Rent

In an apparent race to be seen as the greenest company in the industry, car rental companies Hertz and Avis are adding thousands of fuel-efficient hybrid cars to their fleets this month.

Hertz and Avis are both adding 1,000 Toyota Prius gas-electric hybrids. Hertz’s automobiles will be available at 50 airport locations and in New York City. The company expects to have nearly 2,000 hybrids in its 410,000-vehicle North American and European fleet by the end of this year and 4,300 by the middle of next year, Executive Vice President Brian Kennedy says. The Avis hybrids will primarily be available in California, with some in the Washington, D.C., area, Seattle and Portland, Ore., spokesman John Barrows says. Both companies say they'll guarantee hybrid reservations.

The moves follow a public relations initiative last week by Enterprise Rent-A-Car, highlighting what the company called its "unparalleled fleet of fuel-efficient vehicles," which includes 3,000 gas-electric hybrids. Enterprise says it has more fuel-efficient cars than any other rental company.
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