
Rental giant Hertz on Thursday said it will sell off about 20,000 electric vehicles from its fleet and buy more gas-powered cars – a stunning reversal after tapping NFL legend Tom Brady to tout its transition to EVs.
The company said the high costs to repair electric vehicles and a lack of demand among renters led to its decision to abandon those plans.
Brady starred in a series of buzzy Hertz commercials in 2021, with Hertz vowing it would order 100,000 Tesla vehicles by the end of 2022 — before Thursday’s sudden U-turn.
“The company expects this action to better balance supply against expected demand of EVs,” Hertz said in a regulatory filing announcing the move.