Hertz to offer Lotus Evora in Europe


Two-door, four-door, sedan or compact not your idea of an exciting selection of rental cars? How about a $75,000 Lotus Evora? Hertz has introduced the Lotus Evora to key European rental markets, following a successful launch of the coupe in Italy in 2010.

“We are very proud to offer the Lotus Evora for exclusive hire in Europe following its rental success in Italy, thanks to our extended partnership with Group Lotus” said Michel Taride, president of Hertz International reports breakingtravelnews.com.

The move marks an extension of Hertz’s partnership with Group Lotus and is the launch car of the new Adrenaline Range in the Hertz Fun Collection of Germany, Spain and the UK, and also joins as a special car in the Fun Collection in France.
Similar to the Hertz Adrenaline Collection in the United States which includes 60’s and 70’s muscle cars Chevy Camaro SS, Ford Mustang 5.0 GT Premium and Dodge Challenger R/T, the Adrenaline Range in Europe will showcase the most exciting new vehicles in Hertz’s fleet with high quality, enhanced performance, and beautifully designed vehicles, with the Lotus Evora as the hero car.

“The hugely popular Lotus Evora is the perfect ambassador for our new Adrenaline Range, combining style, elegance, agility and sportiness to make driving journeys a dream come true.”

The Lotus Evora will be available to hire from Hertz France’s Biarritz, Bordeaux, Marseilles, Nice and Paris Charles De Gaulle airports and Paris Porte Maillot, Germany’s Frankfurt Rhein-Main and Munich airports, Italy’s Rome Fiumicino and Milan Linate airports, and Spain’s Madrid and Barcelona airports.

“We are pleased to extend our agreement with Hertz; the exclusive collaboration provides the perfect opportunity to make our stunning world class sports car available to the luxury rental market,” said Group Lotus director of sales Guillaume Chabin.

Rates start from 250 euros per day, and confirmed reservations are guaranteed.

Flickr photo by exfordy

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Hertz running out of cars in NYC

When the airports shut down, short-haul fliers turn to the rental car kiosks. They’re willing to brave dangerously slick streets to get home, causing a one-way drain for the lots. The rush of bad weather that cut through New York on December 19 and 20, 2009 left parking spaces empty and led to more than a bit of frustration, as Hertz was unable to deliver on rental reservations.

According to an e-mailed statement in Bloomberg News, Richard Broome, a spokesman for the company, said, “We have been moving in cars to Manhattan as fast as possible, but we are playing catch up.” He continued, “The unusually severe storm created a temporary fleet shortage.”

When 10 inches of snow were dropped on New York City, 1,600 flights were canceled. Over the past two years, Hertz has cut its rental car fleet, and it has fallen victim to the travel slump that’s raged around the world. Both factors put pressure on the company’s ability to fulfill. This quarter, however, it began to increase its fleet by 18 percent, because of an increase in demand it had already noted.

Enter to win jetBlue’s Jet and Drive Giveaway

I love a good travel contest, especially one that requires little effort to enter. So I’m excited about the jetBlue and Hertz Jet & Drive Giveaway, which runs now through through January 31, 2010. To enter, all you need to do is surf on over to the website, complete your free registration and then enter your email address. Easy, peasy.

For that minimal effort, you could win some pretty cool prizes, depending on the number of entries for the day. Yes, that’s right – the prizes will vary according to how many people have entered for the day, and you can enter every single day of the contest. If 2,500 people or less enter on a given day, the winner gets a $100 Hertz rental card. With 2,500 or more entries, the card’s value goes up to $250. But if 5,000 people enter, the lucky winner gets a $500 jetBlue gift card!

There will also be up to five grand prizes given away, one each time the total number of contest entries reaches another 50,000 milestone. The grand prize includes airfare to one of five destinations, Hertz rental car, and accommodations at a designated Starwood or Marriott hotel for two people. Destinations include New York, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Orlando and Aruba.

Rental car shortages in Europe may spoil your summer plans

How typical – the poor economy has forced rental car firms in Europe to scale back their operations, and to delay purchasing new vehicles. This was all fine and dandy during the low season, when their business was hurting, but now summer is on the way, they are in trouble.

European car rental firms are warning summer tourists that they need to reserve their desired vehicle as soon as possible, as they anticipate many large location running out of rentals.

The situation is apparently so messed up, that some European roadside assistance firms have started to transport second hand vehicles to countries where they expect their customers to break down. Normally, those customers would be told to rent a vehicle, but the expected shortage is going to ruin that plan.

So, if you are heading to Europe this summer, reserve as soon as possible, and if you can, call the rental location the day before you arrive to double check they will be able to honor your reservation. The last thing you want is to show up at the airport with all your bags, and not have any way to get to your hotel.