Everybody Hertz Sometimes: CODA Lifts Mood With Rental Contract

By Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield

Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield

Contributing Writer BIO

Nikki Gordon-Bloomfield is a self-confessed petrol head. She grew up in a carless family but was able at a very early age to name cars passing her on... More

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2011 Coda Sedan, final production version

2011 Coda Sedan, final production version

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You have to feel a little sorry for CODA automotive. A few months ago the Santa Monica firm was striding towards a December launch of its 2011 Sedan.  

Then as a prequel to announcing its first all-electric car would be delayed by nearly 9 months its Senior VP of Sales and Marketing left, closely followed by its CEO. 

But it looks like the period of grief is over for the firm as it announced today that it has entered into a partnership with Hertz to provide electric cars for select rental markets in southern California. 

The press release announcing the partnership does not go into the specifics of when the rental firm will start to receive cars, nor does it detail how many of the all-electric sedans Hertz plans to purchase from CODA. 

In an announcement made last month, Enterprise rental disclosed that it would be buying 100 of the 2011 CODA Sedans to place into strategic rental markets alongside a further 500 all electric 2011 Nissan Leafs. 

Hertz eventually aims to offer hundreds of Nissan Leafs, Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrids, Ford Focus Electric and Coda Sedans to customers in New York City, San Francisco, Washing DC and London. 

Hertz is keen to stake its place as the leading electric vehicle rental firm. As well as working to bring a selection of electric cars to its customers, Hertz is working with companies like NRG energy to provide charging infrastructure in key markets in the U.S. 

As we’ve said before, renting an EV while away from home on business or vacation is a cost-effective way to get aquatinted with an electric car without the hassles associated with dealer-test drives. 

Joining a rental fleet as large as Hertz is a major publicity score for CODA, whose reputation has taken a major beating over the past few months. 

Is this the end of the bad luck for CODA, or will its rental customers be waiting as long as its retail customers? 

Only time will tell.