In 2021, Hertz made an enormous splash when it introduced plans to purchase 100,000 Teslas and enormously increase its fleet of EVs. That deal, which got here simply half a 12 months after a $4.2 billion restructuring saved the corporate from chapter, moved the model’s inventory value up 40 p.c over two weeks. Two and a half years later, the model is promoting off lots of these EVs at perilously low costs and the inventory is buying and selling at simply 20 p.c of its 2021 excessive. That’s the form of consequence that means an enormous gamble didn’t repay, and consequently, CEO Stephen Scherr is stepping down from his function.The century-old rental automotive large will proceed below a brand new CEO, former Cruise government Gil West. Notably, which means West is coming from one other high-profile automotive funding that has not paid vital dividends. Cruise dropped its personal CEO final November after its California-based driverless automotive program was halted and 950 of its driverless vehicles had been recalled. He now steps right into a Hertz that has to determine easy methods to steadiness current demand for gas-powered rental vehicles with plans for a future the place electrical automobiles will turn into an increasing number of vital.Hertz is the newest automotive large to really feel the sting of an early funding in EVs not going to plan instantly. For the rental automotive large, the most important points had been low demand from renters and excessive restore prices from suppliers. That led the corporate to announce plans to promote 20,000 of its fleet of EVs. That announcement is doubly painful as a result of the model invested so closely in Tesla stock when Tesla’s famously fickle costs had been close to their highest, then determined to promote at a time when Tesla has damage resale worth of its previous vehicles by closely decreasing the costs on its latest choices. New CEO Gil West might be chargeable for determining how Hertz can dig itself out of the opening it created and get again to a sustainable enterprise of renting vehicles.By way of Automotive Information.