US Senator Charles Schumer from New York, says he will introduce a bill that will prevent rental cars affected by recalls from being offered to customers.

The rental car industry in the U.S. has already proposed a ‘two-tier’ system, whereby vehicles with more serious recalls would be taken out of service immediately, while those with less serious safety problems would remain in fleets until the problem could be addressed.

However, Schumer feels that the proposed system simply doesn’t go far enough. ”The latest proposal by car rental companies to create a vague double-standard that defines some recalled cars as safe and others as dangerous allows these companies to shirk their responsibility to consumers’ safety,” he said.

As it currently stands, all vehicle owners, including rental car agencies must decide for themselves whether to continue operating vehicles or have them taken off the road for repairs, based on information provided to them by both the manufacturer and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Schumer believes that by not pulling all recalled vehicles off the road until they’re fixed, the rental car agencies are “more interested in reaping profit than ensuring the safety of individuals or families driving their cars.”

[Source: MSNBC]

The Saturn Vue is back, but you won’t be able to buy one. That’s because the Chevrolet Captiva Sport, essentially a rebadged Vue, will only be available to fleet customers.

With either a 2.4L Ecotec 4-cylinder or a 3.0L direct injection V6, the Captiva will offer an adequate powertrain for all types of customers, but we would think that fleet buyers would choose the 4-cylinder in light of the way gas prices are going up with no end in sight.

Having already been homologated for U.S. sales, the Captiva Sport should offer Chevrolet a good way to keep up in the all-important fleet market without compromising resale values of products like the Equinox crossover or the larger Traverse.

Like a lot of people, you may not be willing to take the plunge and buy an electric car. But now, you can rent one from Hertz.

It was announced recently that Hertz Corp. and Smart USA are joining forces to bring the all-electric version of the Fortwo mini to Connect by Hertz car sharing and Hertz Rent A Car locations in New York, Washington, DC, and San Francisco.

Starting December 15, you’ll be able to rent the Smart Fortwo in New York City through Hertz’s car sharing program, followed shortly by San Francisco and Washington DC. More cities will be added later next year. The Hertz Global EV program will offer a variety of electric and plug-in hybrids, including the Chevy Volt and Mitsubishi i-MiEV, to car sharing and rental customers.

Hertz has plans to employ a fleet of 2011 Fortwo electric drive vehicles across the United States, hoping to target early adopters of electric drive technology before series production begins in 2012 and as the car goes on sale through Smart USA’s dealer network.

Looking to perhaps grow the Lotus name in the land of exotics, Lotus has just announced a deal with Hertz Italiana S.p.A. to offer the new coupe for rent in Italy.

“I am delighted that Lotus has renewed this agreement with Hertz and we’ve been given the opportunity to make our stunning world class sports car available to the luxury rental market. The iconic, lightweight mid-engined rear wheel drive configuration performs like no other and the 2+2 seated Lotus Evora is the perfect choice for those who desire exclusive and high performance motoring. Driving an Evora during a weekend will be an unforgetable experience for any sports car enthusiast,” said Lotus CEO Dany Bahar.

In the past several U.S. rental car agencies offered the Elise to rent (and we took full advantage). We’d like to see the Evora at our local Hertz too!

Read AutoGuide’s Review of the 2010 Lotus Evora by Clicking Here

Buying an electric car can be a tough decision to make, especially if you’ve never owned one before. EV manufacturer Coda has come up with of the perfect solution. The company has teamed up with Enterprise Rent-A-Car to add its all-electric sedan into the rental car company’s fleet. Coda will introduce about 100 sedans across various Enterprise locations throughout 2011.

The Coda Sedan is the company’s first vehicle and it will be available in the coming months. A five-passenger sedan, this model comes equipped with a full-size trunk and a cruising range of between 90 and 120 miles per charge. It features a 6.6 kW on-board charging system which needs six hours for a full charge and can provide a 40-mile cruising range with just a two hour charging period.

“The CODA’s dependable, all-season range is a perfect match for the driving conditions found throughout Enterprise’s neighborhood network of car rental locations,” said Kevin Czinger, President and CEO, CODA Automotive. “Enterprise has demonstrated a strong commitment to sustainability and is aligned with our mission to accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles.”

No only will the Coda Sedan be a part of the Enterprise rental fleet, the rental company will serve as a loaner car system for Coda owners. When a Coda vehicle owner takes it in for service,  an Enterprise rental car will be available while the vehicle is in the shop.

In the past, if you haven’t been picky about the rental car you’re driving, perhaps you should be. You may be surprised to learn that your rental has been recalled – so why is it still on the road?

This information comes to use via ABC News, which reports these findings after a recent lawsuit against Enterprise. The case in question involved the death of two California women who were killed after their rental Chrysler PT Cruiser caught fire and struck an oncoming semi. Unexpectedly, Enterprise came out and admitted that the company routinely rents out vehicles that are under recall and haven’t been repaired. The PT Cruiser was recalled in September of 2004, because there was a chance that the power steering unit could leak, causing an engine fire.

Even though they received the recall notice a month before, Enterprise rented the vehicle to Raechel Houck, 24, and her sister, Jacquie, 20, who were on their way to visit their parents. In this case, a jury awarded the Houcks a $15 million settlement.

In further testimony, it was revealed that Enterprise often rents out vehicles under recall, and that the company has no standing policy against doing so. ABC News also indicates that other major companies like Hertz and Avis also carry out the same practice.

“When demand called, we rented out recalled vehicles, it happened, I won’t lie,” said Mark Matias, a former Enterprise area manager in San Francisco. “If all you have are recalled vehicles on the lot, you rent them out. It was a given. The whole company did it. Enterprise’s corporate offices look the other way regarding this fact.”

Other Enterprise executives testified that there was no company-wide policy requiring cars under recall to be held back from rental.

Watch the ABC News video report after the jump.

[Source: ABCNews]

The taste of irony must be bitter for Ford Motor Co, as its dying Mercury division outsold Lincoln, Ford’s luxury division, in the month of June.

Mercury sales were up 26.2% compared to June, 2009, while Lincoln sales dropped 11% in that same time period. Leading the charge was the Mariner SUV, which reported a 37.5% percent increase in sales. However, the data did not cite whether fleet sales were included, as Mercury is tremendously popular among big fleet buyers like rental car agencies.

Ford canned the Mercury brand to focus its attention on its Lincoln brand, which is taking dead aim at Cadillac. Lincoln is expected to receive on onslaught of new product, starting with the redesigned MKX crossover this summer.

For several years now Hertz has offered a ‘Prestige Collection’ of high-end vehicles to rent including models from brands like Lincoln and Cadillac. The rental car company has now decided to take it up a notch by offering two vehicles from those German luxury experts at Mercedes-Benz.

Both the new C-Class and GLK350 will joint the Prestige Collection alongside models from Audi, Infiniti, Lincoln, Cadillac and Volvo.

The C-Class model to be offered is the C300 (sorry, no C63 here) with a 228hp V6 engine, 17-inch wheels and a 7-speed automatic transmission. The GLK350 model is one of the company’s latest products and features a 268hp 3.5-liter V6 and as an entry-level luxury crossover offers plenty of space for passengers and luggage.

“The Prestige Collection continues to be a popular choice among our customers,” said Joseph Nothwang, President of Vehicle Rental and Leasing. “The C-Class and GLK350 fit wonderfully into the Collection providing customers seeking an exciting driving experience with an edgy sedan or a perfect-sized SUV for family road trips.”

Hertz offers the Prestige Collection in 50 U.S. locations as well as in 25 locations in the UK, France, Germany, Ireland, Switzerland and Australia.

[Source: dBusinessNews]