Hertz has the best used Tesla deals as it lists the 2021 Model 3 at 50% off with tax credit
The horrible depreciation rate of the 2021 Model 3 has now forced Hertz to put a lot of its Teslas on sale at half off. Rental car companies like Hertz or SIXT are scaling down their fleet electrification ambitions, or ditching Teslas altogether.
Some of the 100,000 Teslas that Hertz vowed to buy in a deal valued at over $4 billion, are already on the second-hand EV market at up to 50% off compared to what the rental car company bought them for just a year and change ago.
In 2021, Hertz announced an ambitious rental fleet electrification plan that boosted both its, and Tesla’s stock. At the time, Elon Musk was flying high on record Tesla car prices that he said were brought to “frankly embarrassing” levels over supply chain woes and demand by early EV adopters.
The best deal on a used Tesla Model 3 comes from… Hertz
That time has long gone, and Tesla cars, both new and used, have fallen in price by more than a third in the span of just one year. That’s a horrible depreciation rate for any company or individual, but for rental fleets like those of Hertz and SIXT, it was a financial fiasco.
Not only did the Teslas in their roster lose half of their value last year, but they were also difficult to perform timely maintenance on as the EV industry doesn’t yet have the service and aftermarket parts network available to gas cars. As a result, Hertz said it will drastically slow down the purchase rate of the 100,000 electric cars in the contract, while SIXT ditched Tesla from its fleet altogether.
In order to recuperate some of the costs involved in a rental fleet electrification gone awry, Hertz now has hundreds of low-mileage Tesla Model 3 vehicles on sale across the US as it tries to get rid of 20,000 EVs in total. These currently represent the best used Tesla deals anywhere, since the Model 3 prices start at about $20,000 for an EV that is not even two years old.
In addition, since the tags mostly stay below the government’s $25,000 subsidy threshold, they are eligible for an additional used EV tax credit of $4,500. This brings the Hertz Model 3 price tags in the $16,000-$20,000 range for low 50,000-100,000 mileage cars, some of which are still under Tesla warranty.
Those who bought their Teslas at the 2021-2022 peak would certainly scoff at the drastic annual depreciation rate, all the while Hertz is making used EV bargain hunters in 2024 very happy with their purchase.
Daniel Zlatev – Senior Tech Writer – 1030 articles published on Notebookcheck since 2021
Wooed by tech since the industrial espionage of Apple computers and the times of pixelized Nintendos, Daniel went and opened a gaming club when personal computers and consoles were still an expensive rarity. Nowadays, fascination is not with specs and speed but rather the lifestyle that computers in our pocket, house, and car have shoehorned us in, from the infinite scroll and the privacy hazards to authenticating every bit and move of our existence.
