(Bloomberg) — Tesla Inc.’s cars are already trendy among electric-vehicle enthusiasts and environmentally conscious drivers. Now, they’re also catching on with companies building automobile fleets.
From Hertz Global Holdings Inc. to taxi operators to the New York City Police Department, Teslas are becoming a popular — if unexpected — choice for bulk buyers due in part to their favorable economics. Tesla is by far the most popular brand on an app operated by Standard Fleet, a San Francisco-based startup helping companies manage EV fleets.
“In concept, Teslas are more expensive but the payback is coming faster than people expect,” said Standard Fleet founder David Hodge, a former Apple Inc. engineer who worked on the company’s mapping technology. “There are lower fuel and maintenance costs. We’re talking high tens of thousands of miles to break even and not 100K miles.”
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Tesla itself is pursuing fleet sales, which automakers once saw as last-resort business because rental chains used to order stripped-down models rather than the more-expensive, feature-laden vehicles preferred by individual buyers. Tesla has a fleet website touting a lower cost of ownership, high resale values and the company’s broad charging network.
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