Opel and the car rental company Europcar have announced an agreement to introduce the Opel Ampera as a rental car throughout Europe.
The two companies are joining forces to broaden the range of people that will be able to access electric vehicles, capitalising on the Ampera’s launch. The goal is to deploy the first vehicles in Europcar rental outlets in Germany in November of this year, followed soon afterwards by Belgium and the Netherlands.
The Opel Ampera will then be rolled out throughout France, Italy, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom from the beginning of 2012.
Opel and Europcar have together created a comprehensive introduction to the Ampera to present these features to rental customers. On booking, customers are advised to plan 10-15 minutes for the handover to accommodate this. Trained Europcar employees will explain a range of topics including battery charging, the range extender, as well as other special functions and features such as the energy consumption and energy efficiency displays. In addition, customers will receive advice on energy-efficient driving in battery operation and how to recuperate energy when braking. Customers will also have the opportunity to give feedback through online chats and questionnaires.
The Opel Ampera with extended range deliver between 40 and 80 km of pure electric operation with zero emissions – depending on driving conditions – when fully charged. If the Ampera is driven exclusively in battery mode, it uses no fuel and produces no emissions. For longer stretches, a gasoline engine powers a generator that supplies the necessary electricity. This continuous energy supply makes distances of over 500 km possible, without stopping to charge for hours, and relieves the driver of concerns about being stranded with a flat battery. According to the ECE R101 regulation for measuring fuel consumption and CO2 emissions, the Ampera consumes less than 1.6 l/100 km and emits less than 40 g/km CO2 (preliminary data). The car is therefore perfectly suited for use in the car rental industry as it delivers the no-compromise mobility that rental customers require. Additionally, there is no risk for the rental company of having to recover the car as a result of it running out of battery power.
Europcar have similar agreements with Daimler, Renault and its alliance partner Nissan.
