EV Rental Cars announced it has a fleet of new Honda Civic hybrid-electric vehicles at Budget Rent a Car's Reagan National Airport rental location in the nation's capital. EV Rental Cars said it is the first car rental company in the nation to have a fleet of hybrid Civics. The acquisition of 20 hybrid-electric Civics is the latest move by EV Rental Cars to use the airport rental market as a way to introduce environmentally friendly vehicles to business travelers. While environmental concern is a major sales point for EV Rental Cars' market, so is fuel economy, a growing focal point in the current debate over the greenhouse-gas reduction law in California and environmental discussions around the globe. The vehicles in EV Rental Cars' 400-car fleet are disbursed among 14 airports around the United States. In total, EV Rental Cars said the fleet helps reduce greenhouse gases – such as carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas associated with global warming – by 20 to 50 percent compared to a comparable-size fleet of conventional vehicles. The Honda Civic Hybrid is one of three hybrid-electric models available for rent from EV Rental Cars, joining the Honda Insight and Toyota Prius. Also available at EV Rental Cars' Washington, DC, location is the natural gas-powered Honda Civic GX. EV Rental Cars is adding 70 additional hybrid-electric vehicles to its Southern California fleet at Los Angeles International Airport later this summer. The all-new 2003 Honda Civic Hybrid – the first mainstream vehicle sold in North America equipped with a gasoline-electric hybrid powertrain – has earned EPA city/highway fuel economy ratings of 46/51 mpg. EV Rentals said that translates to 650 miles per tank. The 2003 Civic Hybrid uses Honda's Integrated Motor Assist (IMA) technology, employing a 4-cylinder gasoline engine coupled with a high output electric motor to provide fuel efficiency. The system's compact nickel-metal-hydride battery module is automatically recharged during braking and deceleration. As a result, the Civic Hybrid never needs to be plugged in. EV Rental Cars operates exclusively at Budget Rent a Car locations.
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