In case you never heard of Avis, you should know that they’re one of the world’s biggest names in the cars-for-hire business, and that this is their latest cost-effective marketing ploy for its London regional fleet.
Apparently, they thought that the Yaris Hybrid could be the ideal car for driving in and around the capital, since you know, it’s small, easy to drive and thanks to it being a hybrid, you won’t have to pay the congestion charge.
Guess what? They’re 100% right. And it works out pretty well for the customer too, since he or she can rely on the car switching to EV mode at low speeds, which in turn saves fuel, especially in start-stop traffic.
Avis is initially making the ‘red-nosed’ Yaris Hybrid available at their major gateway locations – mainly Heathrow and Stansted airports, as well as in central London. And if you were wondering why the red nose, it’s to help raise funds for Comic Relief – so we’re not going to make fun of it.
“Yaris scores highly in many respects against our requirements for an inner city hire car; it is easy to drive and reliable. The ultra-low emissions secured by its hybrid system make it a unique proposition in its class in achieving exemption from the London congestion charge,” said Avis UK Fleet Manager Jane Goodwin, while also adding that they are happy to support Toyota’s fund-raising efforts.
We like what Avis is doing in terms of letting their customers drive a car which really is ideal in a city like London. In fact, if you’re renting a car and you know you’re going to do a lot of urban driving, then what could be better than a supermini Toyota hybrid?
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