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Report: Saudi university to start $500 million carmaking enterprise

Filed under: Middle East

King Saud University Gazal-1

King Saud University Gazal-1 – Click above for a high-res image gallery

Few took them seriously when the students of King Saud University unveiled their first design in Geneva last March. But the Saudi institute of higher education is reportedly putting their plans to begin producing their own line of automobiles into high gear.

According to Reuters, the project is being undertaken by the university’s investment arm, Wadi al-Riyadh Technology, with technical and financial support from an as-yet undisclosed South Korean firm. Could Hyundai/Kia be behind the effort? Hard to say, but whoever it is, they’re tipped to be putting up 30 percent of the cash, in addition to the technical know-how. The university is set to put in as much as 15 percent of the capital needed, while the rest is reportedly being offered to outside investments. Altogether, the project is budgeted at $500 million.

The outfit’s first vehicle will reportedly be “an economic car suitable for local use,” as opposed to the Mercedes-Benz Geländewagen-based SUV concept pictured above. Spokespeople say they hope to offer the vehicle in other countries in the region, including the Gulf emirates and North African countries.

The development is peculiar for a number of reasons, namely that (a) Saudi Arabia, though the largest economy in the Arab world, is not known as an automobile producing or exporting country, and (b) most cars are not built by universities. Still, if any country has the oil money to pull it off, it’s surely Saudi Arabia.

Gallery: Geneva 2010: King Saud University Gazal-1

[Source: Reuters]

Report: Saudi university to start $500 million carmaking enterprise originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 27 Dec 2010 13:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Study: Rental car companies increase customer satisfaction, Enterprise tops

Filed under: Etc.

Enterprise Rent-a-Car

Economists and talking heads argue endlessly about our economy on a daily basis. “It’s back!,” “It’s almost back!” and “It’s never coming back!” seem to be the leaders among the varied viewpoints we hear and read about. One sector that has apparently begun to rebound is the car rental business. Not necessarily in financial terms, but from the standpoint of customer satisfaction, America’s rental car companies are returning to to a position last seen in the pre-recession days.

J.D. Power has released its annual North American Rental Car Satisfaction Study, and the results are positive for every company included in the survey. Now in its 15th year, this J.D. Power study examines customer satisfaction with the airport car rental process, and it looks at six specific factors: Costs & Fees, Pick-Up Process, Rental Car, Return Process, Reservation Process, and Shuttle Bus/Van. The highest score possible is 1,000 points and, for the 2010 study, the average Overall Satisfaction score is 750. This is up from 733 in 2009 and 734 in 2008. Every company in the survey has improved year-over-year in the survey.

This year’s big winner, however, is Enterprise, which received the industry’s highest rankings in customer satisfaction. Enterprise is no stranger to this award, and getting the nod in 2010 makes it seven years in a row for the rental car company. Following behind Enterprise, Hertz and National also performed quite well in the survey while Advantage, Alamo, Avis, Dollar and Thrifty rounded out the results. You can see how each one performed over at the J.D. Power results page.

[Source: J.D. Power]

Continue reading Study: Rental car companies increase customer satisfaction, Enterprise tops

Study: Rental car companies increase customer satisfaction, Enterprise tops originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 25 Nov 2010 11:27:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Coda EV models to be available through Enterprise Rent-A-Car

Filed under: Sedan, Marketing/Advertising, Technology, Electric

All-Electric Coda Sedan

All-Electric Coda Sedan – Click above for high-res image gallery

Want to drive an electric car but not ready to spend the money to own one? EV manufacturer Coda has the perfect solution for you. Coda has teamed up with Enterprise Rent-A-Car to place its all-electric sedan into the rental car company’s fleet. The plan is to introduce about 100 sedans across various Enterprise locations throughout 2011.

The Coda Sedan is the company’s first vehicle and it will be launched in the coming months. It’s a five-passenger sedan with a full-size trunk and a cruising range of between 90 and 120 miles per charge. Coda is utilizing a 6.6 kW on-board charging system which requires six hours for a full charge, however, the system can provide a 40-mile cruising range with just a two hour charging period.

In addition to the Coda Sedan models entering the Enterprise rental fleet, the rental company will serve as a loaner car system for Coda owners. If a Coda vehicle requires service, an Enterprise rental car will be made available during the time the owner’s Coda vehicle is in the shop. Read more in the official press release after the jump.

Gallery: All-Electric Coda Sedan

All-Electric Coda Sedan

[Source: Coda]

Continue reading Coda EV models to be available through Enterprise Rent-A-Car

Coda EV models to be available through Enterprise Rent-A-Car originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 12 Oct 2010 16:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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