Fueling a Trend

Enterprise Rent-A-Car is now offering biodiesel rentals in Portland, a move that may help boost demand for the alternative fuel.

The company recently unveiled a pilot program to introduce five biodiesel vehicles into its Portland fleet to test customer demand for the environmentally friendly

Enterprise, the nation's largest car rental company, says the move by its Portland office marks the first time a major rental corporation has introduced biodiesel into its fleet.

Biodiesel, a diesel alternative made from seed crops grown domestically or refined from used cooking oil, cuts toxic emissions produced by traditional, petroleum-based fuels.

Bio-beetle, the first and only other rental company to offer biodiesel vehicles to its customers, got its start last year on the island of Maui in Hawaii and recently opened its second office, in Los Angeles.

As far as I know, we're unique at the moment, said Kevin Neary, general manager of Enterprise's Oregon operations. I would imagine other companies, if they see success in our fleet, will adopt (biodiesel) vehicles in their fleets as well.

In the past, the company has offered hybrid rental cars, with modified engines that run on gasoline and electricity. But Enterprise dropped those vehicles due to expense.

Alternative-fuel vehicles have been slow to catch on in the rental car industry - due primarily to the higher purchase and operating costs of the vehicles and what was once a low level of consumer demand.

But rising gas prices and a heightened consumer awareness of green alternatives have led companies such as Enterprise to re- examine their options.

The rental industry has not enthusiastically embraced environmentally friendly vehicles, primarily because the vehicles that have been developed to date have been a lot more expensive, said Neil Abrams of Abrams Consulting Group, a Purchase, N.Y., firm that tracks and advises the car rental industry.

B20 will fuel Enterprise's fleet

Enterprise Portland purchased five initial test vehicles - Jeep Liberties outfitted with standard diesel engines that require no modifications to run on biodiesel.

The small SUVs aren't advertised, instead Enterprise offers them as an alternative to customers that come in to rent another vehicle, said Neary.

The rental office keeps the vehicles filled with B20 biodiesel, a blend of 20 percent biodiesel and 80 percent regular diesel.

Enterprise encourages customers to refuel at one of the four filling stations in Portland that carry the B20 blend. But drivers may fill up with regular diesel if biodiesel is unavailable.

The rental company hands each biodiesel customer a brochure that contains a map of the filling stations' locations as well as information on the environmental advantages of biodiesel over traditional, petroleum-based fuels.

Customers have responded positively, Neary said. With little or no advertising, the office has been able to keep all of its biodiesel vehicles continuously rented.

We've had people ask specifically for biodiesel, he said.

Portland's infrastructure makes zcity an obvious choice

Portland is the ideal test market for the fuel, Neary said, because, with four biodiesel filling stations, it already has the basic infrastructure for refueling in place. And local businesses with a heightened environmental awareness, as well as government offices including the city of Portland and the Port of Portland, have already adopted alternative-fuel policies that encourage use of the fuel.

There are any number of businesses in this community that portray a green image, Neary said. The demand for biodiesel came more from the corporate community. There's no money savings involved; it's really just to cater to the desires of our customers.

If the pilot program is successful, Enterprise will purchase more diesel vehicles when the company orders its 2007 models this summer, and the vehicles could be adopted at other Enterprise offices around the country.

And because Enterprise is the largest car rental company from the standpoint of fleet size and number of locations, its adoption of alternative fuels could potentially encourage other companies to follow suit.

I'm sure we would explore all those avenues, said Jason Logan, a spokesman for Dollar-Thrifty. We don't have a whole lot of diesel- run vehicles. Since (biodiesel) is such a new fuel, I suppose (rental) companies will probably be waiting for acceptance of it.

Five vehicles is still just a tiny fraction of Enterprise's total fleet. It will take much persistence and good marketing, the consultant Abrams said, to make a significant impact.

We're talking about a company that will buy over 600,000 cars this year, Abrams said. While this is important, and one might consider it groundbreaking, it isn't earth-shattering yet.