Dollar Thrifty boosts mileage of rental car fleet

Dollar Thrifty boosts mileage of rental car fleet

TULSA, Okla. — Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group Inc. said Wednesday it expects its fleet of rental vehicles will be about 10 percent more fuel-efficient after recent purchases of new car models.

Dollar Thrifty said more than 40 percent of its 2010 model year purchases were cars with highway ratings of more than 30 miles per gallon. Only about 10 percent of the 2009 models that Dollar Thrifty bought met that mileage threshhold.

The 10 percent improvement in the fleet’s average fuel mileage rating is expected to save customers about $35 million in fuel costs from using 13.5 million fewer gallons of gasoline, Dollar Thrifty said.

Dollar Thrifty said in October that it had diversified its fleet mix for 2010 models across a wider range of vehicles and suppliers. Some of the fleet’s more fuel-efficient new vehicles include the Ford Fusion, Chevy Malibu and Aveo, Nissan Versa and Hyundai Sonata.

The Tulsa, Okla.-based company’s brands include Dollar Rent A Car and Thrifty Car Rental, with more than 600 corporate and franchise locations in North America.

Shares of Dollar Thrifty rose $1.18, or about 5.3 percent, to $23.58 in afternoon trading.