Hertz Launches Waterless Car-Washing At 220 Off-Airport Locations

Hertz still sprays its rental cars to clean them, but at 220 off-airport locations workers are spraying the vehicles with a non-toxic, biodegradable solution — without water.

The car-rental company launched “waterless car washing” at 220 neighborhood locations in the U.S., with plans to expand the environmentally friendly and more sustainable service to 3,700 facilities in the U.S. and Europe in 2014.

That would save about 130 million gallons of water annually, Hertz estimates.

Hertz says it worked with Green Team Partners “to develop a non-toxic, biodegradable and hyper-concentrated waterless car wash formula and dispenser.

The fact that the solution is concentrated saves Hertz 77% in shipping and transport costs compared with non-concentrated cleaning solutions, Hertz says.

The way it works is that Hertz workers spray the solution on the vehicle, the dirt gets enveloped by the solution’s “specially formulated molecules,” and then two microfiber towels lift away the dirt and polish the car’s surface, Hertz says.

Hertz claims the process takes about 8 minutes.

The waterless car washes are just one element of Hertz’s sustainable initiatives, all of which make good business sense.