by Donald Wood
Last updated: 3:35 PM ET, Mon September 13, 2021
Enterprise Holdings announced an expanded partnership with Microsoft to bring connected car technology to the company's car rental, exotic vehicles and commercial truck rental fleets in the United States.
The car rental giant has already added the technology to hundreds of thousands of vehicles, with as many as 350,000 vehicles expected to be connected by the end of the year. The company plans to fully convert its U.S. fleet to connected vehicles over the next five years.
Enterprise plans to expand the partnership into the United Kingdom and Canada soon, with the company using Microsoft's analytics technologies to gain insights from connected vehicle data across its fleets.
"Consumers want a more streamlined car rental experience, and our manufacturer partners are looking for more information about how our vehicles are performing," Enterprise Holdings Vice President Shane Behl said.
"As we approach 350,000 connected vehicles in the U.S. by year's end, we are not only looking at growing that number, but also exploring and enhancing the additional capabilities a connected fleet can offer with an emphasis on improving the customer experience, as well as the operational efficiencies it offers," Behl continued.
Enterprise Holdings believes connected car technology enhances the overall customer experience through streamlining tasks, including checking fuel levels, odometer readings and improving the check-in and checkout processes.
Through onboard sensors, connected cars have the technology to share specified vehicle information to Enterprise's systems, which streamlines communications with connected vehicles from its Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) partners.
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