In 1984, Hertz first developed and introduced Computerized Driving Directions (CDD) and became the first car rental company to offer this service. CDD was made available at over 100 airport and downtown locations throughout the U.S. and Canada. The directions were available at customer rental locations through easy-to-use, self-service, touch-screen terminals. Hertz offered the directions in six languages: English, French, German, Italian, Japanese and Spanish.

In 1985, Hertz joined UAL, Inc. On December 30, 1987, Hertz was sold to Park Ridge Corporation, a company formed by Ford Motor Company and certain members of Hertz senior management for the purpose of purchasing Hertz. In 1988, Volvo North America Corporation joined Ford and Hertz management as an investor in Park Ridge Corporation.

Hertz Instant Return, introduced in 1987, further streamlined the return side of the car rental transaction. At the car return lot, the Hertz agent meets the returning customer with the Instant Return hand-held computer. Today, Hertz has more than 100 locations offering this service around the world.

In 1989, in the U.S., Hertz redefined the car rental business with its #1 Club Gold Service, which became an international symbol for "fast service." This premium, expedited rental service which is available in more than 800 locations today, provides car rental customers with the ultimate in speed and quality. With #1 Club Gold, customers have no unnecessary paperwork at the time of rental and no long lines.

In 1991, Hertz #1 Club Gold service was exported to Canada, to Europe in 1992 and Asia Pacific in 1993.

That same year, Park Ridge Corporation was merged into The Hertz Corporation. In 1994, Ford purchased the outstanding shares of Hertz and Hertz' became an independent, wholly owned subsidiary of Ford.

Also, in 1994, Hertz opened its Financial Center, which joined its Worldwide Reservations and Data Centers in Oklahoma City.

In 1995, Hertz introduced in the U.S. its NeverLost® on-board navigation system. The user friendly route-guidance system provides turn-by-turn driving directions to virtually any destination within a geographic area by means of an in-car video screen, with computer-generated voice prompts, mounted in the front of the car's interior between driver and passenger seats.

In 1997, Hertz launched its new website, hertz.com. The site featured facts and figures on Hertz' fleet, including a visual vehicle guide, corporate information and details on Hertz' services, promotions and partnerships. The interactive portion of the site offers rate quotations as well as booking, confirmation and cancellation capabilities for customers and travel agents.

On April 25, 1997, Hertz became a publicly traded company, listed on the New York Stock Exchange, under the symbol "HRZ."

In October 1997, Dublin Ireland became home to Hertz Europe's Service Center. The Center is Hertz Europe's centralized reservations center handling calls from France, Germany, Ireland, Switzerland and the U.K.

In 1998, Hertz and Magellan Corporation announced the formation of an exclusive joint venture to oversee the expansion and operation of Hertz' NeverLost navigation system. Under the joint venture 40,000 "next generation" units have been deployed in the U.S. and Canada. This joint venture marks Hertz as the leader in this cutting-edge global positioning technology.

In 1999, Hertz and Toyota formed a car rental partnership in Japan, making available to Hertz customers car rental service at 1,100 locations in that country.

In May 2000, Hertz opened its second US reservations center in Saraland, Alabama, a municipality of Mobile County.

In July 2000, Hertz introduced a new, three tiered program for its top level #1 Club Gold members with the incorporation of #1 Club Gold Five Star and #1 Club Gold Presidents' Circle levels.

On March 9, 2001, Hertz became a wholly owned subsidiary of Ford when Ford reacquired the outstanding 18.5% of Hertz' stock.

In June 2001, Hertz launched another new level or premium car rental service with the introduction of the Hertz Prestige Collection. Offering vehicles from Jaguar, Land Rover, Lincoln and Volvo, Hertz Prestige Collection combines luxury vehicles with Hertz' exclusive customer services.