TheGuardian.com: When the government scheme was launched in 2011 take up was slow. But with more affordable models available and sales booming, the cash may only last a few months
A £5,000-a-car government giveaway has sent sales of electric vehicles in Britain soaring to record levels – but eco-conscious buyers may now have only a few months left to grab the grant money before it runs out.
In early 2011 the government introduced the £5,000 grants (£8,000 for plug-in electric vans) and promised that the scheme would continue until 50,000 were awarded. Early take-up was slow, and two years later just 3,200 had been made – largely because there were so few electric vehicles to choose from. But the launch of the Nissan Leaf, the remarkable success of the Mitsubishi Outlander plug-in, and the fact that there are now a further 35 models to choose from, has ignited the market.
Are we on the brink of an electric car revolution?
In the first five months of 2015, the number of electric cars sold in the UK and eligible for the £5,000 grant jumped to 11,842 – four times the number that quietly purred away from forecourts over the same period last year.
The 50,000 limit is in sight. So far, the government has awarded around 36,000 grants. If sales continue to accelerate, the money will certainly run out before the end of the year, possibly sooner.
The grant brings the price of the cheapest Nissan Leaf down from £26,490 to £21,490, while the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV – the world’s first plug-in SUV – starts at £28,249 once the grant is paid. The Outlander is far and away the best-selling plug-in car in the UK, with 4,596 sold in the first three months of 2015 compared to 1,705 for the Nissan Leaf – despite Jeremy Clarkson labelling it a “donkey”.
Prices of electric vehicles are still above the cost of conventional petrol and diesel cars, but the government grant is only part of the savings drivers enjoy. Electric vehicles are zero-rated for car tax (vehicle excise duty) and exempt from the London congestion charge (£14 a day) – but, above all, they cost virtually nothing to run.
A full charge will cost around £2 to £3 and will give a typical range of around 100 miles. Driving 100 miles in a petrol or diesel car will cost around £12 to £18.
Free charging and free parking is also available at charging points in many towns and cities up and down the UK (zap-map.com lets you search them all).
This week Carlos Ghosn, head of Renault-Nissan, said the world is on the brink of an electric car revolution, with Richard Branson also predicting that “no new road cars will be petrol driven” within 20 years.
But despite the recent jump in sales, plug-ins remain a tiny fraction of the car market. Even including sales of hybrids, the number of “alternatively fuelled” vehicles was just 2.5% of the 198,706 cars sold in Britain in May 2015.
Cost isn’t the only factor deterring buyers. Range is perhaps the biggest drawback; after 124 miles a Nissan Leaf has to be recharged, and that can take between four and eight hours. The vast majority of plug-ins have been sold to drivers who have off-road space to run a cable to the car. City dwellers in terraces or apartments have no such option, relying on on-street charging points. But car makers say they are close to solving “range anxiety”, with new batteries promised (Tesla is leading the way) that will allow electric vehicles to closely match the range of petrol cars.
Reliability is another worry. The technology is relatively new, prompting fears that maintenance might be hugely expensive. But Nissan reports that the failure rate of its batteries, five years after the launch of the Leaf, is just 0.01%.
Many environmentalists also argue that the switch to electric cars is meaningless unless buyers also switch to a renewable energy provider for their electricity. “Otherwise they are simply moving the pollution and CO2 emissions from the city to (mainly) conventional power stations,” says Rob Harrison of Ethical Consumer magazine. He advises buyers to switch to Good Energy, Ecotricity or Co-op Energy.
Which electric car is best for you? Ethical Consumer this week published a shopping guide to electric cars, and gave the Tesla Model S the highest environmental score. But it recognises that with a £54,000 price tag it’s not for the mass market. The Mitsubishi i-Miev (a small city car) and Nissan Leaf are in second place. Other best-buys include the Citroën C-Zero and the Peugeot iOn, followed by the Volkswagen e-Golf. Interestingly the Mitsubishi Outlander did not make it into the top 10.
NextGreenCar.com, which has a wealth of information for electric car buyers, rates the VW e-up! (£19,975 after grant) as its top selection, if one discounts the Renault Twizy (£7,995 plus £45-a-month battery hire) as it’s only a two-seater. The Renault Kangoo van (£17,064 after grant) came top among commercial electric vehicles.
Auto makers know that public cash has helped drive sales, and they will not want to see a sudden halt in funding
Ethical Consumer has reservations about electric cars, because of the wider behaviour of the manufacturers, their supply chains, and the fact they also produce military vehicles. But it accepts that in many parts of the country a vehicle is necessary. “Blending” is the new buzzword among environmentalists when it comes to electric cars, and the magazine recommends buyers “blend” their transport needs, mixing walking, cycling and public transport with low-impact use of electric cars.
Will the sales boom fizzle out once the £5,000 grant disappears? The RAC reckons government grants have been crucial – and that at current rates “the money will run out in months”. Philip Gomm at the RAC Foundation says: “That’s why they are hastily reviewing the eligibility criteria for cars. The result will be a tiered system that sets the bar higher for getting the largest discount. The review brings closer the day when the government bows out and these vehicles need to wash their own faces commercially.”
A spokesman for the Office for Low Emission Vehicles said a new scheme will be introduced after the 50,000 grants are exhausted, but declined to give details.
“Driving an electric car is unlike any other vehicle I have driven, as the Leaf has several economy drive settings which encourage a more economical way of driving. Consequently I am much more gentle on the accelerator and brakes. It makes you drive in a far more relaxed and ultimately safer way.
“As there is no noisy engine it’s also completely silent and you feel like you’re floating on air. It’s a bit weird but very chilled. I love it.
A £5,000-a-car government giveaway has sent sales of electric vehicles in Britain soaring to record levels – but eco-conscious buyers may now have only a few months left to grab the grant money before it runs out.
In early 2011 the government introduced the £5,000 grants (£8,000 for plug-in electric vans) and promised that the scheme would continue until 50,000 were awarded. Early take-up was slow, and two years later just 3,200 had been made – largely because there were so few electric vehicles to choose from. But the launch of the Nissan Leaf, the remarkable success of the Mitsubishi Outlander plug-in, and the fact that there are now a further 35 models to choose from, has ignited the market.
Are we on the brink of an electric car revolution?
In the first five months of 2015, the number of electric cars sold in the UK and eligible for the £5,000 grant jumped to 11,842 – four times the number that quietly purred away from forecourts over the same period last year.
The 50,000 limit is in sight. So far, the government has awarded around 36,000 grants. If sales continue to accelerate, the money will certainly run out before the end of the year, possibly sooner.
The grant brings the price of the cheapest Nissan Leaf down from £26,490 to £21,490, while the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV – the world’s first plug-in SUV – starts at £28,249 once the grant is paid. The Outlander is far and away the best-selling plug-in car in the UK, with 4,596 sold in the first three months of 2015 compared to 1,705 for the Nissan Leaf – despite Jeremy Clarkson labelling it a “donkey”.
Prices of electric vehicles are still above the cost of conventional petrol and diesel cars, but the government grant is only part of the savings drivers enjoy. Electric vehicles are zero-rated for car tax (vehicle excise duty) and exempt from the London congestion charge (£14 a day) – but, above all, they cost virtually nothing to run.
A full charge will cost around £2 to £3 and will give a typical range of around 100 miles. Driving 100 miles in a petrol or diesel car will cost around £12 to £18.
Free charging and free parking is also available at charging points in many towns and cities up and down the UK (zap-map.com lets you search them all).
This week Carlos Ghosn, head of Renault-Nissan, said the world is on the brink of an electric car revolution, with Richard Branson also predicting that “no new road cars will be petrol driven” within 20 years.
But despite the recent jump in sales, plug-ins remain a tiny fraction of the car market. Even including sales of hybrids, the number of “alternatively fuelled” vehicles was just 2.5% of the 198,706 cars sold in Britain in May 2015.
Cost isn’t the only factor deterring buyers. Range is perhaps the biggest drawback; after 124 miles a Nissan Leaf has to be recharged, and that can take between four and eight hours. The vast majority of plug-ins have been sold to drivers who have off-road space to run a cable to the car. City dwellers in terraces or apartments have no such option, relying on on-street charging points. But car makers say they are close to solving “range anxiety”, with new batteries promised (Tesla is leading the way) that will allow electric vehicles to closely match the range of petrol cars.
Reliability is another worry. The technology is relatively new, prompting fears that maintenance might be hugely expensive. But Nissan reports that the failure rate of its batteries, five years after the launch of the Leaf, is just 0.01%.
Many environmentalists also argue that the switch to electric cars is meaningless unless buyers also switch to a renewable energy provider for their electricity. “Otherwise they are simply moving the pollution and CO2 emissions from the city to (mainly) conventional power stations,” says Rob Harrison of Ethical Consumer magazine. He advises buyers to switch to Good Energy, Ecotricity or Co-op Energy.
Which electric car is best for you? Ethical Consumer this week published a shopping guide to electric cars, and gave the Tesla Model S the highest environmental score. But it recognises that with a £54,000 price tag it’s not for the mass market. The Mitsubishi i-Miev (a small city car) and Nissan Leaf are in second place. Other best-buys include the Citroën C-Zero and the Peugeot iOn, followed by the Volkswagen e-Golf. Interestingly the Mitsubishi Outlander did not make it into the top 10.
NextGreenCar.com, which has a wealth of information for electric car buyers, rates the VW e-up! (£19,975 after grant) as its top selection, if one discounts the Renault Twizy (£7,995 plus £45-a-month battery hire) as it’s only a two-seater. The Renault Kangoo van (£17,064 after grant) came top among commercial electric vehicles.
Auto makers know that public cash has helped drive sales, and they will not want to see a sudden halt in funding
Ethical Consumer has reservations about electric cars, because of the wider behaviour of the manufacturers, their supply chains, and the fact they also produce military vehicles. But it accepts that in many parts of the country a vehicle is necessary. “Blending” is the new buzzword among environmentalists when it comes to electric cars, and the magazine recommends buyers “blend” their transport needs, mixing walking, cycling and public transport with low-impact use of electric cars.
Will the sales boom fizzle out once the £5,000 grant disappears? The RAC reckons government grants have been crucial – and that at current rates “the money will run out in months”. Philip Gomm at the RAC Foundation says: “That’s why they are hastily reviewing the eligibility criteria for cars. The result will be a tiered system that sets the bar higher for getting the largest discount. The review brings closer the day when the government bows out and these vehicles need to wash their own faces commercially.”
A spokesman for the Office for Low Emission Vehicles said a new scheme will be introduced after the 50,000 grants are exhausted, but declined to give details.
“Driving an electric car is unlike any other vehicle I have driven, as the Leaf has several economy drive settings which encourage a more economical way of driving. Consequently I am much more gentle on the accelerator and brakes. It makes you drive in a far more relaxed and ultimately safer way.
“As there is no noisy engine it’s also completely silent and you feel like you’re floating on air. It’s a bit weird but very chilled. I love it.
