There are now quite a number of options for UK buyers considering an electric car. Here you can find links to some of the electric cars reviewed by GreenMotor.co.uk over the past couple of years...
Nissan LeafRating:
Price: £25,990 (after grants) following a £2,000 price hike in March
UK availability: Now
Awkward looks but beautifully engineered and carefully thought through, Nissan’s Leaf was conceived as an electric car from the start and it shows. Its range-predicting satnav system alone would put it head and shoulders above most other EVs, but the Leaf also offers great packaging, tangible quality, real comfort, and an engaging, involving drive. A worthy European Car of the Year for 2011.
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Vauxhall AmperaRating:
Price: £28,995 (after grants)
UK availability: Spring 2012
With a 1.4-litre petrol engine on standby to supplement its battery and motor, the Ampera is an extended-range electric car to its maker, but a glorified hybrid to others. Divisive labels aside, this is a well-sorted plug-in car that can drive up to 50 miles on battery alone, then as far as you like on petrol when the need arises. It’s clean, comfortable and stylish. What’s not to like? Well, all that kit and complexity is both weighty and pricey, unfortunately. Those reservations aside, the Ampera defines the state of the art in extended-range EVs.
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Volvo V60 PHEVRating:
Price: TBC (£45,000 estimated)
UK availability: Autumn 2012
Charge up the Volvo V60 Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle for up to 30 miles of silent electric motoring, or switch to hybrid mode and add in 200bhp of five-cylinder diesel. Volvo has aimed high with its modified medium-sized estate but appears to have succeeded in producing a fluid through-the-road hybrid, or range-extended electric car, depending on your label preferences. It promises to meet a very wide brief, including towing 1,800kg loads with its electric back axle supplementing the diesel front end for all-wheel-drive. But as with the Ampera the V60 PHEV is going to be fearsomely heavy and far from cheap.
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Mitsubishi i-MievRating:
Price: £23,990 (after grants)
UK availability: Now
The first mass-produced electric car is cute to look at and lovely to drive. The i-Miev’s kei-car platform means it’s narrow by European standards, will seat only four and offers precious little boot space. But it’s a lively little thing that’s fun to drive, with its precise steering and rear-wheel drive.
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Renault Fluence ZERating:
Price: £17,850 after grants, plus £75 per month battery rental
UK availability: Mid-2012
Renault’s big electric saloon sandwiches a bulky removable battery between an enlarged boot and the back seats. It offers good value compared to other EVs of similar quality and feels remarkably normal to drive, in a good way. You’d be hard-pressed to tell it’s electric were it not for the total absence of noise, vibration and gearshifts when you’re on the move. Instrumentation to keep the driver informed about the battery is a tad basic, but what this car really lacks is a little character and pizzazz, which hopefully will be delivered by its upcoming sibling, the Renault Zoe electric hatchback.
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Volvo C30 DRIVe ElectricRating:
Price: TBC
UK availability: No plans yet
The highly desirable electric C30 will get a 350-car limited release in 2011, confined to left-hand-drive European markets. Assuming the C30 Electric makes it to full production, assuming the in-car software ends up as polished as we suspect, and always assuming a reasonable price, it may well qualify for five stars. For the moment, it’s a four-star electric car that’s among the most poised and polished of its kind – whisper quiet, highly refined and beautifully finished.
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Mia ElectricRating:
Price: £22,000 after grants
UK availability: Spring 2012
Mia’s loaf-shaped microbus has much to commend it – most notably some fresh thinking about the kind of cars that are suitable for urban settings. Its central driving position and diminutive dimensions make it easy to thread through traffic, while the twin sliding doors and plastic panels make the most of tight parking spots. But not everything about the Mia is quite so tasty. It feels crude and a little ramshackle, thumps and crashes over bumps, and is eye-wateringly expensive for what you get.
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Liberty E-RangeRating:
Price: £160,000 - but big tax breaks apply for corporate buyers
UK availability: Now
Liberty Electric Cars bravely performs a heart and lung transplant on a brand new Range Rover to create the E-Range: a quick and fluid luxury electric car that boasts a 200-mile range courtesy of its giant 75kWh battery. It’s a deeply impressive but also hugely expensive EV. But if your company is buying, the E-Range can – amazingly – work out cheaper than a diesel Range Rover.
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Think City EVRating:
Price: £19,000 after grants, estimated
UK availability: Unlikely to ever arrive: maker declared bankrupt in June 2011
Heavy steering and a dated interior mar what is otherwise a very pleasant little electric car – and despite diminutive appearances it is a proper car, not a quadricycle. Ford spent serious money developing the Think City between 1999 and 2003, and it shows – both in the standard achieved and in how much the game has changed since.
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Smart ForTwo EDRating:
Price: £19,000 after grants, estimated
UK availability: Mid-2012
Smart’s electric drive conversion is predictably well engineered, but it adds restricted range to all the other drawbacks of the ForTwo package – just the two seats, an uncomfortably short wheelbase, little luggage space and questionable styling. Better weight distribution courtesy of low-mounted batteries does mean improved handling, however.
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Reva G-WizRating:
Price: from £9,995 - not eligible for grants
UK availability: Now
The G-Wiz is a hoot to drive with go-kart steering and bouncy-castle suspension, and is also surprisingly fast – capable of keeping up with the rat race at up to 50mph. But it’s too cramped, fragile, crude and pricey to make much sense.
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EuAuto MyCar EVRating:
Price: from £9,995 - not eligible for grants
UK availability: Now
Cute to look at from the outside with its toy-like proportions, crisp styling and big, flashy wheels. But inside it feels vulnerable and so slow you’ll think you’ve left the flex plugged in.
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