Best electrified cars 2017: The five best EVs you can buy in the UK right now

In two thousand seventeen electrified cars aren’t the novelty they used to be. EVs such as the Tesla Model S and Nissan Leaf now represent viable choices for those in the car market, and soon electrical cars might be your only choice.

Under the government’s plans to improve air quality across the UK, the sale of petrol and diesel cars could be banned by 2040. And that means we’re going to see more and more EVs on our roads in the coming decade

BMW recently unveiled its fresh i3 and a sportier i3s model to make electrical cars appeal to more people. It also announced it will be making an all-electric Mini in its Cowley plant, while Volkswagen recently unveiled plans for an electrified Campervan , officially known as a Microbus, to be released in 2022. And there’s way more to come.

Two reasons to get an EV right now

Now, an electrical car still isn’t for everyone – but if you live in the city, have a brief commute – or take occasional brief trips, an electrified car could be ideal. In fact, thanks to ongoing leaps in battery technology, range is much less of an issue than it used to be, so even if you have to make the occasional long journey it could be worth looking at an electrified car.

What’s more, there is an enlargening number of electrical car chargers in the UK – Shell recently announced plans to introduce electrified chargers in UK petrol stations and there are electrified car charging station maps to help you avoid so-called range anxiety. When you throw in government subsidies, two thousand seventeen is a superb time to get an electrical car.

Here, we’ve put together a list of the best EVs available in the UK below, and we’ll also explain why we’ve chosen each car. At the end of this list is more detail about the government grants available for low-emission vehicles and you can find your nearest electrical car charging station on Zap Maps.

Best electrified cars in 2017

Tesla Model S (starts at £53,500 after government grant)

The Tesla Model S is the ultimate electrified car, and it’s now availble in 75D, 100D and P100D flavours , so there’s something for everyone. We reviewed a Tesla Model S and found it combined the flawless blend of innovation, style and ludicrous spectacle. When you throw in the ridiculous 17in touchscreen and all that comes with it, Tesla Autopilot and a 0-60mph of Two.6 seconds, the Tesla Model S might be the ultimate car – never mind electrical one.

The very first Tesla Model three flipped off the production earlier this month. Elon Musk has called it the Model T of electrical cars, and he hopes it will bring EVs to the masses. We don’t yet have a UK release date but this could either be a viable alternative to the Model S, or will see the price of the Model S drop. Plus, the Tesla Model three is likely to be at the higher end of the market, so the Model S could be a excellent kicking off point.

Nissan Leaf (starts at £21,290 after government grant)

We’ve commenced off the list with the Nissan Leaf, and for good reason. The lead most popular electrified vehicle in the UK, and it’s effortless to see why. Albeit it looks like a large Nissan Micra from the outside, the Leaf is a revolutionary vehicle – and it keeps getting better. The third-generation 24kWh Leaf starts at reasonable £21,290, and the fresh £24,990 30kWh model extends the range from one hundred twenty four to one hundred fifty five miles. If that’s not cheap enough, Nissan even lets you lease the car’s batteries to bring the 24kWh version down to a reasonable £16,290.

If you buy a Leaf, it will be for the economy rather than the spectacle, but after driving it around London, we found the Leaf was rapid to 30mph, so it’s ideal for city driving. As you’d expect from an electrical car, the Leaf also comes with a compatible app for most smartphones, permitting owners to precondition their cars to the right temperature before they come in, or update them on the status of their car.

The two thousand eighteen Nissan Leaf is set to be unveiled on six September, which would see the price of any previous model being diminished. Nissan has already released teasers of its all-new electrified car and the only still pic of the car shows a dramatically redesigned rear light cluster, but it looks significantly sharper than the old one.

Tesla Model X (starts at £71,900 after government grant)

With all the hype around the more affordable Model Trio, it’s very effortless to leave behind all about the Tesla Model X – but you indeed shouldn’t. Simply put, the Model X could be the ultimate electrical car, and combines sports-car-like spectacle with all the storage and practicality of a real, full-sized SUV. It’s hard to look past those amazing falcon-wing doors, but the rest of the Model X features incredible design too. Whether it’s the extended windscreen or car’s Autopilot mode, the Tesla Model X could be the best electrified SUV – until the i-Pace that is, anyway.

The main draw of the Tesla Model X is that it doesn’t look or feel like an electrical car. Tesla has gone to good lengths to make it rival sports cars from “traditional” manufacturers and in a latest haul race with a Lamborghini Aventador, the Tesla won by 0.05 seconds. It also broke the world record for being the fastest SUV.

BMW i3 (starts at £25,680 after government grant)

One of the most sophisticated cars on the market today, the BMW i3 gives you everything you’d want from an electrified car in a petite, compact package. It’s a rear-wheel drive like a traditional BMW, but that’s where the similarities end. Under the bondage mask, you won’t find much, because the i3 is actually powered by a 168hp electrified motor in the car’s boot. It is likely, following the unveiling of the fresh BMW i3 and i3s electrical car that the price of the original model will drop so stay tuned for updates.

The car giant also has plans to launch an electrical Mini in two thousand nineteen and recently announced it would be building the range at its Cowley plant in Oxford. Photos of the Mini Electrical Concept were released ahead of the Frankfurt Motor Demonstrate and showcase it in silver and yellow with a closed radiator grille and Union Jack rear light array. The electrified Mini is expected to be priced inbetween the Nissan Leaf and the BMW i3 and, by 2025, the BMW Group expects electrified vehicles to account for inbetween 15-25% of its sales. An electrical Mini will be the tenth electrical BMW in its EV range.

Renault Zoe (starts at £13,945 after government grant)

The Renault ZOE has been updated, and we’ll include our verdict on the fresh car soon. In the meantime, you can read our thoughts on the previous car.

Renault is known for producing compact, efficient cars, and the Renault Zoe shows it can repeat the formula in an electrified setting. Like the Nissan Leaf, the Renault isn’t the most luxurious motor, but it does suggest a cabin that’s convenient for long periods of time.

And you could potentially spend a while in the Zoe: its range extends to around one hundred miles of mixed driving conditions – more than enough for most inward city drives – and that’s when the car is in Eco mode.

Put the car into normal mode, and its 80hp engine offers remarkably good acceleration. Thanks to 220Nm of torque, the Zoe will shoot to 30mph in just under four seconds. While it takes a lot longer to get to 60mph, its acceleration is more than enough for urban drives.

Government grants for electrical cars in the UK

To encourage more people to drive electrified cars, and manufacturers to make more, the UK government is suggesting grants to reduce the price you pay for brand fresh electrical and hybrid vehicles. The amount of money you can get depends on the CO2 emissions of the car you want to buy, and only those that have been approved by the government are eligible.

Cars which have CO2 emissions of less than 50g/km and can travel at least 112km (70 miles) without any CO2 emissions at all fall into the very first category. These include:

• BMW i3
• BYD e6
• Citroen CZero
• Ford Concentrate Electrical
• Hyundai IONIQ Electrified
• Kia Soul EV
• Mercedes-Benz B-Class Electrical Drive
• Nissan e-NV200 (5-seater and 7-seater)
• Nissan LEAF
• Peugeot iON
• Renault Fluence
• Renault ZOE
• Clever fortwo electrified drive
• Brainy forfour electrical drive
• Tesla Model S
• Tesla Model X
• Toyota Mirai
• Volkswagen e-up!
• Volkswagen e-Golf

The government grant covers 35% of the purchase price for these vehicles, up to a maximum of £4,500.

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