Plug-in hybrids like the 2016 Audi A3 e-tron — especially those with well-tuned responses and zippy performance — are the evangelists that have the best chance of converting the masses to the joys of all-electric motoring. Yes, electric-car fans, please set aside your all-the-way-or-nothing thinking for the moment. On one side, the A3 e-tron preaches
[Useful information published February 2013] A £37 million funding package is set to benefit drivers with plug-in vehicles Drivers with plug-in vehicles are set to benefit from a £37 million funding package for home and on-street charging and for new charge points for people parking plug-in vehicles at railway stations. The coalition government will provide
What is it? The Volvo V60 Plug-in Hybrid sports a 212bhp 2.4-litre turbodiesel driving the front wheels and a 69bhp electric motor driving the rears. It can travel up to 31 miles in pure electric mode. In Ehybrid mode, the diesel and electric motors combine to deliver the most efficient progress. Or if you’re feeling
What is it? The Volkswagen Golf GTE is a plug-in hybrid version of the perenially popular family hatchback. As the badging suggests though, this is no hair-shirt rival to cars like the Toyota Prius Plug-In. Volkswagen instead bills the GTE as the third member of its Golf GT family, joining the petrol Golf GTI and
From Kia Motors: When it comes to paying for fuel, we know it can be pricey. So imagine our driver’s reactions when we covertly took over a petrol station and only charged them £2.80 – the amount for a full charge of a Kia Soul EV. Watch what happened when we charged ordinary drivers extraordinary
EVEN MORE FLEXIBLE EV OWNERSHIP PACKAGES FROM RENAULT Full purchase battery option now available on ZOE i and Kangoo Van Z.E. i Battery Hire scheme continues on ZOE, Twizy & Kangoo Van Z.E. Five-year / 60,000-mile battery warranty on i versions ZOE i available from £18,443 after Government Plug-in Car Grant Kangoo Van Z.E. i
Munich/Miramas. The BMW Group is preparing to follow up its innovative and revolutionary BMW i models with plug-in hybrid versions of the core-brand models. In Miramas, France, it will present a BMW 3 Series plug-in hybrid prototype and a new generation of hybrid vehicle concepts incorporating technology already used in BMW i models. Long term,
The passenger version of Nissan’s new electric van is a niche vehicle, but could hold appeal for growing families who need the space Aerodynamic revisions, a wider front track, lower centre of gravity and a faster-reacting drivetrain; all the stuff you’d expect Autocar to write about. Only here it relates to a van, or in
For many European cities, diesel exhaust emissions have become a health as well as an environmental problem. So in addition to promoting electric cars or alternative forms of transportation, lawmakers are beginning to crack down on the dirtiest diesels. Next year, the French government will launch a car identification system that will rank vehicles by
For years, homeowners who bought solar panels were advised to mount them on the roof facing south. That captures the most solar energy over the course of the day, which benefits the homeowner, but does so at hours that are not so helpful for the utility and the grid as a whole. Mount them to
