Jaguar XF

Jaguar has just launched two new XF models, the SE Business and Sport editions and has also been voted ‘Executive Car of the Year’ by BusinessCar.co.uk

Paul Barker, Editor of BusinessCar said: ‘Jaguar’s XF has proved its appeal to the business car market with appeal to both the heart and the head thanks to its stylish looks and good running costs. Jaguar has worked hard to improve the car’s attractiveness to corporate drivers with the excellent new 2.2-litre engine, and is making further improvements that will only enhance the XF’s chances of retaining this award – decided by the readers of BusinessCar – in 2013.’

The SE Business comes with the new 2.2-litre Diesel 163 PS output engine and adds satellite navigation with seven inch touchscreen and HDD mapping to the standard specification, which includes intelligent start stop, a 400W sound system with DAB digital radio, leather and suedecloth seats and bi-Xenon headlights.

The Sport model is based on the more powerful 2.2 Diesel 190 PS engine and adds the full aerodynamic pack which includes a revised front bumper, a black grille element, side sill extensions, a subtle rear boot lid spoiler and a black rear valance.

The XF Sport also features half leather suedecloth seats, bond grain trim and a dove contrast stitch as well as electric driver and passenger adjustment. Piano black trim with ‘Sport’ decals on the centre console are matched with stainless steel foot pedals, plus heated front windscreen and front seats, a front parking aid, reversing camera and 60/40 folding rear seats.

Fiat 500 TwinAir

The Fiat 500 has just won the City Car honours in the 2012 BusinessCar Awards, for the fourth consecutive year. This award is voted for by the readers of BusinessCar magazine and is decided entirely by the business car industry, carrying with it the approval of the fleet market. The vote was also for the entire 500 range rather than just a specific model showing how extensive the Fiat 500 range is.

“Fiat’s 500 has again proved to be a business car market favourite, and Fiat’s advancement with its TwinAir technology has enhanced the excellent city car’s appeal to the sector,” commented Paul Barker, editor, BusinessCar. “The readers of BusinessCar are obviously fans of the 500’s combination of fun and frugality, having picked it as their favourite city car for the fourth year in a row.”

The Fiat 500 is available with a choice of low CO2 emissions Euro 5 engines, the 85bhp 0.9-litre TwinAir, 69 bhp 1.2-litre and 100bhp 1.4-litre petrol, and the 95 bhp 1.3-litre MultiJet turbodiesel. Fiat 500 contract hire is on the site on all models.

BMW 1 Series

The new BMW 1-series has just been voted the “2012 Business Car of the Year”, after the readers of BusinessCar magazine and www.businesscar.co.uk chose it as the best product that meets the needs of a company and their drivers alike. 

BMW had a successful awards ceremony, with the German brand also collecting the Manufacturer of the Year prize, plus the Green Model of the Year for the ultra-efficient 320d ED model. There there were also sector wins for the BMW 3-series, BMW 7-series and BMW X5, as well as the BMW-owned Mini hatchback.

“BMW’s impressive and class-leading combination of desirability, efficiency and driving pleasure has again shown itself with this haul of awards, decided by the readers of BusinessCar, proving that the brand is at the forefront of the company car market,” said BusinessCar Editor Paul Barker. “Across the range there is a model for every level of employee, each one offering low tax bills, good running costs and the premium BMW badge. The people running these vehicles and giving them to their staff obviously appreciate the job BMW is doing.”

The BusinessCar Awards are awarded with votes entirely by the readers of the publication and their website, so therefore the BMW range was recognised by the very people that are likely to use the cars on a daily basis. We have the full range of BMW 1 Series models on BMW contract hire on the site now.

For the full list of winners see http://www.businesscar.co.uk/awards

Octavia Green E Line

SKODA has just started road testing the new Octavia Green E Line, their first pure electric vehicle, and is working closely with the Volkswagen Group to gain practical experience with electric propulsion.

The Octavia Green E Line test fleet is based on the Octavia Combi as the chassis from the Combi is ideal for holding the battery, electronic controllers and electric motor. The Octavia Green E line is ideal for inner-city driving and will reach 0-62mph in 12 seconds and onto a top speed of just under 84mph.

The battery pack is situated under the middle and rear floor panel and in part of the boot so is well hidden, allowing the car to seat five adults, plus it has a range of around 93 miles. It takes around 8 hours to fully charge at 230V (single-phase AC) and 2 hours at 400 V (three-phase AC).

In addition to developing its first electric vehicle, SKODA is also continue to bring cars to the market that offer fuel-efficient economical engines with low CO2 emissions. The brand has seven models that manage an average CO2 of less than 100g/km and a total of 63 models that emit less than 130g/km.

If you are interested in finding some of the lowest CO2 cars on the market today, have a go on our Vehicle Type shopper. Just select the type of car (or van) you are looking for and set the range of CO2. You can also see the latest business contract hire (or personal) prices too.

Contract hire offer

The Ford Fiesta is the nation’s favourite seller and we have contract hire prices for business leasing on the site from only £119.93+VAT. This rate is for the Ford Fiesta 1.25 Studio 3-door hatchback and is based on a three-year contract, 10,000 miles per annum, non-maintained, with a six rentals in advance payment, followed by 23 subsequent payments. 

If you are looking for affordable motoring then the Ford Fiesta 1.25 Studio returns 51.4 combined mpg and emits 127g/km of CO2, so it’s not only tax efficient but economical too. Other terms are available from our car finance partner so fill out a Contact Form today for more information.

Contract hire offer

The Volkswagen Golf recorded great sales in 2011 and is known as one of the UK’s most favourite diesel cars. We have a contract hire offer on the site for a Volkswagen Golf 1.6 TDi S 3-door diesel hatchback from only £210.27+VAT per month on a two year deal. Terms are based on a non-maintenance business contract hire agreement, 24 months term, 10,000 miles per annum and six rentals in advance. Other terms are available on request.

The Volkswagen Golf 1.6 TDi S 3-door diesel hatchback provides a combined mpg of 62.8 and emits only 118g/km of CO2 making it an ideal family hatchback, as well as a tax efficient company car for any business fleet. More details can be obtained from our car finance partner by filling out a Contact Form.

Click for more details

A Ford Focus 1.6 TDCi Zetec S 5-door diesel hatchback has just been loaded onto the site from only £204.31+VAT per month on Ford business car leasing. This quality Ford hatchback returns 67.3 combined mpg and emits only 109g/km so it is an ideal company car for any fleet driver and is highly fuel efficient.

The terms of the special offer offer are based on a 4-year term, 6 rentals in advance, non-maintained contract,10,000 miles per annum and other terms are available from our car finance partner on request. If you are interested in finding our more details just fill out the Contact Form.

CLICK for business car leasing offer

The Vauxhall Insignia 2.0 CDTi Exclusiv diesel 5-door hatchback is currently on offer on the site from only £216.98+VAT on business car leasing. This great fleet car returns 60.1 combined mpg and emits only 124g/km of CO2 emissions so is an ideal company car for any fleet driver.

The Vauxhall Insignia business car leasing offer is based a on 4-year term, 6+47 rental profile, non-maintained lease at 10,000 miles per annum with other contract terms available from our car finance partner. Metallic paint colours available at an extra cost.

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) has released the October new car registrations data and the new car market seems to have stabilised. The total UK car sales in October were 134,944 units (up 2.6%) and this is the second increase in three months. The market is still on track to achieve the full year prediction of 1.923 million units, however the SMMT remains cautious about sales in 2012.

Paul Everitt, SMMT Chief Executive, said,”October’s new car market rose 2.6% on last year -a positive result despite the uncertain economic climate. We expect market conditions to remain challenging and hope the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement later this month will help to boost economic growth and consumer confidence”.

Headlines from the October data

• Registrations in October were helped by a sharp recovery in the small car markets, with the Supermini segment up 17.4% and the Mini segment up 4.7%
• The Ford Fiesta was the best selling model on October and year to date
• The Volkswagen Golf was the best selling diesel model in October
• The Fleet market (25 vehicles and above) grew by 7.9% to 73,712 car units registered
• Business regsitrations (sub 25 fleets) was also up by 9.7% to 6,189 units
• Private sector (consumers) fell by 4.3% to 55,043 units

Volkswagen Golf BlueMotion

The Volkswagen Golf BlueMotion has just added another green award to its bulging trophy cabinet having been named as Green Vehicle of the Year at the 2011 AFCO Fleet Awards last week. ACFO (Association of Car Fleet Operators) is the UK’s largest body representing UK businesses which run fleets of cars or commercial vehicles.

The Volkswagen Golf BlueMotion offers a combined fuel economy of 74.3mpg and emits just 99g/km of CO2 and this award comes shortly after What Car? named the BlueMotion “small green family car” and Auto Express gave the car its Green Award honour.

The Volkswagen Passat and Golf models were also shortlisted for the ACFO Fleet Car of Year award and the Volkswagen Caddy was nominated in the Small Van of the Year category. Volkswagen contract hire is on the site now for all models.