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.

The Freight Transport Association has warned commercial vehicle operators to keep their older vans out of London as the new Low Emission Zone comes into effect on the 3rd January 2012. This will apply to Y-registration and some 51 plate vans, as well as even older vans.

If you run a fleet of vans (or just one) and want to understand the new charges being applied, then the FTA has produced an LEZ compliance guide which is available for FTA members to download at www.fta.co.uk/lez

If you are unsure if your van is compliant or not you can also check this by entering your vehicle registration mark at the Transport For London website. This will also affect minibuses and motor caravans as well.

Natalie Chapman, FTA’s Head of Policy for London, said,”The penalties are such that non-compliance is simply not an option. Research by the FTA shows that fortunately, most large HGV fleet operators will be fully compliant with, or prepared for, the move up from Euro 3 to Euro 4 standard engines. However, for tradespeople operating vans over ten years old the LEZ will be an entirely new consideration and, therefore, preparedness will be far lower. This is where our immediate concern lies”.

If you are a small business running an older van and you need to get a new van quickly then we have the full range of commercial vehicles up to 3.5 tonnes on van contract hire available now. The LEZ requirements mean that vans will have to meet Euro 3 standards if you want to avoid a fine of £500, or face a daily charge of £100 to operate in and out of London.

New Mazda3

Fleet operators and company car drivers will benefit from financial savings when the new Mazda3 goes on UK sale early in 2012. The upgraded Mazda3 range features 16 standard models with a choice of two petrol and two diesel engines (with three power outputs) and for the first time the line-up includes a Mazda3 1.6 Sport Diesel. This is the model that Mazda believes will find favour with fleet operators and company car drivers alike.

Combined CO₂ emissions are cut by up to 3.5 percent depending on model, alongside improvements in fuel consumption, mean reduced petrol and diesel bills and savings in benefit-in-kind (BIK) tax for company car drivers. And of course for fleet operators this means lower Vehicle Excise Duty and National Insurance payments.

The 1.6 Sport Diesel and 1.6 Sport Nav Diesel offer competitive CO₂ emissions (115g/km), combined cycle fuel economy of 65.7mpg and a standard vehicle specification that includes a Bose audio system, heated sports seats, 17-inch alloy wheels and side skirts.

The new Mazda3 range offers a choice of six trim levels – S, TS, TS², TS² Nav, Sport and Sport Nav – as well as from launch the special edition 1.6 Tamura and 1.6D Tamura. The range has more muscular visual appeal with a new front end design, a revised rear bumper and new twist-spoke alloy wheel designs. Inside, you get new materials and colours, improved ease-of-use for the driver and a quieter cabin.

SEAT Ecomotive model

Camps International is the ethical travel company that offers a range of gap year volunteering experiences and school expeditions to areas across the world including East Africa, South East Asia and Latin America. The company has just taken delivery of a dozen SEAT Ecomotive models to add to its company car fleet, allowing them to slash their fuel bills while reducing CO2 emissions and employee tax liability.

Group Financial Controller of Camps International, Carl Palmer, said,”We were looking at all the options, but the SEAT Ecomotive range ticked all the boxes for us. We’re a carbon neutral company and we take our responsibility to the environment very seriously which is why it was very important that we opted for a clean car with low emissions. But we were also incredibly impressed with the fuel economy of the Ibiza and Leon Ecomotives, and the savings we could make by running them”.

The Leon E Ecomotive emits 99g/km CO2 emissions and returns 74.3 combined mpg while the Ibiza E Ecomotive emits even less at 92g/km and returns a fuel figure of 80.7mpg.  And of course both models will be exempt from the London Congestion Charge. SEAT contract hire on all models is on the site now.

Do you need a new van?

London’s new Low Emission Zone requires larger vans, minibuses and other specialist diesel vehicles to meet “Euro 3″ emission standards if they are able to drive freely in the new zone, which comes into effect on the 3rd January 2012. Research conducted by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) has found that out of the 3.57 million vans on UK roads at the end of 2012, over 31% were not eligible.

The new legislation will result in many van operators having to pay a daily charge to enter the zone. Usually, “Euro 3″ vehicles are those that have been registered after the 1st January 2002, so if you run a commercial vehicle that is older than 10 years from January next year, you may well be affected.

Paul Everitt, Chief Executive of the SMMT, said,”It’s not only emissions that improve when owners and operators upgrade, fuel efficiency also gets better, returning real-world benefits on top of the LEZ savings. SMMT anticipates a slight rise in commercial vehicle registrations in this last quarter of 2011 as owners and operators buy-into more efficient, compliant vehicles. The CV market has been strong all year and is up 20% for the year-to-date. It’s clear that those businesses and individuals running vans and trucks in the capital have already begun to renew their vehicles and we’ll be watching with interest how the market performs over the next few months.” 

If you are thinking about changing your commercial vehicle then we have all models available now on contract hire.

Further information about the Low Emission Zone can be found at the TfL website.

Toyota iQ

Toyota has been awarded the title of “Greenest Car Manufacturer” by cleangreencars.co.uk and is the first manufacturer in the UK to dip below 130g/km level for mean carbon emissions across their range.

cleangreancars.co.uk has calculated that the average emissions are 129.15g/km. The Prius leads the way with CO2 emissions from 89g/km, however iQ, Aygo, Yaris, Urban Cruiser and Auris all offer low CO2 car emissions as well.

Lexus RX 450h

The luxury Lexus RX 450h SUV achieved an average 54.75mpg on the FleetWorld/ALD MPG Marathon. That is pretty good going for a vehicle that weighs over two tonnes and is powered by a 3.5-litre V6 petrol engine, as well as the Lexus Hybrid Drive powertrain.

The results were achieved by Lexus’s driving team of David Crouch and Richard Lacey and this excellent fuel performance coupled with a low CO2 emissions rating of only 148g/km make the Lexus an appealing car leasing package.

Fiat 500

Fiat has demonstrated its commitment to low CO2 emission cars by reducing its average CO2 emissions figure on cars sold in Europe, during the first half of 2009, to 129.1g/km.

The figure has been corroborated by leading automotive adviser, JATO and shows Fiat is the only mainstream car manufacturer to achieve the European average goal of sub 130g/km by 2015 -five years early.

Of the top brands Fiat is ahead of the following;

- Toyota 132.9g/km

- Peugeot 134.5g/km

- Citroen 138.1g/km

- Renault 138.9g/km

- Ford 140.4g/km

- Opel (GM) 149.5g/km

- Volkswagen 152.5g/km

- Audi 162.6g/km

- Mercedes 178.8g/km

Fiat has led the way on green technology with MultiAir technology on petrol engines, MultiJet diesel engines eco:Drive and Start&Stop which has helped them to the top spot in low CO2 cars.

smart BRABUS

smart is adding a new service which will provide all smart car drivers the opportunity to personalise their car with a splash of colour. The smart BRABUS tailor made concept was launched this week and will enable smart car drivers to choose from an array of colours from both inside and out of the car.

smart BRABUS

Dermot Kelly, Managing Director of Mercedes-Benz Cars said “smart has always been regarded as an iconic and unique product and the launch of smart BRABUS tailor made will enhance that reputation”.

smart cars will also provide a company driver with a low CO2 vehicle with excellent fuel economy thereby saving you money in the long term.

VW Passat BlueMotion

A new European study by the Environmental Transport Association (ETA) has found that car makers are going green, but British motorists are behind the rest of Europe. Portugese drivers are the greenest drivers when it comes to buying with an average CO2 emissions rate of 138g/km (e.g VW Polo). The least greenest drivers comes from Latvia with a figure of 177g/km with Britain at 16th place at 158g/km.

Andrew Davis, Director at ETA said,”Car makers can build green cars, but they need us to buy them. The report found that strict new emissions laws are having a strong effect on the availability of cleaner cars but wealth, motoring taxes, fuel prices and consumer attitudes, which vary wildly from country to country across Europe, have much more of an effect on how clean a car is chosen”.

He went onto say,”There was a fuss in Britain when road tax increased for the most polluting cars but we are lax by European standards -we need a more sophisticated carrot and stick approach to encouraging people to drive lighter cars if we want to do better in next year’s league table”.The full report can be downloaded at www.transportenvironment.org

League table results:

Ranking 2008. Country/Average CO₂ 2008(g/km)/AverageCO₂ 2007/Rank 2007

1.    Portugal / 138 / 144 / 1
2.    France / 140 / 149 / 4
3.    Italy / 145 / 147 / 2
4.    Denmark / 146 / 160 / 12
5.    Malta / 147 / 148 / 3
6.    Belgium / 148 / 153 / 5
7.    Spain / 148 / 153 / 6
8.    Poland / 153 / 154 / 7
9.    Hungary / 153 / 155 / 10
10.   Czech Republic / 154 / 154 / 8
11.   Slovenia / 156 / 156 / 11
12.   Romania / 156 / 155 / 9
13.   Ireland / 157 / 162 / 13
14.   Netherlands / 158 / 165 / 15
15.   Austria / 158 / 163 / 16
16.   Great Britain / 158 / 165 / 16
17.   Luxembourg / 160 / 166 / 18
18.   Greece / 161 / 165 / 17
19.   Finland / 163 / 165 / 22
20.   Germany / 165 / 169 / 19
21.   Cyprus / 166 / 170 / 20
22.   Lithuania / 170 / 177 / 21
23.   Sweden / 174 / 181 / 23
24.   Estonia / 177 / 182 / 24
25.   Latvia / 181 / 183

Car makers – Ranking by average CO₂ in 2008

Ranking in 2008. Manufacturer/ranking 2007/ Average CO₂ in 2008(g/km)

1.    Fiat/ 2 / 138
2.    Peugeot-Citroen / 1 / 139
3.    Renault / 3 / 143
4.    Toyota / 4 / 147
5.    Hyundai / 7 / 149
6.    Ford / 8 / 152
7.    GM / 5 / 153
8.    Honda / 6 / 154
9.    BMW / 12 / 154
10.   Suzuki / 9 / 156
11.   Mazda / 13 / 158
12.   VW / 10 / 159
13.   Nissan / 11 / 161
14.   Daimler / 14 / 175