The EV Powered team choose their favourite converted classics, from much-loved city runarounds to ‘sacrilegious’ supercars

The topic of electrifying classic cars is a controversial one. For every voice claiming that it’s defiling history, there’s another arguing that it’s helping keep more old cars alive.

Here at EV Powered, we tend to agree with recent interview guest, Richard Morgan. He reckons the powertrain is often the weak link in a classic car and by adding electric power you can make it more fun, more reliable and, ultimately, more usable.

So with his words ringing in our ears, we set out to run down our 10 favourite classic EV conversions.

Everrati Mercedes-Benz SL

Mercedes’ W113 SL – better known as the Pagoda – is one of those cars that a lot of classic car people get very excited about. So it might seem a risky move ripping out the engine and dropping in an electric alternative. But Everatti disagrees. As far as the UK-based converter is concerned, it’s the perfect candidate, blending timeless design with cutting-edge drive technology, and modern luxuries such as heated seats and Bluetooth connectivity. Every one of the £400,000 cars is a bespoke build developed with input from the customer, but under the skin every car gets a rear-mounted 300bhp motor and a 68kWh battery good for up to 200 miles of open-air showboating.

Electric Classic Cars Fiat 500

The car making world seems obsessed with creating a new generation of truly compact city-friendly EVs. Well Electric Classic Cars already has the answer. The Welsh wizards have taken the world’s first true city car – Fiat’s iconic Cinquecento – and given it a 21st-century twist. A tiny car means a tiny battery and motor – think 15kWh and 40bhp – but the range is still a city-friendly 70 miles and the motor still produces more than twice what the old two-stroke petrol managed. Ideal for keeping up with the modern cut and thrust. The conversion has even made the 500 more practical. Without a fuel tank for the rear-mounted engine, there’s more space for luggage than when it left Lingotto back in the 1950s.

Lunaz Range Rover Safari

Silverstone-based Lunaz offers a variety of conversions for Jaguar Land Rover products, but this particular one is guaranteed to draw plenty of attention. The baby blue roofless Rangey is inspired by a lesser-known James Bond car and was built to order for a customer. While the three-door body looks original, a lot of structural strengthening and chassis engineering went into ensuring the car could cope with the 375bhp electric motor that replaced the old 3.5-litre V8. Along with a modern powertrain, the Safari gets a thoroughly modern interior with hard-wearing leather upholstery, heated seats, air conditioning and an Apple and Android-compatible infotainment screen. And despite the changes, the Range Rover retains all of its famous off-road prowess.

Electric Classic Cars T25 Syncro

Speaking of off-road… Volkswagen’s famous Transporter isn’t best known for its mud-plugging abilities but the Syncro system that debuted on the T25 gave the iconic microbus some serious off-road ability. Electric Classic Cars has taken that a step further. It has replaced the asthmatic flat-four engine with a 161bhp electric unit while retaining the all-wheel-drive transmission and fitting some chunky off-road tyres to keep its off-road prowess. The firm has also dropped a whopping 90kWh battery in to ensure plenty of scope for wild adventuring. And it has kitted the “Wedge” out with a complete camping kit, including cooker, sink, lights and even solar panels, plus power steering and air conditioning for a more comfortable drive.

Electrogenic Delorean DMC-12

If ever there was a car crying out for an EV conversion, it’s the Delorean DMC-12. Even 44 years after it went out of production it still looks like it’s from the future. And that image is only enhanced by its place in sci-fi history. But for all its sporty futuristic appearance, the DMC-12 was ultimately powered by a slightly pathetic Renault V6 with just 125bhp. Electrogenic has fixed that, though, replacing it with a rear-mounted 215bhp electric motor that will get it from 0-60mph in just five seconds. It’s also added a 43kWh battery for 150 miles of range and revitalised the interior with all the mod cons Doc Brown could ask for.

Frontline MG BEE

The Frontline MG BEE is an intriguing blend of the old and the new that addresses the oft-repeated claim about EVs being unengaging. Externally, you’d never tell this wasn’t a regular 1972 MG B. Every element from the wire wheels to the chromed filler cap looks period correct. Inside it all looks pretty familiar too, there’s even still a gear lever. And that’s for good reason. The clever team at Frontline have married a Xbhp motor with a five-speed Mazda gearbox. The innovative setup delivers the smooth, silent and dependable power beloved by EV drivers with the classically involving three-pedal driving experience so associated with the iconic British sports car.

Electric Classic Cars Ferrari Teslarossa

Like the Delorean, the Ferrari Testarossa is one of those 1980s cars that became iconic thanks to its on-screen appearances in TV and video games. Its appeal is easy to see – sharp Pininfarina lines that scream performance, the famous prancing horse badge, and a growling flat-12 mounted behind the cabin. But with Italian style and performance comes Italian unpredictability and nobody wants to be stuck at the side of a motorway with a gently smoking Ferrari. Not only does ECC’s conversion replace that unreliable lump with a dependable e-motor, it also sorts the poor weight distribution for better handling, upgrades the suspension and brakes, and boosts power from a meager 380bhp to 600bhp. What’s not to like?

Lunaz Rolls-Royce Phantom

It’s long been said that electric power is the perfect fit for Rolls-Royce. For a brand that prides itself on the smooth, near-silent running of its cars, the benefits of a combustion-free powertrain are obvious. Rolls-Royce has embraced this with the Spectre, but Lunaz reckons that older cars are just as deserving of the electric treatment. So well-heeled buyers with a spare million can commission their own 1961 Phantom V with the firm’s proprietary battery and motor setup, which delivers 375bhp and a range of 250 miles from an 80kWh battery. Each one of the coachbuilt cars undergoes a full restoration and modernisation, getting a retrimmed interior and modern infotainment systems all fitted in-house. And just 30 are planned, ensuring true Rolls-Royce levels of exclusivity.

Inverted Land Rover

Proving again that electric power can enhance rather than harm an old vehicle is the Inverted Toyota Land Rover Series. Never celebrated for their powertrains, Inverted has taken the legendary Series I, II and III models and given the Great British off-roader a major upgrade. Under the skin is a single 62kWh battery and a single electric motor. That motor sends its 160bhp and 664lb ft of torque straight to the original transfer box to provide the off-road capability for which the Land Rover has always been famous. It means the electrified Series Land Rovers maintain their high/low ratio transmissions and a locking differential for particularly tough terrain, while being able to cover up to 120 miles on a charge.

Electrogenic Citroen DS

The Citroen DS was so ahead of its time in many ways. The glorious Bertoni-penned bodywork, the radical hydropneumatic suspension and the luxurious avant garde interior. But its 2.0-litre engine never quite matched the innovation elsewhere, meaning this French icon is ripe for electric conversion. Delivered to meet a bespoke customer commission, the Electrogenic DS uses a 120bhp Hyper9 motor which drives the car through its original manual gearbox, and a 48.5kWh battery good for 140 miles of driving. As well as creating a powertrain to suit the car’s graceful image, Electrogenic went a step further and replaced the noisy old suspension pump with a bespoke silent electric unit for an even more serene drive.

Read more:
Ageing gracefully: The top 10 electric classic car conversions

With the upcoming RallyX Americas series, electric RX is finally on the cusp of being done properly. We were joined by Andreas Eriksson, the ‘wizard’ helping shape it, to discuss the tech, the attitude and the hard work that are set to make a difference.

The FIA World Rallycross Championship didn’t have to die that way, did it? Despite a few last-minute attempts to get it back to where it was during its heyday, it was never going to work.

Not even a return to Freeview, or bringing back Andrew ‘the voice’ Coley to the commentary box, could repair the damage done behind the scenes. When the FIA brought the series back under its control (instead of keeping it outsourced) for the 2025 season, it was too little, too late.

When the final death knell came in October last year two-time World Rally Champion, Marcus Grönholm, lamented to EV Powered: “to blame the collapse of World RX completely on EVs? I don’t think that’s correct”.

The Big Finn knows a thing or two about rallycross. After retiring from the WRC, he went on to compete for the Swedish Olsbergs-MSE team run by Andreas Eriksson in Euro RX, and then in US rallycross’ various guises.

Grönholm’s son, Niclas, also enjoyed a successful nine-year World RX career, which started with Eriksson’s outfit back in 2016.

Eriksson, then, understands what makes rallycross work. He’s been involved as a driver and manager for more than 20 years, securing wins at the wheel, championships as a team leader, and helping introduce the sport to the United States via the Global Rallycross (GRC) in 2014.

He has, possibly better than anyone involved in the sport, grasped the formula behind what’s needed to make RX a success in everything from onboarding manufacturers to understanding what the fans want.

When the elder Grönholm referred to his friend and former employer as “some kind of rallycross wizard,” it’s hard to disagree.

‘EVs weren’t the problem’

“I completely agree with Marcus that the problem with World RX wasn’t the electric cars,” Eriksson told us from his workshop in Sweden. “It was just poor decision after poor decision, and to replace the Supercar class with a new car was not the right way to implement EVs into rallycross. Changes are hard enough to do as it is, without striking a balance of old and new understanding.

“We need a platform to create rallycross stars of the future, and the only way to make motorsport professional is to be part of the evolution of where car manufacturers and the car market is going,” he explains. “By forcing World RX to go fully electric was too early, a lot of hatred was created towards EVs.”

In his case for an electric rallycross series, Eriksson draws on his knowledge of co-founding the Red Bull GRC during the years in the build up to its inaugural 2011 season.

“When we started competing in the GRC with Marcus and Topi [Heikkinen] driving the Ford Fiesta, that was the perfect time for that car and the sport,” he says. “Up until that point, the US car industry had gone from V8, to V6, and it was then making the transition to in-line four turbos.

“With that small car, we were a perfect fit to show what you could do with a small, lively engine and up until politics got involved again, it worked, because it was a brilliant championship. We brought on names like Ken Block, Travis Pastrana, Scott Speed…

“Now in this world of electric cars, and there’s no escaping them because in Europe we now sell more EVs than ICEs, I originally thought that World RX was too late in going electric, but we were five years too early – it’s taken the battery tech and the infrastructure that long to catch up.”

‘It’s not about us, it’s about the future’

But with the tech now in the right place, for Eriksson, the key to successful electric rallycross lies very much in the future.

In a stark contrast to the FIA’s top-down order to make World RX electric-only “in a response to the Dieselgate scandal”, Eriksson’s approach is about working with the manufacturers and tech suppliers to give them a playground where they can showcase the capabilities of EV tech.

“Maybe I’m one of the crazy ones, but I’m always trying to think what will happen in five years time. That’s how I see the world,” he contemplates.

While the FIA is playing checkers with a possible, bio-fuelled return for World RX in 2028, Eriksson is playing 4D chess by using the current trends of the automotive industry as his yardstick.

“We need to tell a story that EVs are cool, and the only sport that can ever do justice to an electric powertrain is rallycross, because it’s about 100% performance in every corner and ultra-quick acceleration,” he says. “It’s up to us to understand what is relevant for the current generation of car buyers, then the next generation – I think we can see where they’re going, and that’s EVs.

“I think if we, those of us who are over 35, pursue our own interests and get stuck in our world where we think something is fantastic, that’s when you get a decline of interest. It’s not about us.”

Coming to America

As the FIA flip-flops, Eriksson is putting his plan into action under the ‘RallyX Americas’ banner. Oh, that’s another thing he’s achieved in his career – he founded the RallyX series as a platform to develop a roster of professional rallycross drivers.

With the likes of Niclas Grönholm, Timmy Hansen, and Ole-Christian Veiby, having all competed there at some point in their RX careers, RallyX is yet another success story the quietly-spoken Eriksson can add to his name.

As for the ‘Americas’ moniker, he explains, “that’s because they know how to put on a better show than we do in Europe – if it’s a success there, it’ll be successful in Europe. That’s what we saw with GRC, because that started a few years before World RX was even a thing, then it really blew up over here.”

The opening three rounds of RallyX Americas have been co-developed with assistance from USAC, America’s answer to the FIA. So the inaugural 2026 RallyX Americas season will begin with a two-race event over the weekend of June 20-21 at the Crandon International Raceway in Wisconsin.

Faster, more extreme, more fun

The car used to compete is the FC1, developed by FirstCorner. Having been around since 2022 and earned its stripes in Nitrocross and the Race of Champions, Eriksson is keen to stress that FC1 is a platform, rather than a car.

Right now, the FC1 visually echoes an SUV coupé. Yet given Eriksson’s goal of working alongside manufacturers, it can be adapted to accommodate any sort of bodystyle. The sky, then, is indeed the limit. The first cars that came to my mind were Subaru’s upcoming electric STi, or any of Ford’s promised ‘rally-focused’ EVs.

“Developing the FC1, I realised we need to make something much faster, and much more extreme than anyone has ever done before. At the end of the day, even your mum’s standard EV is quick,” Eriksson outlines. “It’s my vision of how an electric performance car should be, and it’s open to the manufacturers to put their body and maybe add some of their technologies into it in the future.”

The numbers surrounding the FC1 are mind-boggling. Its quad-motor, all-wheel-drive setup generates up to 1,500bhp and 663lb ft of torque. The 0-60mph run is dealt with in a mere 1.5 seconds, and subjects the driver to 3G under acceleration while doing so.

In line with Eriksson’s outlook on what a performance EV should be and do, Olsbergs-MSE has developed a three-speed manual gearbox. It’s not a synthetic unit, either. The transmission is a proper mechanical linkage connecting the FC1’s front and rear ends.

“When we did this, everyone laughed at us and said you don’t need that,” he explains. ”But we looked at the data and quickly understood that if we were limited in acceleration we had good top speed, but if we had no top speed, we didn’t have good acceleration.

“To achieve both, we added a gearbox and added a prop shaft, so we connected the front and rear mechanically.”

The ‘rallycross wizard’ has even looked so far ahead, that the issue of sound – one of the biggest criticisms levelled at the electric era in World Rallycross – has been dealt with. Yet again, Eriksson feels that the solution to RX’s noise debate isn’t rooted in the past.

“It’s not a noise made like the old four-cylinder turbos in World RX or GRC. I don’t think that’s the right thing to do,” he says candidly. “Instead, we’ve replicated the noise of the electric motors and the drivetrain heard by the driver. We know the FC1 platform is tremendously fast, but the fans can’t experience what the driver feels.

“We’ve worked with Kicker and Borla to develop a 120dB speaker system on the car, so they can hear and feel the same thing as the driver inside. It’s the sort of sound we’re hearing from performance road cars these days – it’s not a fake V8 noise, it’s its own thing authentic to EVs.”

Opening the door to teams and fans

The FC1 platform is priced from between €400,000 and €500,000 to buy outright, including batteries, and all charging infrastructure; a stark contrast to the almost €800k sum commanded by the final generation of World RX cars.

To keep costs sensible, teams can also rent a car and equipment on a race-by-race basis, meaning that the inaugural RallyX Americas championship can be done for €100,000.

To stop RallyX Americas from closing the door on curious teams, the organisers will handle teams’ transport, and the tracks are already built.

For the fans, the racing will be free-to-view on YouTube, and the paddock will be an open space where they can get up close to the cars and the latest EV tech surrounding them. It’ll be something like the Goodwood Festival of Speed’s ‘Electric Avenue’, albeit with more dust, noise, and fewer people wearing red corduroy trousers.

Eriksson’s vision and bloody-minded dedication to electric rallycross appear to have paid off. Already, there are between nine and 12 cars entered for Crandon in a couple of weeks, and RallyX Americas has already attracted a healthy roster of big Rallycross names.

While Timmy Hansen and Tommi Hallman are confirmed, Eriksson won’t confirm to us who the rest are. However, Grönholm, Timmy’s brother, Kevin, Lia Block, and Tanner Foust are just a handful mentioned. It’s a similar case for the interested manufacturers. However, Olsbergs-MSE, Hansen Motorsport, and S.E.T. Promotion are outfits locked in for 2026.

We’re promised we’ll find out everything soon enough, though.

Always moving forward

Before a wheel has even been turned at the season opener, Eriksson is once again looking into the future beyond RallyX Americas, and where the next ‘big things’ lie in terms of EV tech.

“First of all, we need to prove to the manufacturers and the fans that we are different, because we have an excellent platform with the FC1, we can keep costs down, and we want to be open in showing what EVs are capable of.

“We want to bring new fans in, and show them that electric cars aren’t something to dismiss or be scared of – in fact, they’re pretty exciting.

“We’re already looking at introducing solid-state batteries to the next-gen car, and we’re very close to doing that,” he says in closing. “SSBs will give us quicker charge times, better discharge rates, and a bigger range to put on longer races.

“Then there’s battery storage solutions and vehicle-to-grid. Why shouldn’t we be looking at using the FC1 to power, or at least partially power our teams’ set-ups?”

And just like that, the brilliant mind of the “rallycross wizard” stands on the cusp of making electric RX great again.

Read more:
Andreas Eriksson: ‘If we don’t do electric RX now, we’ve missed the window’

The Internet has had much to say about the Ferrari Luce, most of it angry. We asked automotive designer Nir Kahn to cut through the hyperbole and get to the bottom of why Ferrari’s debut EV has caused such a stir.

It was all a bit silly, wasn’t it? Not the Ferrari Luce itself, but the blood-spitting outrage surrounding it.

When Ferrari launched its first all-electric car late on Monday night, to say it split the room is an understatement. And as always happens, the usual contingent were already lamenting the “death of Ferrari” before motoring publications worldwide had written up their reports.

Those of red trousers and matching faces decried its non-traditional looks as “a computer mouse on wheels” or compared it to a Toyota Prius. They also suggested that Enzo Ferrari, a personal friend of theirs, of course, would be “spinning in his grave” at the thought of electricity powering one of Maranello’s finest, rather than a ‘thoroughbred’ V8 or V12.

If you know anything at all about Enzo Ferrari, then you’ll know he’d not care for the exaggerated outpouring of grief and really quite cringy fawning. His primary goal was to sell cars to fund his race teams. Considering the Luce is priced from around €500,000, “The Old Man” would be laughing all the way to the bank.

Then there were the threats of violence issued towards the Luce’s designers, Sir Joni Ive and Marc Newson. Sure, the Luce is no 458 Italia, but to menace those behind what’s essentially a lump of (very expensive) aluminium and quite a lot of cow is pathetic.

That sort of behaviour reflects poorly on all of us in the car community. There is absolutely no place for it.

Finally, and my biggest point of confusion, is that Ferrari has said nowhere that the Luce’s divisive design language will influence its future internal-combustion models. Nor has it said it will become an EV-only brand in the future. So… where’s the problem, exactly?

To cut through the online noise and my one-sided opinions, EV Powered reached out to automotive designer, Nir Kahn, to provide some much-needed clarity around what’s already one of the most divisive and controversial cars of recent years.

Here’s what he had to say: “As the first electric Ferrari, the Luce was always going to have a hard time from people who are very passionate about the brand. The company seems to have leaned into that inevitable ire by making it not very Ferrari-like in appearance either.

“I don’t think that this in and of itself was a mistake or a bad idea. It’s quite acceptable for it to have a different aesthetic from a combustion-engined Ferrari.

“I think that what is bothering most people is not that it doesn’t look like Ferraris of the past, it’s that it doesn’t look like it’s moving. This is the source of the complaint that it looks more like a computer mouse than a car.

“Cars are dynamic products and especially for one with sporty aspirations from the most historied sports car maker on the planet, they really need to project motion in a way that static products don’t. This is what Sir Jony Ive and Marc Newson have seemingly failed to appreciate – they are very accomplished and talented industrial designers, but they are not car designers and it shows.

The Ferrari is not a bad piece of car design in its own right. There is nothing wrong with the overall design language, the problem is that it’s not very Maranello.

“It could have worked just fine for an EV marque selling an appliance, but a Ferrari demands a certain dynamism that the Luce lacks, and its visual weight is pulling it down rather than pushing it forwards.

“It’s not an especially bad design for a car and it has a lot of nice details and surfacing, but the proportions are wrong for a Ferrari and whether the keyboard warriors realise it or not, I believe that this is the source of their anger.”

Read more:
Op-ed: We asked a car designer for his honest take on the all-electric Ferrari Luce

Our guide to vehicle-to-grid technology, its benefits and drawbacks and what it means for EV owners.

The arrival of electric cars has brought a whole new world of jargon for drivers to get their heads around – from charging curves to kilowatt hours.

But one term that is getting an increasing amount of attention is vehicle-to-grid technology.

More and more car makers are talking about it and its potential to save money and perhaps the environment. So what is it and why should you care?

What is vehicle-to-grid?

In simple terms vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology allows an electric vehicle to send power stored in its battery back to the energy grid.

A lot of cars already support vehicle-to-load (V2L) charging, known as bi-directional charging. This is where small appliances such as laptops, coffee machines or e-bike chargers can be run from the car’s main high-voltage battery via an adaptor or in-car three-pin socket.

Vehicle-to-grid takes this further, allowing owners to send energy back and forth between their car and the national grid to help balance energy demand.

How does V2G work?

Unlike “normal” EVs which can only draw power to their batteries, cars equipped with V2G systems use special on-board hardware and dedicated chargers to send energy away from the vehicle. This hardware is managed by software which allow EVs, home chargers and the wider energy grid to communicate in real time. Doing this enables the technology to manage cars’ charging and discharging in line with wider energy demands and support the national supply. It can top up batteries when demand is low then send it back to the grid when demand is high.

While it sounds fairly simple, the technical process is very complicated.

At the home user end, the charger has to be able to convert AC from the grid to DC for storage in the EV battery. It then needs to be able to convert this back to AC in order to send it back to the grid. This requires very precise synchronisation with the grid. It also requires the car and charger to be in constant communication with the grid via complex software to make sure energy flow is matched to demand from both the grid and the car.

What are the benefits of V2G?

There are a few major benefits of V2G technology both financial and environmental.

Financially, V2G allows EV owners to charge their cars when demand and prices are low, then sell the energy back to the grid when demand and prices are high. It is thought that drivers could cut energy costs by 70% and make up to £320 per year by charging their cars at off-peak times then selling the energy back at peak periods.

For homeowners with solar panels, the benefits could be even greater – generating free energy from their home array then selling it on to the grid when needed.

V2G is also good for the environment as it means excess renewable energy can be stored in EVs for use later. This means wind and solar energy generation in low-demand times isn’t wasted or curtailed. It also means that the grid can draw on stored energy at peak times rather than placing more demand on fossil fuel power stations.

Widespread V2G use could also help stabilise the grid, smoothing out supply fluctuations and reducing the likelihood of power cuts.

What are the drawbacks of V2G?

Although V2G has clear benefits, there are issues around its adoption.

The first obstacle is the limited availability of compatible vehicles and chargers.

Beyond that, setting up V2G infrastructure and connecting it correctly with the national energy supply is nowhere near as simple or cheap as a regular single-direction home charger.

There are some concerns that an increase in charging cycles could accelerate battery degradation. However, it’s not clear how much effect this might have and some studies have suggested that cycles which keep the battery in its optimal charging window might help prolong battery life.

There’s also the issue of cost. While some systems use AC technology like current home chargers others use DC technology. These units are up to six times more expensive than a standard home wallbox, are far larger and more complex to install.

How far along is the UK in adopting it?

Despite lots of talk around V2G and various pilot schemes, the technology is still in its infancy in the UK.

Several manufacturers build cars that are V2G compatible, including Renault, Nissan, Volkswagen, Kia and Polestar, and some already offer it in other countries. However, most haven’t said when it will be offered on UK models or what hardware will be needed to make it work.

There’s also not much in the way of charging hardware. Just four companies in the UK offer chargers that can support V2G operations, and only three of them – Humax, Quasar and Zaptec – are compatible with domestic single-phase supplies.

V2G tariffs are also still under development. Octopus Energy trialled a bespoke V2G tariff in 2024 and plans to launch its “Power Pack” leasing bundle later this year. This will offer an EV lease deal on a BYD Dolphin, a Zaptec Pro home charger and free home charging for the duration of the vehicle lease.

Beyond that there’s not much on offer for drivers looking to explore V2G.

However, with the potential financial and environmental benefits and the number of brands exploring the technology, it seems likely that we’ll hear a lot more about vehicle-to-grid in the coming years.

Read more:
Vehicle-to-grid technology explained: Plugging in to the next big EV shift

With a solid range and low purchasing price on the used market, the first-gen Kia E-Niro ran so the EV6 could walk.

These days, Kia is synonymous with building world-class electric vehicles. To name but a few, the EV6 is considered at EV Powered to be a “landmark car”. Just this time last year, we described the EV3 crossover as “all-round excellence”.

Yet neither of these cars would be here without the quiet hero in the South Korean manufacturer’s all-electric line-up, the first-generation E-Niro. Launched in the UK for the 2020 model year, the E-Niro was one of the first all-electric crossovers to come with a reasonable price tag and a decent range.

Based on the same platform as the Kia Niro hybrid, the E-Niro retained all of its sibling’s sensible qualities, and combined them with the quietness and refinement that an electric powertrain brings. These qualities, amongst others, included sensible exterior dimensions, a generously-sized cabin, and a well-quipped, well-made interior.

While far from sporty, the E-Niro is also better to drive and more practical than its sister car. Its underfloor battery pack concentrates the weight lower down, and offers better practicality. The E-Niro has 451 litres of boot space with the rear seats up, compared to the hybrid’s 382 litres, and the plug-in hybrid’s 324 litres. Fold the rear bench, and the E-Niro’s boot expands to 1,405l.

Kia stopped making the Mk1 E-Niro in 2022. With prices starting around the £12,000 mark from an official Kia dealer, plus a range of up to 282 miles on long-range models, the E-Niro offers plenty of bang for buck as a used choice.

Don’t forget that the E-Niro comes from a time before the current obsession with touchscreens and ADAS. In other words, the interior comes with plenty of buttons and tactile switchgear. What’s more, the irritating bings and bongs will be kept to an absolute minimum, and you won’t have to go through the hassle of switching them off before each journey. This alone should be a major selling point.

Kia E-Niro UK history

Kia purposely kept things simple with the E-Niro’s naming system: Entry-level cars were named ‘2’, mid-trim cars were named ‘3’, and the top-tier model was named ‘4+’. Easy, right?

The first versions of the Kia E-Niro to make their way to the UK were those with a ‘long-range’ 64kWh battery and a 201bhp, front-mounted electric motor. For the 2021 model year, Kia introduced a 39kWh battery with 134bhp.

The shorter-range E-Niro shared its front-wheel drive layout with the big battery car, and also packed the same punchy 291lb ft of torque. When it comes to performance, the Kia E-Niro 64kWh could do the 0-62mph run in a Polestar 2-rivalling 7.8 seconds, while the 39kWh managed it in 9.8 seconds. Their top speeds were 104 and 96 mph respectively.

The E-Niro was heavily facelifted for 2023 and renamed the Niro EV and introduced a 68.4kWh battery to the range. By the time it was removed from sale in the UK at the start of 2026, the E-Niro and Niro EV had accounted for over half of all Kia EVs sold. Quite the achievement for a carmaker that only started building EVs in 2014.

Used Kia E-Niro equipment

Historically, Kia has always been generous with equipment and the E-Niro is no outlier. The entry-level 2 was available solely with the 39kWh battery, and came with single-zone climate control, eight-inch infotainment display, part-leather seats, automatic headlights and wipers, and an auto-dimming rear-view mirror. Assisted cruise control, keyless go, and 16-inch alloy wheels were also standard.

The Kia E-Niro 3 and 4+ were offered with one choice of battery – the larger, 64kWh pack. Kia packed the E-Niro 3 with a larger, 10.25-inch infotainment system, full-leather upholstery (whether it’s real or fake cow, we don’t know), plus a heated steering wheel and front seats. The 4+ introduces ventilated front seats, heated rear seats, a sunroof, and a JBL sound system.

Step inside the Kia E-Niro, and it quickly becomes obvious that the cabin is one of its biggest draws. Everything is logically laid out, with plenty of physical buttons for the HVAC, radio, and navigation that make it easier to use than a number of today’s ubiquitous screenfests.

In front of the driver sits a four-inch digital readout, displaying the speed, range, odometer, and remaining battery across two circular binnacles separated by a central screen. In another hark back to the past, the E-Niro’s steering wheel is an actual circle, and not a square… or a squircle.

Price, range, and running costs

Make no mistake, the Kia E-Niro is an affordable choice of second-hand EV. We scoured the Kia UK website for approved used models, and found 22 for sale via the country’s official dealer network.

The cheapest car was a 39kWh 2 model from 2021, with 53,351 miles on the clock and £12,495 price tag. Meanwhile, the most expensive was £17,295 – a 4+ car from 2020, with just 8,830 miles.

We also looked through AutoTrader, and found a total of 101 cars from a wide range of dealerships and private sellers. A 2021 4+ on 16,624 miles from an approved dealer was the priciest at £17,399. At the other end of the scale, the cheapest used E-Niro we found was a 159,000-mile 2020 car, priced at £5,995.

In short, there are plenty of E-Niros available for all sorts of budgets. It is also worth remembering each one is covered by Kia’s generous 100,000-mile/seven-year warranty.

As always, however, we urge you to buy from an approved dealer if you can. It may cost more up front, but it’s far less hassle in the unlikely event of something going wrong. More on reliability later, though…

The Kia E-Niro with the 39kWh battery has a range of 180 miles. Using a dedicated home charging tariff capped at 7p per kilowatt hour, you can charge it from 0-100% for £2.73. Cars with the 64kWh pack have a very respectable 282-mile range and will cost just £4.48 for the same charge. Using public charging will cost significantly more, though.

Unfortunately, the E-Niro lags some way behind newer rivals in the charging stakes. With a maximum charging speed of 100kW, a 10-80% top-up takes a sluggish 46 minutes. Using a 7kW wallbox, the smaller battery will take six hours to fully charge, while the larger will take 10 hours.

On April 1 2025, EVs became taxable under new government legislation, meaning they are no longer exempt from road tax. As such, all-electric cars registered from April 1, 2017 onwards will now be taxed £200 annually.

Kia E-Niro insurance

The Kia E-Niro is one of the more affordable EVs to insure. Cars with the 39kWh battery hover around group 20 (out of 50), while 64kWh models max out at group 26.

As always, shop around for insurance quotes, and remember that factors such as age, occupation, driving history, and whether you have on or off-street parking will be factored into the cost.

Used Kia E-Niro reliability, official recalls, and faults to look for

Like most other Kias, the E-Niro has proven itself to be a reliable buy. Throughout its life, it underwent no major recalls, and dealers have been continuously praised for their efficiency and excellent service.

In the 2024 What Car? reliability survey, the E-Niro ranked 5th out 25 EVs, and even ranked higher than the newer EV6 and the best-selling Tesla Model 3.

The ‘one to have’

If it were our money, the Kia E-Niro we’d buy would be the mid-range 3 model. The 282-mile range from the 64kWh battery is more than capable of handling both day-to-day and long journeys.

That lovely, button-heavy interior gets all of the equipment you’d need, and you’ll thank your hands and your bum for the heated front seats and steering wheel during the Great British Six Months of Winter.

The reason why it plumps the range-topping 4+, is because would you really miss the ventilated seats and sunroof if you didn’t have it? No, probably not.

Read more:
Used Kia E-Niro buying guide: South Korea’s unsung EV hero

From the heart of Mid Wales, the gloriously bonkers ‘Moggy’ talks to EV Powered about how Electric Classic Cars is a hobby that got out of hand, why he doesn’t give a monkeys about classic car purists, and why innovation will remain at the very heart of ECC

“Come with me, and you’ll be in a world of pure imagination,” crooned Gene Wilder in the 1971 version of Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. Closer to home and rooted firmly in the real world, Wilder’s romantic “world of pure imagination” can also be applied to the pub beer garden for all four days of the Great British Summer.

But given EV Powered is a motoring publication and the summer months are still some time off, today’s world of wonder is in Powys, mid Wales. It’s a spectacular place.

The drive into the country’s most sparsely populated region is little short of breathtaking; a bellicose symphony of unpronounceable names, rolling hills, and narrow roads. It is, very much, a playground for the keen motorist.

This makes it a fitting base, then, for Electric Classic Cars. Founded in 2015, ECC was the world’s first company to electrify classic cars and give them a new lease of life since 2015.

Sitting in the back of a converted Volkswagen Camper outside the Electric Classic Cars workshop, its founder, Richard Morgan – affectionately known as Moggy – is ready to dive into ECC’s journey from Beetle conversions, to retrofitting Ferrari Testarossas with Tesla powertrains and ruffling a few feathers within the classic car community along the way.

With sideburns that would shame a mid-90’s Gallagher brother and a frenetic energy befitting of any inventor – and rally man – worth their salt, he explains that the cogs started turning for ECC while competing in the British Historic Rally Championship.

“I’ve always loved classic cars, and I was driving in the BHRC with a classic Porsche,” Morgan recalls. “In the end I gave it up because it got too expensive, but when you stop racing, it’s like coming off heroin…at least that’s what I imagine,” he chuckles.

“You quickly get itchy fingers and need something to do, so I decided I wanted to build my own race engine, and put it in one of my VW Beetles to go drag racing. My favourite Group B rally car is the Lancia Delta S4, which had a supercharger and a turbocharger. I thought I’d fit the Beetle with something similar.

“I was designing it in my head, but I’d have had to have designed a set of different wastegates, then when the supercharger runs out of puff, then the turbo kicks in and you have to blend the boost. It’s a lot of effort and a lot of complexity for a motor that’ll barely pull a wheelie…”

Drivetrain agnostic

Around that same time, Morgan came across a “complete nutter” in the United States, who’d ditched their Beetle’s wheezy air-cooled motor, and replaced it with “an electric motor no bigger than a biscuit tin”.

He’s keen to stress that while he’s a classic car enthusiast at heart, he remains a self-described “drivetrain agnostic”. Like previous EV Powered guests, Jonny Smith, Marcus Grönholm, and Nir Kahn, Moggy doesn’t view the automotive landscape as a binary between internal combustion and electric. As long as it’s fun, that’s what matters.

“I realised quickly in my professional career how much power there is in electric motors and stuff, so I thought ‘I’ll give that a go’ and converted my ‘60s Beetle to EV,” he continues excitedly. “I went out of my driveway, turned onto the main road, put my foot down, and was like ‘whooooa, that’s brilliant!’ – petrol’s dead for me!”

“But all of this honestly started as an engineering exercise to keep me busy. As I’ve said many times, it’s a hobby that’s got out of control, and if you turn your hobby into your career, you’ll never work a day in your life. I’m very lucky that I enjoy going to work every morning.”

‘I can make it better’

While starting out, Morgan initially decided “if I’m going to turn classic cars into electric, then they have to be classics with rubbish engines, just like this Camper we’re sitting in now,” he says with a slap of the rear bench.

“I say this with a lot of love for classic VWs, but the engine was a bit pants, to be honest – it had about 40bhp and wouldn’t pull the skin off a rice pudding. The noise was a bit iconic, but that was it. We set out to change that.”

A particular car from the early years that sticks out in the ECC story is a Ferrari 308. Fed up with it breaking down, the owner contacted Morgan and asked him what he can do to improve it. “It’s easy,” he replied. “I can make it better.”

“I can’t think of anything more embarrassing than breaking down on the M1 in your Ferrari,” he says wide-eyed. “Imagine that, all the white van lads driving by and honking – no wonder the bloke had had enough and didn’t enjoy it! That was the first Ferrari we converted to electric, and since then we’ve done five Ferraris, including three Testarossas.”

The Teslarossa and doing the unthinkable

For classic car purists of a certain vintage, ripping the flat 12 from a Testarossa or the boxer engine from a Porsche 911 is an act of desecration. “You can’t do that”, they will puff and blow online. Moggy has a message for them.

“Yeah, I can – too late, I’ve done it now. Deal with it. I don’t give a monkeys,” he says pointedly. “With the Testarossa especially, people look at that car with rose-tinted glasses because it was in Miami Vice. The truth of the matter is, though, that it was a bit rubbish.

“All of the weight – the fuel tank, the engine, the gearbox – was in the back, as was the radiator, and the exhaust. The weight distribution is all off and it just oversteers horribly.

“By fitting the electric motor, it allowed us to keep the car’s weight in front of the rear driveshafts and move some of the weight up front. By the end of it, it was handling like a Lotus Elise and the Testarossa finally drove as good as it looked.

“We actually called that car the Teslarossa, because it had a Tesla Performance drivetrain with 600bhp.

“That was definitely one of my favourite cars we did, because it was so much better than when it was petrol. The amount of hate we got for that was really funny, because most of these people getting angry about it had probably never driven a Ferrari in their lifetime.

“It’s like these nutters who’ve never eaten a pineapple just because they look funny. Pineapples are delicious, right? What I’m saying is, there’s plenty of those types out there who try to convince you that electric cars aren’t the future, despite having never experienced one first-hand.”

The nonsense of nostalgia

Humorous fruit-based analogies aside, Morgan is keen to dispel the notion that a classic car is defined purely by its sound. If you’ve been hanging around these parts long enough, you’ll have noticed that EV skeptics often attribute an electric vehicle’s ‘lack of soul’ to the absence of an engine note.

“When you drive a classic electric car, there’s better weight distribution, better handling, and more power than there was when it first left the factory,” he explains animatedly, countering a light rant with a healthy portion of insight. “As for this idea of a car being nothing without the sound, that’s nonsense because there is one – it’s just this whooshing, Jetson’s kind of noise. It’s different.

“What about deaf people? Just because they can’t hear, are you telling me that they get less enjoyment from their classic car than we do? I don’t think that’s the case. I don’t look through rose-tinted glasses at some of my old Beetles and the racket they used to make.

“Don’t get me wrong, they sounded fantastic, especially those with the open-headed supercharger, but 10 minutes down the road, you’d be like ‘aaargh, where’s my ear muffs’?” At the end of the day, noise is great, but that’s just part of classic car ownership. The advantages of EV conversion definitely outweigh the noise aspect.”

Electric Classic Cars’ mission is also one of preserving classics for future generations. The demand for classic cars from the ’70s to the ’90s is up amongst millennial and Gen-X buyers. The problem is here for Morgan, is that “most of the younger generation don’t know what a Haynes manual is.

“If we make a classic car with a reliable, relatively maintenance-free drivetrain, then that takes the barriers to ownership away. I hope that we’re democratising classics not just for a new generation of car enthusiasts, but for older drivers who want a classic without all the hassle that comes with it.”

Tesla powertrains and an inconvenient truth

As to why ECC’s creations enjoy “hundreds of thousands of problem-free running”, Morgan points to its use of Tesla underpinnings. If you’re no fan of Elon Musk, you might want to brace yourself for an uncomfortable truth.

“There are other drivetrains we could use, but we don’t use them because they’re too expensive,” he says candidly. “Tesla spends tens, if not hundreds of millions on drive unit R&D, which is why they’re brilliant. I think it’s pretty simple why we piggyback off the back of this. They’re also pretty indestructible.”

Yet ECC’s operation isn’t just a case of plugging in the Tesla unit, and off you go. The oil seals and bearings are changed, and limited-slip differentials are added. “We completely recondition them, and address those little foibles,” Moggy explains. “We then test them to ensure they’re good to go.”

What’s next?

“I absolutely love innovating,” so that’s something we’re keen on here,” he says thoughtfully. Stepping away from his mad engineer persona for a second, setting new standards in the electric classic car world is something close to Morgan’s heart.

Since Electric Classic Cars was founded, other similar UK firms have sprung up in parallel – most notably Everrati and Lunaz. Nonetheless, ECC is the one that introduced CCS rapid charging, electric air-conditioning, and – if we listen to Morgan – helped establish a clear set of safety parameters for electric classics by working alongside legislators.

“We’ve worked with the DVLA to establish what you can and can’t do to modify a vehicle, and we’ve also set standards with the Historic Classic Vehicle Association (HCVA),” he explains. “They help ensure that a classic car is converted to certain standards. That means you can add things like isolation monitoring and crash detection systems.

“If you’re involved in an impact, these systems will switch all the high-voltage off, and they’re included in what we do. They’re part of the R100 regulations, which you have to follow when you’re part of the HCVA. Other companies out there might not work to the same standards as we do.”

As for the next chapter in the Electric Classic Cars story, Morgan insists that it’ll continue “pushing the envelope” and points to its new skateboard chassis for use in its off-road models.

For now, though? “I am saving the planet one burnout at a time,” he grins.

Read more:
Richard Morgan: ‘I’m saving the planet, one burnout at a time’

The Skoda Enyaq was pivotal in turning everyone’s favourite Czech carmaker into one of the leading EV brands of the day, and there’s a simple reason for that: It’s utterly brilliant.

Fun fact – the Enyaq wasn’t Skoda’s first dedicated EV. That title goes to its 1938 ‘Beer Float’, an electric van used by breweries in Plzen to deliver barrels of Czechia’s finest to various refreshment emporia across the city.

Yet when initial Enyaq deliveries were made in 2021, it showed that Mlada Boleslav could build a ground-up electric car, providing owners with Skoda’s signature traits of quality, dependability, and affordability.

Having delivered on its brief and then some, the Enyaq has become one of the most popular choices amongst UK motorists, and it consistently ranks amongst the UK’s top 10 best-selling EVs. The fact that it has scooped numerous Car of the Year awards here and across continental Europe is testimony to just how good it is.

The Enyaq sits between the smaller Elroq and the larger Peaq in Skoda’s all-electric SUV line-up, and it rides on the same EV-only MEB platform as its sister cars, the Volkswagen ID.4 and the Audi Q4 e-tron.

Despite sharing the same underpinnings as its more expensive siblings, the Skoda is our choice of the three MEB triplets thanks to its charm, affordability, and vastly superior cabin. It’s also not as awkward-looking as the Audi, or as dreary as the VW.

While the Enyaq underwent a significant facelift at the start of 2025, there is still very much a case for first-generation versions as a used buy.

UK model history

The Skoda Enyaq arrived on UK shores in three trim levels: The entry-level 60, mid-tier 80, and the Skoda Motorsport-inspired vRS, which deserves its own story.

The Skoda Enyaq 60 and 80 are rear-wheel-drive (RWD), with the former generating 177bhp, and the latter 201bhp. Meanwhile, the all-wheel-drive (AWD) 80X gets 261bhp and a sub-seven second 0-62mph time.

After almost three years on sale, the Enyaq underwent a mild facelift. The 80 and 80X were dropped in favour of the 85 and 85X, which boosted power to 282bhp, and slashed the 0-62mph run to 6.5s. That same year, Skoda also replaced the 60 with the 50 model.

The major 2025 update saw the Enyaq receive Skoda’s new ‘Modern Solid’ design language, which included an entirely new front end, Skoda’s new badge, and a variety of design and aerodynamic tweaks to improve range and ensure competitiveness.

Used Skoda Enyaq equipment

Skodas are historically well-equipped and thankfully, the Enyaq is no different. All models get a 13-inch, driver-focused infotainment display with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay functionality, plus a 5.3-inch display in front of the driver.

It is worth noting that while there are physical buttons for the hazard lights, drive modes, and heated front and rear screens, there is no tactile switchgear to adjust the climate control. Here, the Enyaq belies its VW DNA with haptic sliders for changing cabin temperature.

The fact that the Enyaq runs on electric motors and batteries doesn’t mean that Skoda has forgotten its signature sensible flourishes. Irrespective of trim level, an umbrella remains hidden in the driver’s door, and the windscreen comes with a clip for holding car park tickets.

In petrol and diesel-powered Skodas, the ice scraper is hidden behind the fuel flap. Yet given EVs charge with the flap open and people are light-fingered, this handy little gadget has been relocated to the inner panel of the boot to prevent it from being stolen while topping up.

Base 50 and 60-spec cars come with dual-zone climate control, 19-inch alloy wheels, electronically-folding door mirrors, auto-dimming door mirrors, and cruise control.

The Skoda Enyaq 80 and the 85 that replaced it add steering wheel-mounted paddles to adjust regen while driving, a heated steering wheel, and extra parking aids. The Sportline and Sportline Plus trim add wireless phone charging, a more aggressive exterior, and, if specified with the Maxx pack, get adaptive dampers and a massaging driver’s seat.

Skoda also offered the Enyaq with a ‘Crystal Face’. Originally a £1,650 option, this visually striking design element replaces the regular blacked-out ‘grille’ with a light-up alternative, introducing 130 LEDs across 18 vertical ribs.

It is one of Skoda’s boldest design elements in recent years and has proven divisive among Skoda fans. Here, beauty is very much in the eye of the beholder – I’m a fan of the Crystal Face, and EV Powered editor, Matt, is very much not.

For a brand that prides itself on simplicity, Skoda’s method of speccing the Enyaq is somewhat baffling. After choosing the trim level and powertrain, it’s up to the owner to select the interior they want.

‘Loft’ cars sit at the bottom of the rung, and come with a somewhat gloomy, black and grey fabric-heavy interior. Next up is ‘Lodge’, which combines natural wool and polyester woven from recycled bottles, and adds a much-needed splash of colour. Further along the range is the ‘Lounge’ option. This pairs black leather and light microfibre with soft suede (or ‘Suedia, if you speak Skoda) and yellow stitching, with a similar setup trimming the dash.

‘Suite’ brings in cognac-coloured stitching, and EcoSuite adds cruelty-free leather to the inner door panels and dashboard. Meanwhile, the matching tan seats are upholstered in a material tanned using sustainable olive trees. The Sportline trim is available on 80 and 85 cars only, and this more performance-focused theme has seats finished in perforated suede with leather inserts, a perforated leather steering wheel, and black rooflining.

There was also a little-known Skoda Enyaq ‘Founders Edition’ (pictured above) created to commemorate Skoda’s 1895 foundation year. A total of – surprise, surprise! – 1,895 of these lesser-spotted Enyaqs were made, and just 50 of them made their way to the UK.

Based on the Enyaq 80, the Founders Edition differs from the rest of the line-up with its own set of unique 21-inch wheels, the Crystal Face, and a numbered steering wheel plaque. Available solely with the Suite interior option, the Founders Edition adds copper elements to the badging, wing mirrors, and wheels.

Irrespective of trim level, the Enyaq is well-built and logical to use. The trim level and interior boil down to what the driver needs, and their taste in colours and materials. If we dig deep and find any criticism of the Enyaq’s cabin, it would be that the VW-derived infotainment system is laggy at times, and the haptic heating controls can be difficult to use.

Used Skoda Enyaq price range and running costs

We found 264 pre-facelift Enyaqs for sale on Autotrader. The cheapest was at £10,295 for a 2021 60 car finished in white, with 115,723 miles on the clock. At the other end of the scale, a 5,553-mile Sportline Plus car from 2024 was the most expensive, courtesy of a £31,999 asking price.

With a home EV charger and dedicated EV tariff costing as low as 7p/kWh, the cost of charging the Enyaq will depend on whether you opt for the 60 or 50 model with its 50kWh battery, or the 80 or 85 with its 77kWh unit. The smaller setup will cost £3.50 to fully charge, while the larger of the two will set you back £5.39. Relying on a public charger will cost significantly more.

When it comes to range, the Enyaq has more than enough for daily driving, as the 50 and 60 trim manage either 234 or 246 miles on a single charge. It’s when you step up to the 80 and 85 models that long-distance drives become a real possibility, with the range figures coming out at from 318 to 348 miles.

The Enyaq 50 and 60 come with a maximum charge rate of 100kW, providing a 10%-80% charge time of 35 and 38 minutes. The 80 has peak DC charging of 125kW, and top-up time remains largely unchanged.

With the arrival of the 85 version, Skoda introduced 175kW charging, bringing charge time down to 28 minutes.

Don’t forget that EVs are no longer road tax exempt, meaning that all electrified vehicles registered after April 1, 2017, will be charged £200 in VED (Vehicle Excise Duty) each year.

Used Skoda Enyaq insurance

Thankfully, the Skoda Enyaq won’t break the bank when it comes to insurance costs, and entry-level cars sit in insurance groups 22 and 24 from 50. Even the AWD Sportline 85X won’t bankrupt you, as it sits in category 37.

As always, shop around for insurance quotes, and remember that factors such as age, occupation, driving history, and whether you have on or off-street parking will be factored into the cost.

Used Skoda Enyaq reliability, official recalls, and faults to look for

The Skoda Enyaq has proven to be a reliable companion and still hasn’t been recalled after half a decade on sale. In the most recent What Car? reliability survey, the Enyaq ranked sixth among 16 electric SUVs, ahead of the VW ID.4 and the Audi Q4 e-tron. As a brand, Skoda was 13th out of 31 manufacturers.

Skoda dealers were a mixed bag, and the car’s main issues were centred around the glitchy infotainment system. Electric gremlins were also cited as reasons behind charging and connectivity issues.

The ‘one to have’

As you might have already noticed, there is no such thing as a bad Enyaq. Ultimately, it boils down to how much range and equipment you need.

Yet if we were parting with our own hard-earned, we’d be looking at one of two models: Either an 80 with the EcoLodge cabin and tan cabin, or one of the ultra-rare Founders Edition cars for that added sense of exclusivity. Setting a budget of £20k upwards will go far.

Read more:
Used Skoda Enyaq buying guide: A class-leading secondhand option

From Renault and Kia to Toyota and Citroen, here are our pick of the best EVs that qualify for the UK Government’s Electric Car Grant

After a slightly confusing start, the UK’s Electric Car Grant seems to be having a positive impact on EV orders.

Offering between £1,500 and £3,750 off the list price of new models, the grant is helping make EVs more accessible for more people and the list of eligible cars is growing regularly.

In fact, at the last time of checking there were more than 40 cars that qualify for either the Band 1 discount of £1,500 or the full £3,750 savings of the Band 1 grant.

Of course, some cars are better than others. So here we’ve rounded up our favourites among the ECG-eligible models, covering everything from superminis to SUVs and vans.

Renault 5. From £21,495

The Renault 5 has won just about every award in the automotive world, and with good reason. Renault’s design team have crafted a sharp, smart supermini that appeals just as much to those who’ve never seen the original as those who revel in its nostalgic nods. But there’s so much more to it than looks. A balanced but lively chassis delivers a truly pleasurable driving experience, backed up by a responsive 148bhp motor. And powering it all is a 52kWh battery good for an official 252 miles. Add in a brilliantly executed user interface with full Google integration and you’re onto a winner. The ECG grant that cuts prices to just over £21,000 is just the icing on the cake. We’re going to cheat here and also mention the Nissan Micra, which is a Renault 5 in all but name.

Read the review

Renault 4. From £23,445

Take everything we’ve just said about the Renault 5, add a healthy dose of practicality and you’ll see why the Renault 4 is also on this list. Using the same underpinnings as the big-batteried R5, the R4’s crossover body delivers more passenger and luggage space plus a slightly softer ride, without compromising on the charm or fun of the hatchback. Like the 52kWh R5, the Renault 4 qualifies for the highest level of ECG, meaning prices currently start at around £23,500.

Read the review

Skoda Elroq. From £33,970

Regardless of the ECG, the Skoda Elroq is one of the best electric cars on sale at the moment. Starting from around £33,000 it pulls off Skoda’s usual trick of offering more space, practicality and features than just about anything else for the money. A range of up to 355 miles is among the best in its class and it backs this up with a positive drive, user-friendly cabin and charging of up to 185kW. Some very high-spec variants aren’t eligible for the grant but there’s plenty of choice beneath the £42,000 threshold, including our pick – the Edition 85.

Read the review

Citroen E-C5 Aircross. From £34,065

It’s not clear how, but Citroen has managed to build a full-size family SUV with a range of more than 400 miles that still qualifies for the ECG. The E-C5 Aircross already represented good value with a starting price of around £34,000 for the entry-level car and just over £39,000 for the long-range version. The fact that the long-range one also qualifies for a £3,750 discount means it represents ludicrous value. But it’s also a thoroughly pleasant car. Its ride comfort is unrivalled, it has a quirky but user-friendly interior, plenty of modern technology and one of the biggest boots in its class. Well played, Citroen.

Read the review

Kia PV5 Passenger. From £32,995

A growing number of Kia vehicles qualify for the ECG. There’s the excellent EV4 hatchback, its EV3 SUV sibling, and the inbound EV2, but we’ve chosen the PV5 because it’s an entirely different option from anything else on this list. It’s a large van-based people carrier in the spirit of the great MPVs of the late 1990s. It offers incredible levels of passenger and luggage space, heaps of user-friendly features for the modern family and is backed by Kia’s EV expertise that delivers up to 256 miles of range. It’s every bit as practical as the VW ID Buzz, but with the ECG applied it is literally half the price, starting at £31,500.

Read the review

Nissan Leaf. From £32,249

Nissan helped pave the way for mainstream EVs with the original Leaf before falling behind rivals. But it’s back in the game with the third-generation Leaf. This segment-defying hatchback/crossover brings quirky design features plus a bright airy interior and a focus on driver and passenger comfort. There’s also a pleasingly logical approach to controls plus an excellent Google-based user interface. With two battery options offering between 271 and 386 miles of range, it’s a sensible choice as a family’s main car. And thanks the the ECG, prices start at under £33,000.

Read the review

Citroen E-C3. From £18,495

Among a sea of overly complicated new cars, the E-C3 is refreshingly simple. It’s a honest small hatchback with a focus on comfort and delivering a usable experience for not a lot of money. It lacks some of the shine and gadgets of rivals like the Renault 5 – it even has a physical key to start it! – but has bundles of character, a class-leading ride and a decent enough range of around 200 miles. Thanks to the ECG the E-C3 is also cheaper than the basic petrol version, starting at under £18,500.

Read the review

Cupra Born. From £35,690

The Cupra Born is the only Cupra model to currently qualify for the ECG but it’s a great option for buyers seeking a sharply styled and capable hatchback, especially with a facelifted model just around the corner. It’s not the cheapest car on the list, with prices starting at around £34,000 after the grant, but it brings the Spanish firm’s flair to the family car segment while delivering plenty of space, strong performance and up to 340 miles of range. Sadly, the 322bhp VZ version is the only Born model not covered by the £1,500 grant.

Renault Scenic. From £33,245

We make no apology for making this the third Renault on our list. The French brand is knocking it out of the park with its current range of EVs. The Scenic is its flagship model, a C-segment SUV that offers among the best specification in its class while undercutting most rivals. Its 375-mile range is among the very best, the light and spacious cabin is packed with smart family-friendly features and, as our long-term test proved, it delivers stress-free family motoring for a very competitive price. What’s more, it has just qualified for the Band 2 grant, bringing it starting price down to £33,245.

Read the review

Toyota C-HR+. From £32,500

It’s taken Toyota some time but it seems to finally have got a hold on EVs with the C-HR+. It uses the same underpinnings as the much-improved bZ4X but in a neater package. It’s so neat that it could actually threaten its larger stablemate thanks to sharper styling but comparable space and practicality. With up to 378 miles of range and 221bhp, it’s a strong all-rounder that can compete with the best in its class, backed by Toyota’s unrivalled reputation for reliability. We said when we drove the prototype that its success would come down to cost and with prices starting at £32,500, it’s a top pick among ECG-eligible cars.

Read the review

Read more:
The 10 best cars eligible for the Electric Car Grant

The man responsible for the Mk1 Nissan Leaf tells EV Powered about what Western carmakers can learn from China while outlining his plans for an affordable EV-driven future.

In the automotive world, there are an awful lot of voices making an awful lot of noise and fighting to be heard. Especially when it comes to the transition to electric vehicles. But some voices carry more authority than others, and when someone like Dr Andy Palmer speaks, it’s worth listening.

Responsible for overseeing the development of the groundbreaking Nissan Leaf, the now 62-year-old helped make EVs a mainstream proposition for the first time. He also reversed Aston Martin’s fortunes in just under six years. Under Palmer’s leadership, “the once perennially loss-making company” introduced four new core models, including the DBX, Aston Martin’s best-selling vehicle to date.

But Palmer isn’t here to talk about his past achievements. What’s done is done, and in the spirit of any visionary, the “Grey Cardinal of the EV world” – a term he is keen to downplay – has his eye firmly on what’s next on the EV landscape.

Looking East

Given BYD’s current status as a global best-seller, and closer to home, the Jaecoo 7’s achievement of becoming the UK’s best-selling car in March this year, his attention is fixed on the meteoric rise of the Chinese automotive industry.

“Look at China, you’ve got to admire what they’ve done – they’ve completely eaten our lunch,” he chuckles. “Back in 1992, when they came up with the idea of New Energy Vehicles (NEVs), basically electric cars, they asked themselves: ‘How do we catch up with Western carmakers, and then overtake them?’

“Well, first of all, we have to learn how to make cars, so let’s create joint-venture companies with Western manufacturers. That suited us, because if you wanted, broadly speaking, to sell cars in the Chinese market, you had to make them there.”

At the time of writing, the Sino-Western joint ventures are numerous. Stellantis and Leapmotor are happy bedfellows. Volkswagen has paired with Xpeng to pursue its ‘in China, for China’ strategy, while Audi has launched its confusingly named AUDI brand with the help of Chinese automotive giant SAIC for the domestic market.

“As the years passed, China learned how to make cars from their Western partners, then they started dominating in their own market,” Palmer continues. “They got to scale, meaning they got their costs down, and that allowed them to export.”

The result of that is the tide of low-priced Chinese-made EVs flooding UK and European forecourts and stealing sales from the “legacy” brands we’re all familiar with.

Pushing boundaries

It’s a bleak picture Palmer paints. While China was developing its car industry alongside becoming the world’s second-largest economy behind the United States, Western carmakers found themselves “really on the back foot”.

While a fine line exists between arrogance and complacency, Palmer doesn’t feel the former is why China has become “five to 10 years ahead of the West in terms of making electric vehicles”.

“Why would you kill the golden goose?” he asks rhetorically. “The European and American manufacturers have a 100-year history of making internal combustion engines and making them well. Why change that?

“Meanwhile, China has started from pretty much nothing, and they’ve been playing 3D checkers while we’ve been playing chess – they’ve totally leapfrogged us. In an industrial space, there’s always someone pushing the boundaries, so the next big thing isn’t today’s battery space, it’s tomorrow’s.

“For Western carmakers to survive, we have to think about what these boundaries are, and how we can push them to make the next generation of cars.”

Learn from the best

It’s at this point that I ask Palmer whether it’s a case of manufacturers listening to him.

Again, rather modestly, he downplays his importance as a leading EV advocate. Nonetheless, he addresses the elephant in the room for European and American carmakers.

“Just like the Chinese did with us 30 years ago or so, we’ve got to find that same leapfrog strategy, which may well be inclusive of collaborating with Chinese manufacturers,” he says pointedly.

“There is that necessity to learn now, and it sounds strange, to learn from the Chinese and accept that companies like CATL, a battery maker from China, are far ahead of the capabilities we currently have in Europe.”

Another example is in the charging sphere, where BYD is on the cusp of rolling out its megawatt-strong ‘Flash’ charging network across the UK. When it arrives, it’ll dwarf the Tesla Supercharger network’s fastest-charging speed by an enormous 1,250kW.

Yet it’s not just Western manufacturer complacency and China’s nous that have put the Chinese automotive industry in its current position. Since the mid-20th century, the UK has shifted from manufacturing towards a service-based industry.

As successive governments hollowed out UK manufacturing from the 1960s onwards, China went the other way. While the service sector now accounts for 81% of the UK’s output, China has become the world’s foremost manufacturing superpower.

In car terms, as Palmer explains, this has allowed China to develop new products and export them to the West. “You can’t just have a service economy, because you’ve got to make things to develop,” he stresses. “That way, you control software, batteries, and next-generation chemistries.”

“I don’t think Western carmakers are a lost cause, though,” he adds with a touch of optimism. “Volkswagen has said ‘yes, we know what we need to solve in this space’ and I think BMW is a good example of a company that has recognised the need to change.”

EVs need to be better and cheaper

For all his successes, Palmer is far from a diehard EV evangelist. While he drives a VW ID.7 as his daily, his garage, among others, comprises a Caterham 7 that runs on synthetic fuel, and an Aston Martin Valkyrie – one of the cars he oversaw during his tenure at Gaydon.

It comes as little surprise, then, that he adopts a pragmatic approach to converting UK motorists from internal combustion to electric daily drivers. Given rising fuel prices as a fallout of the Iran War, his rationale behind financial incentives is especially pertinent.

“Simply telling people that their car is green and it’ll save the planet simply won’t work,” Palmer outlines. “We’re selfish by nature as humans, and we want to take care of ourselves and our immediate loved ones. First and foremost, taking care means paying the bills and putting food on the table.”

What, then, is the secret to persuading more motorists to switch to electric?

“To move humanity towards decarbonisation, carmakers must make EVs the best technology possible for most of us, and you’ve got to make them cheaper,” he explains. “That means scaling up, which is what we can do via the joint ventures we touched on earlier.

“Most of all, though, an EV has to be much cheaper to run than an ICE, otherwise there’s no point. This is the biggest challenge.”

Pointing to his work at Palmer Energy, a firm specialising in the design and manufacture of battery energy storage systems, he envisions an ecosystem where EVs are on par with an internal combustion car to buy, but free to run.

“My North Star is to democratise electricity generation, and to do that, you’ve got to be able to trade energy with the grid, and you’ve got to create your own energy,” he continues. “Generally speaking, that means using solar to take electricity into a battery, which could be your car if it has vehicle-to-grid (V2G) functionality.

“You buy it during off-peak hours when it’s 7p, then sell it back to the grid at 70p. While you’re using your car’s battery for energy trading, you’re also generating at least 50 miles worth of electricity for free, and that’s more than most people need daily.

“Here is where I think OEMs have it wrong. Instead of creating affordable vehicles, they focus on low-carbon ones. When someone comes up with an EV that’s the same price as an ICE, you’ll see the volume come through, because at the end of the day, anyone buying that car will get cheap, if not free running costs.”

And there you have it. Dr Palmer has spoken. Perhaps the car industry should open its ears.

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Dr Andy Palmer exclusive: “Chinese EVs have completely eaten our lunch”

Ahead of its launch later this year, we take a deep dive under the skin of the Raval: Cupra’s promising new hot hatch.

Since Cupra became a standalone brand from Seat in 2018, it has, at times, struggled to find its performance-focused identity within the Volkswagen Group. Thanks to its upcoming Raval, any notions about whether Cupra is just a warmed-up VW have been cast firmly into the dustbin of history.

When it goes on sale later this year, Cupra promises that the Raval will be among the very best, if not the best, performing B-segment electric hot hatches around. After spending some time with a pre-production version at a top-secret location in Cupra’s hometown of Barcelona (which was far cooler than I will ever be, FYI!), there’s every reason to believe that the boys and girls from its Martorell factory have a winner on their hands. And that’s not just down to the electronic limited-slip differential that comes fitted to the range-topping Raval VZ.

You see, the Raval is a breakout car for Cupra. The smallest Cupra rides on the EV-only, MEB+ platform, which serves as the backbone for the VW Group’s ‘Urban Car Family’ project and was created to introduce a range of EVs priced at around €25,000. Vitally, Cupra was given the lead on the entire project, which also incorporates models from VW and Skoda. This means it set the tone for the platform’s setup, which will trickle down to the upcoming VW ID Polo and ID Cross as well as the Skoda Epiq. The Raval, then, stands to earn Cupra some serious clout.

What’s more, the Raval adopts a new design path for Cupra. Make no mistake, higher-end Cupras are visually different to their traditionally more conservative VW cousins. After Cupra went its own way, Barcelona introduced a dedicated Cupra copper colourway and an emotive use of light and space to position itself as the VW Group’s sporty brand. That didn’t always work out. The outgoing Cupra Born cannot hide its VW ID 3 lineage, while the Tavascan can still resemble a bejewelled ID 4 in entry-level V1 guise.

Ultimately, though, the Cupra Raval brings together everything Cupra has learned since it became a standalone brand. At last, it can fully lay claim to those performance credentials it has always sought.

Exterior design

Measuring just four metres, the Cupra Raval is a smidge longer than its chief rivals, the Alpine A290 and the Mini Cooper John Cooper Works Electric. Leaning into Cupra’s use of light as a way of conveying emotion, the ‘shark nose’ front end – now a design cue on all new Cupras – is offset by two LED headlights positioned above to create a sporty, focused front visual.

Approach the Raval, and the car will perform its own light show to welcome you. As much as I really shouldn’t admit to liking this, I do. And I liked it on the Tavascan we tested last year, too.

Around the back of the Raval, you’ll find a bold light bar running the width of the tailgate. Paired with the matte green ‘Manganese’ colour of our VZ-trim car, the assertive use of light as a bold design feature makes the Cupra Raval look exactly that. It’s not as pretty as the Alpine, and it’s not as boy-racery as the Mini. In fact, with the devilish Cupra copper badging front and rear, it’s rather aggressive.

And talking about Old Nick himself… the devil is in the details with the Raval. Cupra says that its latest and likely-greatest will have best-in-class efficiency thanks to what it calls a “fully optimised aero strategy”. This means that front air curtains at either side of the bumper work alongside the active-aero grille, the 19-inch two-tone aero wheels, and banned-in-China flush door handles to direct airflow to the rear of the car.

Here, a sculpted C-pillar, a rear spoiler, and a big rear diffuser scream ‘LOOK AT ME!’. With the front and rear aerodynamics working in tandem, the Raval is the most aerodynamic Cupra model yet.

Now we’ve dealt with the clever bits, it’s time to admire the Raval from the side. Thanks to a heavily sculpted waistline that runs into a ‘Z’ form down the doors, the Raval’s aggression is amplified, and the matte green paint job shifts to heighten its sharp curves. Meanwhile, the dark grey used on the bottom section of the doors and bumper provides contrast.

The Cupra Raval adopts a front-forward glass box, which it describes as being “helmet-inspired”. Given Cupra has a Formula E team, I’ll take their word for it. Ultimately, the Raval reflects Cupra’s now clearly-defined sporting ambitions. In fact, it’s not visually dissimilar to a small touring car. In fact, if there were a Formula E supporting race series with electric hot hatches like the Raval, that would be brilliant. If you’re reading, Alejandro Agag…

Cupra Raval interior design

Step inside the Cupra Raval, and the interior immediately reflects the exterior – it’s daring without getting stupid. Like its recently updated big brother, the Cupra Born, the Raval gets a centrally mounted touchscreen running on an Android-based operating system. This is no bad thing, as it’s easy to use, and Google’s built-in tech has been adopted by the likes of Renault, Volvo, and Polestar – all companies that know a thing or two about building a competent EV.

Everything in the Raval is very driver-focused. The cabin feels dark and tightly packaged, while the hooded digital instrument binnacle is largely free of distractions. Unlike the upcoming ID Polo, the Raval doesn’t adopt physical switchgear for its climate control system. While proper buttons would be preferable, don’t forget that Cupra is trying to form its own path. A more contemporary, modern aesthetic is perhaps what it’s chasing.

And minimalism is what’s key here. Besides the 3D-printed seats, a centre console, and air vents, there’s very little else in the Raval’s cockpit. Yet the striking colours and unconventional materials add a layer of visual intrigue that’s fast becoming a Cupra ‘thing’. Tiny projectors built into the dashboard project different, brightly coloured patterns onto and around various surfaces depending on the lighting mode and how you’re driving. Again, Cupra insists this design is all part of the Raval’s emotive experience. A cynic would suggest it’s a gimmick.

The Raval uses a variety of unusual finishes, including a parametric trim on the dashboard and door inserts. Paired with the overall matte green interior colourway, everything works together in a unique way that cleverly pairs form with function.

Cupra Raval trim levels and pricing 

The Cupra Raval comes in four trim levels. The entry-level car is the Core model, which comes with 114bhp and a 37kWh battery good for around 186 miles of range. Being the base model, the Cupra Raval Core will be the cheapest, priced at around £25,000. More expensive V1 and V2 models with more toys are also available with the same battery and power output. Both cars have a peak charge rate of 90kW, with a 10%-to-80% top-up achievable in 27 minutes.

The V1 and V2 Cupra Raval models are also available as long-range models with 208bhp and a 52kWh battery capable of up to 280 miles on a single charge.

It is, however, the range-topping VZ Cupra Raval that you’ll want. Expected to be priced at around £35,000, it comes with the electronic limited-slip differential and 15-way Dynamic Chassis Control, which allows for what EV Powered editor, Matt, described as “proper hot hatch handling” in his drive of a pre-production car in November last year.

The VZ, or “veloz”, meaning ‘speed’ in Spanish, shares its 52kWh battery with the pricier V1 and V2 cars, but its 223bhp means range is slightly reduced to 250 miles. This larger pack on both models can be charged from 10% to 80% in 23 minutes courtesy of 130kW fast charging.

Across the board, each Raval benefits from Cupra and Performance driving modes, as well as vehicle-to-load (V2L) functionality. Another clever aspect of its MEB+ platform is the “one box” braking system, which brings together three disparate control elements. It is also the first all-electric Cupra to benefit from rear disc brakes.

Analysis

The Cupra Raval is named after one of the trendiest districts in Barcelona – the Spanish answer to Manchester’s Northern Quarter, if you will. Initially, I wasn’t sure whether it would be a case of marketing spiel over product. But from what I’ve seen, it isn’t. Far from it, actually. Martorell’s engineering team have made the Raval as aerodynamically efficient as possible, and with that limited-slip differential, it should be a hoot to drive.

When we talk about those key ingredients that make a Volvo a Volvo, or an Alfa Romeo an Alfa Romeo, we know exactly what they are. By pairing clever, distinctive design with its own bold, driver-focused attitude, the Raval has now firmly given Cupra its own recipe book to work from. ¡Bravo!

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Meet the Cupra Raval: Barcelona’s latest design-led, driver-focused hot hatch