Plugged in

A hybrid will save you money on fuel and avoid congestion charges. Want a bit of both? Think hybrid. While hybrid and electric models tend to outprice their less green cousins by thousands on the forecourt if you buy, the difference is much smaller when you lease as you are just paying the depreciation costs, not the whole car.

 

True, even though you are likely to be paying a slightly higher monthly lease price for a hybrid car as you would for its petrol or diesel equivalent, once you include the potential fuel savings over a couple of years you could easily be better off from a whole of car life costs perspective. And these savings are really magnified if you are doing higher mileage.

 

An increasing number of cars are being converted to hybrid and plug in hybrid, with more popular models including the GLA 250e and Toyota Corolla, Audi e-tron, BMW 330e and Kia Sportage to name a few.

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Added benefits

Other potential benefits of these models include exemption from the ultra-low-emission zone congestion charges, home charging point subsidies and various fuel tax perks associated with electric use.

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Greater viable electric cars to choose from

Electric efficiency: there are more and more mainstream electric vehicles being launched, including the VW ID.3, Audi E-Tron, Mercedes EQC not to mention all Teslas. With electric cars the benefits of leasing are really amplified.  If you lease one of the latest electric models, you really gain from their cutting-edge and intelligent technology.

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Electric convenience

Standing in the cold on dirty garage forecourts will be a thing of the past; you “fill up” your electric car by plugging it in from the comfort of home, at work or out and about.

 

If you go for a plug-in point at home, you will save a substantial amount over public charge points, especially the superchargers at service stations.

 

Real world range

One thing that is worth more careful consideration is whether you can live with the real world range. For example, although the Tesla Model 3 extended range quotes nearly 300 miles, the real world range is more likely to be 220-240 miles depending on driving conditions (city = more mileage / country = less mileage); outside temperature; use of air-con; driving mode selected etc.

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If you drive a new electric car, you also gain from using the battery in an optimal state that’s also covered by manufacturer’s warranty, with no danger of having to pay hefty replacement costs. You do not, and are unlikely to, pay any congestion charges, servicing costs are relatively low and if you are a business then the personal tax benefits are significant.