Price 'may cause EV customers to put the brakes on'

Date: 20/7/2011

The cost of investing in the latest electric vehicles (EVs) to come to the market may prompt some UK consumers to put the brakes on purchasing one in the near future.

Such is the opinion of Robert Fowler, Chief Executive Officer of Alternative Vehicles Technology, who says that several individuals have "expressed disappointment" at the price of the Nissan Leaf and Mitsubishi's new model, despite the fact both of the cars appear to perform well.

"Cost is one of the most important factors and it is difficult to make the capital cost of an EV with good batteries and good performance and range cheap enough to compare with petrol or diesel cars," he explains.

Yet despite this, Mr Fowler notes that almost every nation in the industrial world is working on EVs in some way.

Among these are China and India, which have both established firms involved in the development and production of green cars.

Meanwhile, potential restrictions on where conventionally-fuelled vehicles are allowed to go are being debated by the EU Transport Committee, which Mr Fowler suggests could also affect consumer demand.

In the UK, there are now only six months left to prepare for the impending introduction of tougher standards in Low Emission Zones in the capital, with Transport for London estimating 150,000 automobile owners will need to upgrade their motor in order to ensure compliance with new rules.

Posted by Nick Anderson