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Lowest price to highest: every Electric Vehicle you can buy in NZ in 2019

Wednesday, 10 October 2018

Much has been made of the dramatic rise in popularity of electric vehicles in the New Zealand market, with many claiming that the future is here now.

However, the reality is that the number of EVs still only make up a tiny percentage of the cars on our roads, with a single second hand Japanese import driving the bulk of them.

This is, of course, the Nissan Leaf, which is proving to be remarkably popular as a used import, but only in relation to other EVs. But what are the other EVs? What are your options if you want to make the jump to electric propulsion right now? 

Well, they are unsurprisingly limited. So today we take a look at every single vehicle in the New Zealand market that can be plugged in and charged up - that includes range extenders and plug-in hybrids, as per the Government's official description of what an electric vehicle is (it's pretty much anything with a plug).

Pure-EVs are a small part of NZ's electrified vehicle fleet - but there's still a lot of choice.

**READ MORE

* Is a used electric vehicle a risky purchase?

* EV drivers are bludgers costing NZ roads $7m per year

* Can you drive an EV from Auckland to Wellington in one day stress-free?**

Used import electric and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles

Audi
Audi's e-tron GT is headed for production, but is still a way off. This is a list of what is here now.

Firstly, we will start with a look at the most common options; the used imports.

Used prices obviously vary, but currently your cheapest electric choices are the Mitsubishi i-MiEV or the first generation Nissan Leaf.

Neither had a massive electric range when new and they certainly won't have gotten better over time, so don't expect to be doing much more than limited around town running in either. The few Leafs we found under $12K looked rather dodgy too and one didn't even include a charging cable, so we would highly recommend looking as far above that $12 grand mark as you could afford.

Later Leafs got bigger batteries and better ranges, and are now the better choice. These tend to sit in the high teens to low 30s in terms of price, with the current generation car (here as a new model through official channels soon) sitting up the high end of our price range.

Vans are also catered for, with the Nissan e-NV200 being a popular choice, while the oddball Mitsubishi Minicab is a different (but oddly more expensive) option.

We also came across a couple of Smart ForTwo EVs which, while an interesting Euro-cool option could be risky, particularly given their potential to be 'orphans' when it comes to parts and servicing. Occasionally a Kia Soul EV will pop up, but they are rare and older ones have a relatively limited range.

Then there are older Teslas that were imported before the company set up here officially, as well as occasional used imports that still come in.

The new Nissan Leaf is available as a used import, but Nissan NZ will be launching it locally soon and has announced prices.
The new Nissan Leaf is available as a used import, but Nissan NZ will be launching it locally soon and has announced prices.
Not only is Jaguar
Not only is Jaguar's I-Pace a fine EV, it is actually an excellent driver's car as well.
Range Rover
Range Rover's PHEV variants offer up to 51km of pure electric motoring.

New electric vehicles

If you are thinking 'new' and 'pure EV' in the same sentence, then you have an equally limited, but far more pricey line up to choose from.

However, the trade-off there is a massively increased range from even the cheapest of them.

Cheap is a relative term of course, with the current value leader in the local new EV scene being the entry level version of the Hyundai Ioniq at $59,990.

We have included range here, as it is useful to compare along with price and, wherever possible, have gone with the 'real world' range that has either been demonstrated by the local distributor, or we have actually done it ourselves. Failing that, we have included figures achieved in the new Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test Procedure (WLTP).

Tesla previously only listed NEDC (New European Driving Cycle) ranges, but has just switched to WLTP, so their ranges have now dropped slightly under the new system.

It's not just passenger cars either - there are also a couple of Renault Kangoo vans in here, as well as the large LDV EV80, and Renault has confirmed it will be bringing in the electric version of the large Master shortly, which will kick off an avalanche of electric vans over the next few years.

New plug-in hybrid electric vehicles

​If you are willing to keep burning some petrol in the mix with your electric running, then a plug-in electric vehicle (PHEV) could suit you, as they do offer the best blend of daily electric commuting and range-anxiety-free open road running that is better suited to New Zealand's terrain.

There is also a lot more choice in here as well, right from the ultra-frugal Toyota Prius Prime and the ridiculously practical and usable Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV, right up to the insanely fast and powerful Porsche Panamera Turbo E-Hybrid that will sprint form 0 to 100km/h in 3.4 seconds and boasts a combined average fuel economy of just 2.9L/100km.

Not at the same time, obviously, but still.

We haven't included electric ranges here, as they vary too much and some don't even offer pure EV modes anyway.