Vauxhall prices up Ampera e-car for Blighty
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Vauxhall has priced up the Ampera, the e-car it'll be putting in showrooms later this year.
The Ampera will set punters back £29,995, though that's after knocking off the government's £5000 e-car grant contribution. The car is the European version of the Chevrolet Volt already on sale in States.
The standard on-road pack includes a DAB radio, 7in touchscreen controller, alloys and cruise control.
Spend £32,250 and you get the Positiv (sic) model, which adds a leather interior, heated front seats and front/rear parking sensors with a rear-view camera.
At the top of the line is the Electron. It sports a colour touchscreen, satnav, Bespoke Bose Energy Efficient Series sound system, DVD player and a 30GB hard drive. The entertainment system is voice controlled. It'll cost you £33,995.
All Amperas come with a first-owner "lifetime" 100,000-mile warranty, though Vauxhall notes that that doesn't cover the battery, ahem.
The Ampera will arrive in a network 23 dealers' showrooms in May. ®
COMMENTS
e-car grant
I have no objections to the e-car grant being used to bring the price of cars like the Ampera or Nissan Leaf down to around the price of an equivalent conventional car.
But I object to using tax money to reduce the price from mind-bogglingly ridiculous to unbelievably ridiculous. This is using ordinary tax payers, most of whom couldn't afford the Ampera, to subsidise those who could probably afford the unsubsidised price, anyway.
Cashing in
So it's £35k here before subsidy. The US pre-subsidy price is $40k, or £26k. What do we get for the extra £9k, or are GM just cashing in?
Simples
Look it's pretty simple come up with a car that'll carry 4, manage 75 miles at 70mph in all weathers even with the heater / ac on, prove that it'll be cheaper to run over 3-5yr than an equivalent petrol/diesel and people will buy them. I'll buy one to commute in no problem. If it's REALLY cheap to run I'll even buy it if it's as ugly as sin or impractical like the Renault with no doors.
But don't turn up with a far arsed Insignia that'll cost more to run over 5yr than a V6 petrol and expect me to do cartwheels!
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