The RAC Future car challenge showcases some of the best eco cars

Here at Carlease UK we are big supporters of the move towards more environmentally friendly and eco cars and the recent future car challenge really did a great job of showcasing the kind of quality that we can expect to see in the near future.

I have never previously had any issues with making my opinions on electric cars known. They are just not good enough yet, with too high an initial running cost and a working distance too short for a substantial commute. This challenge however shows off the best of current and upcoming hybrid and electric cars and the future is looking bright.

For those of you that don’t know about this challenge, the competitors drive from Brighton to London with the winner being the one that uses the smallest amount of energy, along with awards given out in a few other categories as well. These awards fall under a number of different categories depending on the size and type of the car as well as how it fares and whether it is in production or just a prototype. In this years competition there have been three main winners, and a few other interesting competitors. A couple of noteworthy competitors this year were:

 The Renault Zoe which won in all three of the main categories that it qualified to enter, in the ‘production’ class. These included challenge winner, most energy efficient small car and best pure electric.

 The odd little German car the Windreich AG ME 2012 in which the two pilots sat open to the elements wearing aviator goggles did similarly well. In the prototype classification they took a number of awards, along with claiming the public’s hearts and taking the publics choice award.

 Also noteworthy was a Jaguar hybrid engine that won the best luxury car and really showed just how high quality the eco cars at the challenge could be.

 What does all of this mean for the electric car scene as a whole? A lot of the manufacturers still argue that at the moment hybrid cars are really the only sensible path to take when it comes to electric engines. They say that, at the moment, they are too expensive and just don’t give you enough distance in a journey. Up until now they were probably right too, the Nissan Leaf for example cost a massive £26,000 even after a government deduction of £5000, but the Zoe, say Renault, will be available for as little as £13,650 when it goes on sale next year. This price may seem very low, and yes it comes with a battery rental price of £80 extra per month, but this is the direction that electric cars are going and we can expect to see a drastic change in the near future.

There are a lot of eco friendly cars out there already however and at very reasonable prices, so if you are looking to pick one up, why not have a scan of our car leasing deals on the site and see if there is anything that sparks your interest.