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‘Prestige’ car owners open to electric motoring

Audi, BMW, Jaguar and Mercedes owners would go for an electric car if the range improved.

A survey of 24,227 Audi, BMW, Jaguar and Mercedes owners found that nearly 40 per cent would consider going electric if the price, performance and style matched their current car and the range offered was 300 miles from one charge.

The WeLoveAnyCar.com survey found only 17 per cent of respondents would never consider an electric car with a 300-mile range, indicating the thirst for cheap, silent motoring is very much alive.

“The results of this survey are remarkably similar across all prestige brands. BMW drivers are perhaps more open but, with around 40% of all prestige brand car owners surveyed saying they would, or would seriously consider, buying an all-electric car, manufacturers interested in retaining their market share must take note,” a WeLoveAnyCar.com spokesman said.

Currently only one car fits the 300-mile range bill and that is the Tesla Model S, which starts from £49,900 – although the 85kWh that can manage 310 miles per charge starts from £57,300 or £68,700 if you want the Performance variant capable of 0 to 62mph in 4.2 seconds.

Alternatives like the Nissan Leaf, VW e-Up, BMW i3 and Mercedes-Benz B-Class Electric Drive offer ranges less than 150 miles, relegating them to short, sporadic driving habits only. It helps, little, that electric cars are expensive even after the government plug-in grant of £5,000.

Hybrids like the Vauxhall Ampera and Volvo V60 Plug-In Hybrid, meanwhile, are also expensive to begin with.

Another recent survey was much less in favour of the electric revolution, which can be seen at its strongest in Norway. 69 per cent of a government study would not consider an electric car or van, with having to charge a vehicle up and range anxiety cited as the two biggest turn-offs.

“Our 132,872 car owner reviews have major themes; the most popular being fuel economy. This survey shows that fuel economy is just as attractive to the motorists with high disposable income as those on a tighter budget,” the spokesperson added.

Would you go electric? If not, what is holding you back? We’re all ears.

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