By FREDA LEWIS-STEMPEL, MOTORING REPORTER
The Government has announced the latest EV model to qualify for the full Electric Car Grant, and it's a French SUV.
The Citroen e-C5 Aircross Long Range has been awarded the maximum £3,750 ECG discount, becoming only the third electric car out of 38 so far deemed green enough to be rewarded the full amount.
There are two bands of the Electric Car Grant available, the lower £1,500 band and the higher £3,750 band, but very few new EVs have qualified for the latter which is only awarded to the most sustainable EVs.
Until today, only the Ford Puma Gen-E crossover and E-Tourneo Courier MPV have been rewarded with the maximum discount.
Only models up to £37,000 are eligible for the grant, and manufacturers need to adhere to certain sustainability criteria, including sustainable battery production.
While good news for EV buyers, it contrastingly comes on the same day the car industry is in uproar a Labour threatens to bring in pay-per-mile charges for EVs in the Autumn Budget this month.
The Citroen e-C5 Aircross Long Range has been awarded the government's full £3,750 Electric Car Grant
Customers wanting to purchase the new e-C5 Aircross Long Range will now see the £3,750 discount applied automatically.
The Long Range model features a 97kWh battery, providing a massive range of 422 miles on a single charge.
It can also rapid charge from 20 per cent to 80 per cent in approximately 27 minutes at a 160kW DC charge.
This is Money reviewed the e-C5 Standard Range model recently and was very impressed with Citroen's newest EV SUV offering.
The price of the model has yet to be confirmed, but it will be more than the Standard model's £30,495 starting price.
Greg Taylor, Managing Director, Citroën UK, said: 'It’s really important to us at Citroën that the transition to electrification is made as accessible as possible and we price all of our vehicles accordingly.
'The ë-C5 Aircross Long Range is the first vehicle of its size and type to receive the full grant which is testament to the hard work of the team at Citroën to make cars that are practical for all.
'We welcome the support the UK Government is providing to make the transition to electric attainable, and are proud that Citroën continues to lead the way.'
It's not a shooting star of the SUV galaxy, but it still shines brightly and most people will find the e-C5 is a very good pick for the price point
The dash runs with the same sofa theme, and the 'cascade' 13-inch screen divides the front occupants. It acts as storage space too, and houses the wireless charging pad and shortcut buttons
Off the back of the news, the Department for Transport has said that the Electric Car Grant 'expands again to add more qualifying models, giving people greater choice and putting money back in people's pockets'.
The DfT points to a total of 30,000 drivers having already made the switch thanks to the grant.
And yesterday industry registration figures showed that electric cars are now making up one in four new vehicles sold in October - up nearly 29 per cent since last year.
Aviation, Maritime and Decarbonisation Minister Keir Mather commented: 'Our Electric Car Grant now offers drivers more choice and bigger savings — putting £3,750 back in people's pockets as we help Britain go electric.'
