It’s nothing new when we say the options for chauffeurs to operate environmentally friendly vehicles which comply to ULEZ rules is almost impossible.
Now, with ULEZ fines in place for those operators traveling into the capital without one, let’s find out if it’s actually possible for a chauffeur to conform to the rules and still offer a top chauffeur service.
Hybrid vehicles are hardly a new idea – the first Toyota Prius hybrid broke cover and was introduced in 1997 – that’s more than twenty years ago! Since then, it’s without doubt become the most popular hybrid vehicle ever made and the modern examples of this model are unarguably brilliant – but just not suitable for chauffeuring duties.
Here at TheChauffeur.com, we’ve spent many years reviewing a number of vehicles with a variety of drivetrains – hybrid, plug-in hybrids, electric and of course the traditional diesel and petrol variants. Unsurprisingly, we often find the diesel vehicles are still the better option on paper and in practical terms as there’s no compromise on range, boot space and ultimately the inflated cost of purchasing an electric vehicle.
When we talk about vehicle suitable for chauffeuring duties, it’s probably best if I clarify where I see the line is between a perfectly suitable Private Hire vehicle, to a car which gives the ultimate chauffeur experience, in which most of our readers already drive their clients in around the city.
Obviously, the ultimate chauffeur vehicles in my eyes are those such as the Bentley Mulsanne, Rolls-Royce Ghost or Phantom and the Mercedes-Benz S-Class Maybach, but these are on a completely different scale to a typical hire and reward chauffeur on our roads. A £12 daily charge is just a mere press of the accelerator in their eyes.
For me, the difference between a chauffeur and private hire vehicle is ultimately when the back door is opened. A chauffeur vehicle needs to impress from the moment it’s opened and the client instantly falls into relax mode. Obviously, from there, the chauffeur is in charge of doing the rest of the hard work, but a client simply needs to know they’re stepping into something special from the outset.
The benchmark vehicles for our sector are undoubtably the Audi A8L, BMW 7-Series long-wheelbase and Mercedes-Benz S-Class – the most common vehicles used in our sector. All of which have a plug-in derivative, with some just recently announced, so it will be a good while until we start seeing these in the showrooms.
A handful of manufacturers have attempted to produce luxury hybrid vehicles over the last five years or so with not so great results. Without naming any names, a couple of the popular vehicles above have been seen in the chauffeuring sector with hybrid capabilities, but have received a frosty response from drivers.
So, what have been the main complaints from chauffeurs? Most lose around 100 litres of boot space on average, as the batteries are generally located under the rear seat which intrudes into the boot of the car. Most have a maximum of 410 litres, which isn’t a great deal when the boss and his wife arrives back at the airport and have utilised their extra luggage allowances!
The price – vehicles for our sector are not ‘cheap’ at the best of times – nor do we expect them to be and the extra plug-in technology has to be paid for by some one. The cost from new to buy a plug-in hybrid can vary from £10,000 more than the standard petrol or diesel model, up to £30,000 more in the case of the new Mercedes S560e L electric – that’s a lot of £12.50’s.
Charging points – there are currently 150 rapid charging points in London – yep 150! How on earth is any chauffeur expected to charge their vehicle when there’s so few charging points available to every motorist in the capital? So, if you’re lucky enough to live in an abode where you can have your own charging facilities then you’ll probably leave home with a maximum 30 miles battery range. In real life, that’s probably 20, so by the time you get to the ULEZ zone, you’ll probably be running on diesel or petrol anyway – see where I’m going with this?
It’s very unlikely you’ll have enough range left, or your engine wouldn’t have recharged the batteries enough to travel emission free through the capital. Even if you wanted to recharge to ‘save the environment’, you’ll be a in a very long queue to use one of the 150 charging points.
Let’s look at the handful of electric vehicles that are on offer to chauffeurs and find out if they actually offer the goods. Firstly, the longest standing totally electric vehicle, the Tesla Model S. You’ll probably already know it’s a fantastic car – good to look at, great technology, powerful and has a good range, so all looking good so far. Then the rear doors open for the client and oh dear! It’s hardly going to set the world alight with its hard, bench like seat in the back.
Tesla did launch an ‘executive’ model which basically had an armrest and a few little gadgets in the back, but simply not chauffeur worthy in my mind unless you’re trying to be as green as possible. In fact, the Model X is very similar – a fantastic vehicle but simply lacks the wow factor inside if you’re trying to impress a client.
The Jaguar I-PACE has recently hit the road. Again, a fantastic looking vehicle and does all the right things if you’re a ‘normal’ driver looking for an excellent EV. Unfortunately, it suffers the same problems as the Tesla models as far a client luxuries are concerned.
It’s a bit early to voice an opinion on the Audi e-Tron, although early test drives suggest it will certainly be a contender and probably more luxurious than the above vehicles, but first examples will probably lack vital luxuries in the back seat.
The most encouraging vehicles recently announced is the EQV from Mercedes-Benz – A V-Class with an all-electric drivetrain which can carry seven passengers in comfort 250 miles, and can be fully-charged in 15 minutes according to the PR blurb – but guess what – it’s a concept so unlikely to be in the showrooms until later this year at the very earliest.
The Government currently offers a Plug-in Car Grant to reduce the initial cost of purchasing a zero emission capable vehicle and is list of cars are split into categories depending on their Co2 stats. The maximum grant available is £3,500.
Luxury electric vehicles eligible for the grant and can travel into the ULEZ free of charge are: Audi e-tron, Jaguar I-PACE, Tesla Model S and X and buyers can claim 35% of the purchase price up to the £3,500 limit.
So, you’d think that if you decide to make the massive jump and invest more of your hard earned money into buying a plug-in hybrid to try and comply with ULEZ – you’d be entitled for some of the cash grant?
Sorry, if you buy one of the following cars, you’ll not be able to claim anything apart from up to £500 off a home charging point. The Audi Q7, BMW 530e, Mercedes-Benz E350e, Volvo S90, V90 and XC60 Twin Engine models, Mercedes-Benz S500 Hybrid and Range Rover P400e. I suppose TfL believes that anyone in the market to buy these vehicles can afford not to worry about a grant to help them buy the vehicle they’ve been forced to purchase!
The problem we have is that all the new electric vehicles are aimed at the consumer mass market and it would be too risky for any manufacturer to spend hundreds of millions of pounds to build a new production line to produce a specific luxurious electric chauffeur vehicle. Although it’s not out of the question and I’m sure it will happen in time. Imagine having a purely electric A8 or 7-Series – I’m sure they would be amazing.
I wish I had some answers as it’s a very confusing time for the industry as leasing contracts come to end, we’re left wondering what to purchase next and not be penalised for it. The decision is very specific as where your main work is, obviously if you’re a low mileage user in the centre of London then the investment probably makes sense.
Personally, if I only travelled into the ULEZ a few times a week, I’d certainly be staying with the traditional vehicles and unfortunately passing on the cost to the customer.
However, in the meantime, TfL has beaten the manufacturers and in my opinion is five years too early – at least! For now, we’re all unfortunately left wondering if we should pay, or not to pay – that’s the big question with no obvious answer.
Paul Gibson
