Shoreham Vehicle Auctions has called on the government to create a new UK tax class for range-extender EVs, arguing that the technology could provide a more effective route towards electrification than conventional plug-in hybrids.
Alex Wright, managing director of Shoreham Vehicle Auctions, said the used car market was providing evidence that many plug-in hybrid electric vehicles were not being operated as intended.
SVA has seen three-year-old PHEVs arrive at auction with their charging cables still in their original packaging, according to Wright.
He said this suggested some drivers were using PHEVs mainly as petrol vehicles while benefiting from lower company car tax rates.
“The objective of a PHEV is to maximise electric driving and minimise fossil fuel use,” Wright said. “But in reality, a lot of drivers rarely charge them and use them as a petrol vehicle just to benefit from lower BIK rates. That defeats the purpose.”
PHEVs used as petrol cars
PHEVs were intended to help drivers move towards electrification by combining an electric-only range for shorter journeys with a combustion engine for longer trips.
However, Wright said drivers who do not regularly charge their vehicles are carrying the additional weight of a battery without achieving the intended reductions in fuel use and emissions. He believes range-extended electric vehicles, also known as REEVs, could offer a better alternative.
A range-extender EV uses an electric motor to drive the wheels, while a small petrol engine acts only as a generator when the battery charge becomes low.
The engine does not drive the wheels directly, allowing the vehicle to retain the driving characteristics of an EV while providing additional reassurance on longer journeys.
Wright said the auxiliary engine should be designed as a limited “get-me-home” system rather than as an alternative source of propulsion which would encourage drivers to charge the car regularly and use electric power as the default.
Range-extender EVs
The range-extender version of the BMW i3 is cited as an early example of the technology, using a small petrol engine to generate electricity when the battery became depleted.
Wright also highlighted systems such as Nissan e-Power as evidence that manufacturers can produce vehicles in which an electric motor drives the wheels and a petrol engine generates electricity.
However, Nissan e-Power vehicles are not plug-in range-extender EVs because they rely on petrol to generate their electricity and cannot normally be charged externally.
Wright said carmakers currently had little incentive to develop dedicated range-extender EVs for the UK market. “Right now, manufacturers are largely forced to choose between building a full EV or a PHEV,” he said.
“But there’s a very practical middle ground that should be recognised in the UK tax system, an electric vehicle with a small ‘get-you-home’ engine.”
Wright said manufacturers had already developed vehicle platforms capable of supporting range-extender technology, but taxation policy continued to favour conventional PHEVs.
“The technology or architecture is already ready, look at the new Renault platform, which is designed to accept a range extender,” he said. “But without a clear incentive, manufacturers have no reason to build a vehicle solely around this approach.”
New EV tax category
Wright wants the government to introduce a dedicated tax category for electric vehicles fitted with small, limited-output auxiliary engines, arguing that a separate range-extender EV tax class could influence manufacturers to build vehicles in which electric driving is central to the design.
“If the government created a clear tax class for EVs with limited auxiliary engines, it would push manufacturers to design cars where electric driving is the default,” Wright said. “Manufacturers follow incentives. The tech is ready, but the policy isn’t.”
Appeal for buyers
Wright also believes range-extender EVs could perform strongly in the used-car market by appealing to motorists who want an electric vehicle but remain concerned about charging infrastructure and longer journeys.
“Cars that work in more real-world situations always hold their value better,” he said. “If a vehicle can deliver the EV driving experience while providing an engine safety net, it naturally appeals to a wider audience.”
He said a new taxation framework for range-extender EVs could help more motorists adopt electric driving without requiring an immediate switch to a battery-only car.
“The direction of travel is clearly towards EVs,” Wright said. “But the transition doesn’t have to be all or nothing. If we want more people to drive electric, we should support technologies that make that switch easier.”
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