Here’s every electric car eligible for the government grant

“The Fortwo is like a hypercar. And not just 'cos it's a two-seater. We mean that it's great in its chosen environment, and pretty rubbish elsewhere. In crowded streets it's agile like a little kitten, as parkable as your shoes, fresh-breeze clean and as cheap as the coffee you drink on the way to work. But stray far beyond the ring road and it's slow, wobbly and short on range. Use it as intended and you won't find much wrong with the execution.” 

Read Top Gear’s Smart EQ Fortwo review

“The 500 is small, but if you don’t need space it could be your only car. That’s because it’ll go far enough on a charge to make motorway trips tenable. Whereas the Honda e or Mini Electric would have to be second cars to anyone who ever drives beyond conurbations rather than just within them. It’s not as fun to drive as those are, mind. It’s trying harder to feel normal. With a stylish, recognisable design and a quality feel. So the recipe’s been re-cast for health and welfare, but it still looks and tastes like la cucina della nonna.” 

Read Top Gear’s Fiat 500 review

“The e-Up is certainly a frumpier, subtler EV than a Honda e or Mini Electric or even a Renault Zoe, but there’s a huge amount to be said for VW’s ‘just a good car, but electric’ approach – it’s what made the e-Golf such a sleeper hit. It’s also kept the e-Up relevant, recommendable, and ready for a new dawn in the small car world.”

Read Top Gear’s Volkswagen e-Up review

“If you’ve been curious about going electric but are a little risk-averse, the Corsa-e might just be for you. It’s significantly less peacocky than its Honda or Mini rivals, but there’s another 50 per cent of range and tons more room for people to compensate. It’s like choosing the bloke who’s most logistically astute as your best man: you’ll get to your wedding in good time and with little stress, but the room won’t be in raptures when the speech comes. This is a purchase from the head, not the heart.” 

Read Top Gear’s Vauxhall Corsa-e review

“Other manufacturers are beginning to agree that the best and most efficient electric cars will be the ones purpose-designed with light, aerodynamic bodies and battery-friendly packaging, not adaptions of petrol cars. Nissan has been doing it for a long time now, and the gen-2 Leaf is the result. It hits a broad sweet spot of usability, likability and affordability.” 

Read Top Gear’s Nissan Leaf review

“The Mini Electric is a very complete little EV. It preserves pretty much everything we like about a standard Mini Cooper S, but it’s more accelerative where it matters, and has zero local emissions. It proves that the hot hatch will have a future as an EV. And it reinforces something we learned with the VW e-Golf – that an electric car doesn’t have to be wantonly radical to be a success. Stuffing a car we already know and like with batteries can, with the correct execution, be a good tactic.” 

Read Top Gear’s Mini Electric review  

“The dinky electric crossover is becoming a competitive corner of the car market. The MX-30 doesn’t quite offer the sportiness its name suggests, but there’s a smart interior behind those wacky doors to make up for it, and it still drives as neatly as you could ever hope for from a 1.6-tonne SUV with modest power. Mazda’s been clever in how much regularity it’s built into the process of operating it, too. Analogue readouts and physical gear selection mean it’s a lot less daunting clambering in here than some competitors.” 

Read Top Gear’s Mazda MX-30 review  

“The big deal is that it's a surprisingly small deal. Just £27,745 after the grant. With the facelift, the MG ZS gets a bigger battery that imparts 273 miles of WLTP range. And it'll fit a family. It's got heaps of equipment and is guaranteed for seven years or 80k miles.”

Read Top Gear’s MG ZS first drive review

“The e-NV has an honest mission as an affordable, green, silent carrier for families, urban cabbing and the courtesy business. It fits seven, though not with much elan. The electric bit is mostly borrowed from the Leaf, good for up to 125 miles on the WLTP combined cycle, or up to 188 miles in town.”

Read Top Gear’s Nissan e-NV200 first drive review

“VW makes no secret of the fact it considers the ID3 its next definitive people’s car, after the Beetle and the Golf. And to please most people most of the time, the ID3 is deliberately not an oddball. On first impression, it fills the EV family hatch chasm between the bravely brilliant BMW i3 and the disappointingly unambitious Nissan Leaf. After all, regular Golfs have never been thrillers packed with derring-do, but they’ve tended to be a yardstick against which the pretenders are judged.”

Read Top Gear’s VW ID.3 review

“As a fuss-free entry point into practical EV ownership, there might not be a better option on the market today. We’re serious. The 5 EV feels like the Dacia of the EV world. It was never going to be the greatest thing to drive, but it’s harder to get an EV powertrain wrong. Range, charge times and price have been prioritised over steering feel, and a bunch of tech is thrown in to sweeten the deal. Modern-day MG might just be finding its niche in the market.”

Read Top Gear’s MG 5 review

“Sportiness is all well and good, but for a lot of people there’s as much appeal in a car that disregards that entirely in the pursuit of comfort and serenity. The e-C4 is one such car – it’s quiet, very comfortable and easy to drive. Reasonably practical too, though could do with a bit more zip. The price-to-range ratio isn’t necessarily on its side, but it’s not like you’ll be running out of juice having only travelled 50 miles from home.”

Read Top Gear’s Citroen e-C4 review

“In the old days you chose a car then decided what sort of engine and transmission to get. With the 208, in addition to diesel or petrol, manual or auto, there's also electric. So the e-208 can appeal both to people who primarily want a 208 then opt for that powertrain. And to people who primarily want an electric car and then opt for an e-208.” 

Read Top Gear’s Peugeot e-208 review  

“The Kona Electric is one of the best all-round, reasonably priced EVs you can buy today. If range is your key concern when it comes to all-electric motoring and you can’t stretch to a Tesla, Jaguar I-Pace or similar, the 64kWh Kona has to be on your shortlist. In fact, it could easily be your only car, and the new look means it’s much easier to love.”

Read Top Gear’s Hyundai Kona review

“The compact crossover set is a hugely congested and well-contested cars sales goldmine right now. To rise above the chaff, you’ve got to have a properly good-looking machine that also hits all the equipment and features bases not costing the Earth. The Mokka has at last smashed that bullseye. Brave styling, the eye-catching option of electric drive and a refreshingly easy-to-operate cabin that doesn’t overwhelm with tech are all mega ticks in the Mokka’s favour.”

Read Top Gear’s Vauxhall Mokka-e review 

“As of January 2022, all UK and European Berlingos are now only available as a fully electric MPV. It features a 50kWh battery powering a front-mounted electric motor for an equivalent 134bhp, and a range of 174 miles – that’s around the same as TG’s long-term Fiat 500 electric. And thus, if you can make the miles work for you, this car with many labels only really needs one: it’s a better ‘family’ car than a lot of the SUVs people tend to gravitate towards.”

Read Top Gear’s Citroen Berlingo review  

Another practical people carrier that’s gone all eco-conscious, the Vauxhall Combo e-Life is now exclusively electric, too. The similarities with the Citroen e-Berlingo don’t end there, either, with the e-Life available in five- or seven-seat configurations and its 50kWh battery good for a like-for-like 174 miles. Vauxhall tells us the 100kW electric motor (134bhp in old speak) offers 192lb ft of torque and a 0-60mph time of 11.2 seconds, while the battery can be re-charged from zero to 80 per cent in 30 minutes using a 100kW fast charger.

Stay tuned for our full review…

“Granted, the Citroen e-SpaceTourer won’t win any beauty contests. But it makes no secret about prioritising function over form, and in that sense, it stands strong. Based on the Dispatch van but with space for up to nine people, it uses the same powertrain as the likes of the Vauxhall Corsa-e and Citroen e-c4, meaning a 134bhp electric motor and 50kWh battery, good for up to 143 miles. ”

Read Top Gear’s Citroen e-SpaceTourer review

Another option for the nine-person family, there’s little to differentiate between the Vauxhall Vivaro e-Life and Citroen e-SpaceTourer – same price, same electric motor (134bhp), same battery (50kWh), same range (143 miles). And while that range won’t see you crossing continents, it’s more than enough for ferrying the kids to school or the weekly supermarket run.

Stay tuned for our full review…

After a little more style to MPV life? Look no further. Rivalling the Citroen e-Berlingo and Vauxhall Combo e-Life with space for up to seven, the e-Rifter features Peugeot’s i-Cockpit interior, complete with compact steering wheel and high-mounted digital instrument cluster. It looks smart and if you can get on with the driving position makes the e-Rifter an appealing choice, with the rest of the interior finish a cut above its MPV competitors.

Stay tuned for our full review…

“The Renault Zoe is Europe’s best-selling electric car thus far. It’s hugely popular – and with good reason. Whether that’s enough to sway you from newer, more style-led options is up to you. Even Renault itself has a rival (or perhaps replacement) on the horizon in the shape of its retro regen 5. Whatever the future for the Zoe, it’s place in the electric hall of fame is already assured. Mainstream EVs get no more trustworthy.” 

Read Top Gear’s Renault Zoe review  

The SsangYong Korando e-Motion is the first fully electric crossover produced by the South Korea-based manufacturer. Based on the same platform as the petrol and diesel Korando but with a slightly tweaked design, power comes from a 188bhp motor and 61.5kWh battery, good for a claimed range of up to 210 miles. Tempted over the slightly pricier Skoda Enyaq iV, folks?

Stay tuned for our full review…