Next month sales of the Ampera, Volt to you guys in the U.S., begin here in the UK. It will be sold through 24 specialty retailers located within an hour’s drive of 95% of the target audience.
Pricing here in the UK starts at £29,995 and tops out at £33,995 ($47,658 to $54,000) which represents quite a hike over the Volt’s sticker price. Although Vauxhall was at pains to stress that once state taxes and other standard items such as leather seats and steering or premium Bose sound system were included, the disparity between Dollar and Sterling prices was not so significant.
The question remains here in the UK, does the Ampera make a compelling enough financial case to attract the 2500 to 3000 sales Vauxhall is hoping for this year? Especially since the goal is to eventually reach 5000 sales per year?
I appreciate that styling is personal, but the Ampera does give the impression of its surfacing being too complex with conflicting lines and swages for UK and European tastes. Having said that, the seating was comfortable, the ride – specially tuned for our local needs – better than I anticipated although the electrically power assisted steering self-centred far too quickly for my tastes.
But this car is all about range and efficiency. Vauxhall laid on a different driving exercise including plenty of urban commuting as well as highways and ‘B’ roads, the two diversions induced by accidents I was assured weren’t part of the scenario.
When the battery finally quit after 35.5 miles we had a 278-mile range left, an average of 148 mpg, the equivalent of 123 U.S. mpg having used a third of a UK gallon of fuel and 10 kWh of battery energy. At the end of the test drive we had covered 139 miles and averaged 54.8 mpg (45.6 U.S. mpg), figures that can be achieved by a good diesel rival. We had 197 miles of gasoline left having covered 35.5 miles on the battery and 103.5 in gasoline mode, consuming 2.53 UK gallons of fuel and 10.3 kWh battery energy.
I sense that if I spent my working week commuting to and fro in urban situations where I could easily and safely recharge the car during the working day and at night, then an Ampera might make sense. Especially as at weekends I could go on longer journeys unfettered by an electric vehicle’s range anxiety.
But where I live in rural England it wouldn’t make economic sense, as I don’t have a garage or driveway in which I could safely plug in the car and a charging station wouldn’t be allowed by the planning authorities. So, for the time-being at least, I will stick to my trusty diesel.
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Related posts:
- Ampera Voted Car Of The Year – 2012 Geneva Auto Show
- First Drive: 2012 Vauxhall Astra GTC
- First Drive: 2012 Vauxhall Corsa VXR Nurburgring
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