Outlander PHEV leads way as plug–in sales soar

New figures show that plug–in registrations soared for the first quarter of 2015, with the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV taking the top spot.

Analysis of DVLA data by the RAC Foundation has revealed that sales of plug–in vehicles eligible for the Government’s plug–in car and van grants rose 37% in Q1 2015 compared to Q4 2014, reaching a total of 29,469 vehicles. With the total UK vehicle parc comprising 30.7m cars and 3.6m vans, this means that vehicles licensed and eligible for the plug–in car and van grants make up 0.09% of the total: 1 in every 1,164.

The research showed that the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV is now the most common plug–in vehicle on the road in the UK, knocking the Nissan LEAF off the top spot.

There were 9,688 Outlanders licensed at the end of Q1 2015, compared with 5,273 at the end of Q4 2014 – an 84% increase.

By comparison there were 8,274 pure battery–powered Nissan Leafs, a 21% increase on the 6,838 figure three months earlier.

Third in the list of licensed vehicles that qualify for the government’s plug–in car and van grants is the BMW i3 with 2,186 units, up 43%.

Top 20 vehicles on the road currently available under the plug–in car grant scheme (as of the end of Q1 2015):

Rank	Make and Model	Q1 2015	Q4 2014
1	Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV (all variants)	9688	5273
2	Nissan LEAF	8274	6838
3	BMW i3	2186	1534
4	Renault ZOE	1621	1356
5	Toyota Prius Plug–in Hybrid	1395	1324
6	Vauxhall Ampera	1226	1169
7	Tesla Model S	902	698
8	Renault Kangoo Z.E.	692	663
9	BMW i8	546	279
10	Nissan e–NV200 (all variants)	512	399
11	Peugeot iOn	376	368
12	Porsche Panamera S E–Hybrid	301	241
13	Audi A3 e–tron	300	66
14	Mitsubishi i–MiEV	254	266
15	Smart ForTwo Electric Drive	216	205
16	Citroen C–Zero	206	202
17	Volvo V60 Plug–in Hybrid	173	175
18	Volkswagen e–up!	130	118
19	Chevrolet Volt	123	124
20	Volkswagen e–Golf	83	47

The Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV is the world’s first Plug–In Hybrid Electric Vehicle and has some fantastic features including impressive fuel economy and ultra low emissions. With incredibly low Benefit In Kind, the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV is a great option for company car users. There is also a free app that allows you to operate many of the vehicle functions remotely, making the PHEV the perfect car to work around your lifestyle.

Company Director Steven Szmigielski at MCT Engineering gives his review of the PHEV and explains why making the switch to the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV was a ‘no brainer’.