If you’re lucky enough to be offered a new set of wheels with your job, then these are the best hybrid company cars you should be considering.
We’ve run the rule over the latest crop of petrol-electric contenders to uncover the best options for user choosers looking to mix business with pleasure, as well as save a few quid on their tax bill.
Of course, fully electric cars and plug-in hybrids are the best for saving large chunks of cash, but not all drivers can plug-in to charge, either at work or home. Yet fleet managers are still keen to cut CO2 emissions and slash fuel bills - which is where traditional hybrids come in. Offering the flexibility and ease-of-use of a traditional ICE but with the benefits of electrification, these machines are the perfect compromise for high mileage company car drivers.
For this list we’ve concentrated on both ‘self-charging’ and ‘mild’ hybrids. The former usually have a bigger battery and the ability, for short periods at least, to drive in a ‘full EV’ mode thanks to their more powerful electric motors. In the latter there’s usually a much smaller combined starter/generator unit that can give the petrol engine a boost of acceleration as well recover lost energy and feed it back into the battery when coasting or braking.
More importantly, this set-up helps lower CO2 emissions, which means a more beneficial Benefit-in-Kind rating. It’s this figure that dictates how much a company car driver’s salary will be taxed each month for the pleasure of using their car, so the lower the better.
What’s more, we’ve stuck to the sort of models that best fulfill the traditional company car role of combining business during the week with family friendly versatility at the weekend.
