Next Green Car has launched its 2015 Awards by announcing a shortlist of 40 models – of which 10 are plug-in vehicles. In a list that covers all sorts of car from citycars to SUVs, the NGC Awards 2015 aims to highlight the greenest cars that have gone on sale this year.
The plug-in models to make the cut include the hugely important Nissan Leaf 30kWh and Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV. Previous versions of these two models account for a significant proportion of the plug-in car market – more than 50 per cent.
Joining the Mitsubishi and Leaf on the short list are Volkswagen’s latest PHEV models, along with plug-in hybrid and pure-EV vehicles from Tesla, BMW, Mercedes, Volvo and Nissan. The included models and their selectre categories are:
Small family – Nissan Leaf 30kWh
Small family – VW Golf GTE
Large family – VW Passat GTE
Estate – VW Passat GTE Estate
MPV – Nissan e-NV200 Combi
SUV – Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV
SUV – Volvo XC90 T8 TwinEngine
Executive – Mercedes Benz 350e
Next generation – BMW 330e PHEV
Next generation – Tesla Model X
Plug-in models feature in seven of the ten categories, while other fuel types to make the shortlist include petrol, diesel, hybrid and hydrogen fuel cell powertrains, making up an extremely diverse range of vehicles from 24 different manufacturers. Those categories that don’t feature a plug-in model – Citycar, Supermini and Crossover – have not had a viable contender launched during 2015.
All the cars have been selected with the help of the Next Green Car Rating which rates the vehicle’s environmental impact and is available on all new cars on the market. After considering this, the Awards’ judges have then considered how well the car performs in its market sector and its value for money, among other attributes, to create the 40 model shortlist.
Visit the Next Green Car Awards 2015 page for the full shortlist and further details. The winners will be announced on Tuesday 24th November.
