BMW renews membership in Go Ultra Low emission vehicle campaign

BMW has reaffirmed its commitment to Go Ultra Low, the campaign to increase awareness of ultra-low emission vehicles (ULEVs) among British car buyers. BMW is joined by Audi, Mitsubishi and Volkswagen, Nissan, Renault and Toyota in working with government to raise awareness of the benefits of ULEVs – including low running costs and government incentives.

Between them, the seven Go Ultra Low members boast 15 ULEVs across a wide variety of model sizes and performance attributes, from family cars and vans, to SUVs and high performance sports cars. This broader scope of products has increased the appeal of ULEVs to more buyers, and increased uptake.

According to figures from the SMMT (the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders), ULEV registrations in 2014 grew by more than 300% to 14,518 cars, as drivers embraced the variety of models on offer; the enjoyable driving experience; and cheaper driving costs associated with ULEV ownership. BMW’s first-ever electric vehicle, the BMW i3, launched to critical acclaim in Nov 2013 and was voted UK Car of the Year. To date, BMW has sold 1,859 i3s in the UK.

Transport Minister Baroness Kramer said: “The public are increasingly seeing the benefits of ultra low emission vehicles, which have low running costs and are easily chargeable at home or on the street. We now have seven manufacturers campaigning to show the wide range of styles and prices available so even more people will see what’s on offer, and the significant government help available.”

Hetal Shah, spokesperson for Go Ultra Low, said: “More UK car-buyers are realising the advantages of owning an ultra-low emission vehicle, and the aim of the newly-expanded Go Ultra Low consortium is to share the multiple benefits with a wider audience. We’ve discovered that once people learn more about the benefits of these cars and vans, they’re keen to take action – and once they’ve tried them, they’re hooked.”

With pure-electric vehicles able to travel around 100 miles on a single charge and other plug-in ULEVs boasting ranges of up to 700 miles, these efficient cars are a viable, low-cost option for millions of motorists across the country.

As well as tax benefits, government currently offers up to £5,000 of the price of ULEVs and the cost of driving them is as little as 2p per mile, compared to at least 10p per mile for a typical petrol or diesel car.

The Go Ultra Low campaign is the first of its kind, bringing together the Department for Transport, the Office for Low Emission Vehicles, SMMT and the consortium of seven car manufacturers.

Graeme Grieve, Chief Executive Officer for BMW Group UK, said ‘BMW Group UK is proud to be part of Go Ultra-Low. A founding member of the campaign, we welcome the new manufacturers and we will continue to work together hand in hand with the government to raise public awareness and promote electric vehicles in the UK.’

Information for motorists and fleet audiences about the variety of ULEVs available, their costs and charge point locations can be found at www.GoUltraLow.com.

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Notes to editors:

About Go Ultra Low

GoUltraLow.com provides a one-stop shop for information about owning and running ultra-low emission vehicles, the makes and models available and the locations of the thousands of publicly available chargepoints.

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