Audi A3 Sportback e-tron is the Best Green SME Company Car
Audi A3 e-tron voted Best Green SME Company Car
Independent SME Company Car of the Year Awards run by Business Car Manager
Supported by Fleet Alliance, an award winning supplier of company car leasing to SMEs
Audi's assault on the plug-in hybrid market has come good, with the A3 Sportback e-tron winning the Best Green SME Company Car award for 2016 in the Business Car Manager SME Company Car of the Year Awards.
Supported by Fleet Alliance, an award-winning supplier of company car leasing to SMEs, The SME Company Car of the Year identifies the best cars, and the best company car programmes available for the SME business sector.
By adding plug-in power to an already classy package, the Audi now offers punchy performance combined with penny-pinching running costs including 5% BIK liability.
With full electric cars there's always that worry about running out of power and being stranded without anywhere to charge but this isn't a problem for this hybrid Audi. On a full charge, the e-tron's electric motor means it can travel up to 30 miles on electric power at speeds up to 81mph and when that runs out, there's always the A3's 1.4-litre petrol turbo motor to fall back on, meaning 176.6mpg is possible.
Once the lithium-ion cells from the battery are drained, a charge mode can be used to top them up again, with the default setting being Hybrid which goes between the petrol and electric motors to make the best use of the energy available.
Despite the electric hybrid drivetrain, it feels like any other A3 inside. This means clean design, high quality finishes and in the e tron's case, plenty of standard kit, with dual-zone climate control, sports seats, the S tronic gearbox, Audi's MMI Navigation system and a seven-inch display, which are all fitted as standard. The only giveaway about the electric drivetrain is that the rev counter is replaced by a smart power meter.
The Audi A3 e tron might cost pennies to run, but acceleration to 62mpg takes just 7.6 seconds and the top speed is 137mph. In addition, the Audi A3 e-tron is available from just £380.50 per month.
Martin Brown, managing director of Fleet Alliance and category judge, said: "With its 37g/km CO2 output corresponding to a 5% BIK liability, exceptionally low running costs and typically strong residuals the A3 Sportback e-tron combines premium class quality and desirability with outstanding cost effectiveness."
Ralph Morton, the website's editorial director, added: "It's critical that small businesses and SME firms running company cars get the expert help that they require. These Awards highlight the best cars as well as company car and support programmes to make life easier for the SME director charged with looking after the company car programme."
The SME Company Car of the Year Awards were judged by an independent panel of experts:
Paul Hollick, commercial director of The Miles Consultancy (TMC), and chairman of the Institute of Car Fleet Management (ICFM) - chair of the judges.
Martin Brown, managing director, Fleet Alliance
Steve Cocks, director broker division, Lex Autolease
Andy Brown, managing director, CD Auction Group
Colin Tourick, Grant Thornton professor of automotive management, University of Buckingham
Jonathan Burn, deputy news editor, Auto Express
Jim McNally, head of asset risk, Alphabet
Robert Wastell, divisional managing director, Hitachi Capital Car Solutions
Business Car Manager provides authoritative company car advice and information for SMEs with over 500,000 annual unique visitors to the business motoring information portal.
Full details of the Business Car Manager SME Company Car of the Year Awards 2016 can be found at: http://www.businesscarmanager.co.uk/category/cars-reviews/best-company-cars/sme-company-car-of-the-year-awards-2016/.
Contact:
Ralph Morton, editor
07970 165 328