Affordable luxury electric cars are now available in India, offering high-end features at the same price point as their ICE counterparts. The Mini Cooper SE, priced at Rs 53.50 lakh, has a battery capacity of 32.6 kWh and a driving range of up to 270 km. The Volvo XC40 Recharge, priced at Rs 56.90 lakh, offers a WLTP claimed range of 418 km. Its coupe sibling, the C40 Recharge, is priced at Rs 61.25 lakh and offers a higher WLTP-claimed range of 530 km. The BMW iX1, priced at Rs 66.90 lakh, has a range of 417-440 km, while the BMW i4 has a range of 590 km.
There is no better way to celebrate World EV Day on September 9 than with South Africa’s accelerating sales of new and used electric vehicles (EVs). It’s quite the about-turn from the somewhat lacklustre adoption of EVs in past years.
One of the biggest stumbling blocks to EV adoption in South Africa is cost, but doing a bit of homework and following some sage advice will alleviate concerns.