Electric car leasing deals – exclusive EV discounts for Telegraph Cars readers

Electric car leasing deals – exclusive EV discounts for Telegraph Cars readers

Electric cars are significantly more expensive to buy than their petrol-powered counterparts. Some cost almost twice as much as a similar internal combustion model, which immediately obliterates any savings a household can make by switching to battery-powered motoring. Combined with the much shorter range of electric cars and consumer worries about battery degradation, we often have a hard time convincing people to buy an EV outright.

Leasing is a much easier prospect to recommend, though. With prices only a little bit higher than internal combustion vehicles and a bit more peace of mind in relation to the condition of the battery, consumers are increasingly turning to electric car leasing in order to participate in the EV revolution. Through our partner Select Car Leasing, Telegraph Cars readers are eligible for a fully discounted arrangement fee (valued at £234) on the cost of a lease when using the code SCLTELE19 - please see below for terms and conditions, and for more information on the cars available.

Jaguar I-Pace – £502 per month - View leasing offers

This is probably the only electric car we Brits have got properly excited about. It’s a cracking piece of equipment, delivering industry-leading electric performance, a conventionally posh Jag interior, and the sort of old-school badge appeal lacking from some of the other cars on this page. Expect a range of almost 300 miles, buit at more than twice the price of a similarly-versatile Hyundai Kona EV it might be difficult to justify.

Audi e-Tron £569 per month - View leasing offers

The Belgian-built e-Tron is one of the first premium electric SUVs to not look like a premium electric SUV. To the casual observer, this is just another Audi crossover, with characteristically aggressive styling that tells everybody else on the school run that you mean business. While the Hyundai Konda EV and the Kia e-Niro offer similar range for much less money, the e-Tron is faster and more dynamically composed. Plus, there's no denying the badge appeal. 

Nissan Leaf £322 per month - View leasing offers

Ah, the one that started it all. Nissan's leaf was arguably the first battery-electric car to go mainstream, and while it was eventually overtaken by rivals, it remains a mainstay of the EV market. It's one of the more affordable models, and one of the few electric hatchbacks in a world increasingly obsessed with SUVs, so well worth considering. Take one for a test drive first, though, as the lack of driving position adjustment makes it uncomfortable for some motorists.

BMW i3 £332 per month - View leasing offers

The i3 has been one of our favourite electric cars ever since it was released. It has one of the nicest interiors of any vehicle and it drives fabulously, proving that EVs don’t have to be boring or dynamically compromised. It’s been around for a while now and there are cheaper electric cars to consider, but it still represents great value if you’re leasing. Bear in mind that there’s a hybrid version (not available on this list) that adds some petrol-powered versatility.

Volkswagen Golf – £297 per month - View leasing offers

You’ve heard of a Golf, right? It’s the family hatchback benchmark, and has been for a few decades now. It might not be the most interesting thing on four wheels but a reputation for build quality, driving experience and interior plushness makes it a firm favourite with buyers, despite the plethora of budget rivals flooding in from Japan and Korea. This is probably the least compromised electric car of the lot, and a gateway EV for the unconvinced.

Kia Soul EV – £213 per month - View leasing offers 

The Kia Soul EV is almost as practical as the standard internal combustion engine Soul, but it rides over bumps better and will cost a lot less to run. Don’t be put off by its relatively modest performance figures - anyone making the transition from a similarly-priced petrol car will be pleasantly surprised by the Soul EV’s get-up-and-go. It is a bit on the expensive side, though and the steering is a bit inert. Expect a range of just over 100 miles.

Smart ForFour – £250 per month - View leasing offers

Remember when Smart launched its little city cars back in 1998? Well, now they’re going electric, and Smart will soon become a wholly battery-powered brand. The electric ForFour (as opposed to ForTwo, geddit?) is an extension of the Nineties dream, offering clean, green urban motoring to people who only need a compact runabout. It inherits some problems from the petrol-powered version, though, and its range of less than 100 miles is mediocre.

Citroen C Zero – £278 per month - View leasing offers

Yep, they still make the C Zero. This rebadged version of Mitsubishi’s i-MiEV (which has also been sold as the Peugeot iOn) was a pretty advanced electric car when it launched a decade ago, but these days it has limited appeal in the UK. Low range, limited crash protection and a 0-62mph time of some 15 seconds feels very old-fashioned in comparison to current-gen EV performance - a compromise that isn’t reflected in the price.

Hyundai Ioniq – £272 per month - View leasing offers

The Ioniq comes with a variety of powertrains, but the fully electric one is the version we’re focusing on here. It’s relatively good-looking, it has a nice interior, it’s fairly comfy and we’ve been pretty impressed with Hyundai’s reliability over the past few years, so this is definitely a car to consider if you want a roomy EV with space for a pushchair in the boot. Expect well over 100 miles of range.

Tesla Model S – £935 per month - View leasing offers

Did the Model S popularise the electric car? We think it might have done. It’s been around for a fair few years now and it’s still one of the most exciting electric cars to drive, and while there are other premium entrants (like Jaguar) competing in this space, the Tesla badge still has a certain kudos. It’s an expensive option, and many family buyers will prefer cars like the Hyundai Kona EV and BMW i3, but everybody should drive a Tesla at least once.

Volkswagen e-Up – £280 per month - View leasing offers

The Germans had no idea why we found the name of this electric city car so amusing, even after we explained what Yorkshire was. Volkswagen’s e-Up is virtually indistinguishable from its petrol-powered counterpart save for the silence of its powertrain and the mediocrity of its range; at under 100 miles in summer and as low as 50 miles in winter, this little city car is for short distances only. It’s smart, easy to park, relatively roomy in comparison to its external dimensions and very cheap to run, but larger EVs offer more versatility (and value).

Renault Zoe – £286 per month - View leasing offers

The Zoe is one of the best-value electric cars available, offering decent range for a fraction of the price of certain rivals. We ordinarily recommend it as a second-hand bargain but as a leasing candidate it’s still compelling - a real-world range of between 120 and 180 miles (depending on which specification you choose, and the weather) means this middleweight EV fits into a lot of commuter lifestyles. We like the way it looks, too.

Smart ForTwo – £246 per month - View leasing offers

As we’ve learned, it’s perfectly possible to have a spacious, practical, five-seat car that runs on battery power alone. The Smart ForTwo is a rejection of that, offering space for just two people and a diminutive boot. What’s more, its range of less than 100 miles makes it hard to recommend in comparison to larger, more versatile machines. If you have a driveway and need a compact city car, this is one to consider, otherwise look elsewhere.

Tesla Model X – £1,004 per month - View leasing offers
Credit:  James Lipman

Competing with the larger, more exclusive SUVs from Land Rover, Mercedes and Audi, the Tesla Model X is an expensive car. It has seating for up to seven, class-leading performance and those amazing falcon-wing doors - this is both a tool and a toy, appealing to a specific sort of buyer. A high performance version costing nearly £140,000 new is available, but most buyers will be satisfied with the cheapest version’s 5.2-second 0-60mph time.

Hyundai Kona EV – £384 per month - View leasing offers 

The Hyundai Kona EV is one of our favourite cars of the past year or so, and probably the best value electric car currently on sale in Britain in 2019. In 39kWh version has an official range of 180 miles while the 64kWh; while you should take these figures with a huge pinch of salt, the Kona EV doesn’t fall far short of the much more expensive Jaguar I-Pace. There’s a huge waiting list to buy one of these, which reflects how good they are.

Smart ForTwo Cabrio – £278 per month - View leasing offers

There aren’t many electric convertibles on sale yet, so the Smart ForTwo Cabrio is still a bit of a novelty. As with the hard top version it’s a bit expensive, dynamically iffy and limited in terms of range, but all of those issues are easier to overlook with the roof down. This is a car you buy with your heart rather than your head (the ragtop 500 is a better product in almost every way) but it’s hard to overlook the cheeriness of this zero-emission cabrio.

*Lease prices from list price(s) shown in the article above is correct as of article publish date and are based on 9 months initial payment upfront.  Prices include VAT and are subject to change. Excess mileage charges may apply. Ts and Cs apply. The cars on this page have been independently chosen by the Telegraph's motoring team.

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