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Chancellor George Osborne’s
Budget this week has put SEAT’s
super-frugal line-up of Ibiza E
Ecomotive models in pole
position for fleet and business
drivers looking to keep a lid on
their company car tax and
running costs.
Company car tax – referred to as
benefit in kind (BIK) – is based
on a percentage of the vehicle’s
recommended retail price, the
type of fuel it uses, the amount
of CO2 it emits and
the driver’s salary level.
Prior to the Chancellor’s speech
petrol-engined cars emitting
between 99 g/km and 120 g/km
fell into the lowest BIK bracket
for conventional-engined
vehicles and were taxed at ten
per cent. Low-emitting diesels
like the Ibiza, meanwhile, were
taxed at 13% because of the
three per cent diesel surcharge.
However the Chancellor’s
decision to tighten the lower
limit for low-carbon vehicles
from April 2013 reduces that
bottom BIK threshold to 94 g/km
or below.
Fortunately for latest
generation Ibiza E Ecomotive
drivers, or prospective
purchasers, their cars will
still qualify for the very
lowest diesel BIK rate of 13%
thanks to CO2
emissions of as little as 92
g/km.
Ally this to the fact that Ibiza
E Ecomotives – available in
sporty SC, practical 5dr and
capacious ST estate bodystyles –
are capable of more than 80 mpg
on the official combined cycle
and it’s plain to see why more
and more fleet and business
managers and drivers are opting
for one of these stylish SEATs.
SEAT UK Head of Fleet & Business
Sales, Nick Andrews, explained:
‘The Ibiza E Ecomotive range is
proving increasingly attractive
to a wide variety of our
customers with, in particular,
the ST version making great
inroads thanks to its
practicality and style.
‘The revisions to company car
tax arrangements announced by
the Chancellor this week will
only serve to strengthen the
Ibiza’s case with business
customers who, understandably,
are watching every penny at the
moment.’
The third generation ‘green’
Ibiza, now badged E Ecomotive to
reflect its super-frugal
performance, achieves
exceptional CO2
emissions of just 92g/km, and is
capable of fuel consumption of
80.7 mpg (combined).
The impressive figures are, in
part, the result of painstaking
work carried out on the
1.2-litre common-rail TDI 75 PS
engine which, as usual, boasts a
diesel particulate filter (DPF)
as standard. Other important
additions to the latest
generation Ecomotive include,
for the first time on an Ibiza,
the use of Start/Stop technology
and Brake Energy Recovery.
Optimised aerodynamics, weight
reduction and changes to the
engine management have given
rise to one of the cleanest cars
on the market.
Available in 5dr, SC and ST
bodystyles the cars are not only
exempt from UK road tax (VED)
but, as a result of changes
announced at the start of this
year, are also eligible for free
entry to London’s revised
Congestion Charge zone.
The Ibiza E Ecomotive models
form part of a growing selection
of SEAT Ecomotive and E
Ecomotive cars that also takes
in versions of the Leon, Altea,
Altea XL and Alhambra. Prices
start at £13,490 RRP for the
Ibiza SC S A/C E Ecomotive. |
