I fear it’s end of the road for classic cars
ONE of the last great British institutions, the classic car, is under threat. The timeline for electric vehicles has been brought forward with astonishing speed in addition to the phasing out of E5 petrol. I run two classic vehicles, a 1972 Land Rover Series 3 and a 1971 Triumph Spitfire 1300, one for work and one for pleasure. They attract considerable interest and smiles from all age groups, yet I fear this is yet another quaint part of life to be forced out in the name of going green. Classic cars typically cover a fraction of the annual mileage of their modern counterparts and are generally in excellent condition. It would be a crying shame not to see these gems on the road, replaced by soulless, anonymous electric cars gliding around soundlessly and dangerously.
TONY BECK, Maidenhead, Berks. GIVEN the supposed drive to encourage motorists to switch to cleaner vehicles, I am in the process of exchanging my six-and-a-half-yearold, reliable diesel vehicle for a hybrid petrol model. However, it appears I was wrong to think it would enjoy a token or zero rate of Vehicle Excise Duty. Not only is the rate higher — £145 compared to £125 — there is also a surcharge of £335. That’s because if a hybrid car costs more than £40,000 when new, you have to pay an extra £335 a year for the first five times it’s taxed. This is despite the fact my Ford Kuga has a CO2 of 122 g/km and the hybrid has a CO2 of only 43 g/km. A fully electric vehicle costing in excess of £80,000 pays zero VED. What incentive is this supposed to give to switch from a diesel when you are penalised for buying a hybrid vehicle?