Volkswagen e-up! on sale now

The first Volkswagen e-up! electric cars, are set to be delivered to customers in January, with the model going on sale today at a price of £19,250 (including the Government’s £5,000 grant).

The electric version of the Volkswagen up! debuted at the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show, and has a range of 93 miles. It is powered by an 80bhp motor, should go from 0-62mph in 12.4 seconds and will hit a top speed of 81mph.

The e-up! battery takes 30 minutes to charge up to 80 percent from a normal three-pin household plug, and nine hours for a full charge. Customers can also opt to have a wall-mounted box fitted at their home, free of charge, which drops the full-charge time to six hours.

Volkswagen's new e-up! can run in two modes, Eco and Eco+, to maximise the car’s range. Eco reduces power to 68bhp, while Eco+ drops power even further and disables the air conditioning.

Outside, the five-door e-up! can be identified by e-up! badges on the front wing, C-shaped bright LED daytime running lights and unique 15-inch alloy wheels.

Inside, the car gets lots of equipment including a leather-covered steering wheel, gearlever and handbrake, heated front seats, Bluetooth phone connection, cruise control, a heated windscreen, DAB radio, rear parking sensors and climate control. The e-up!, which has a five-star Euro NCAP rating, also comes fitted with Volkswagen City Safe, which brakes the car when it senses an imminent low-speed collision. The VW Maps and More sat-nav system is also included as standard.

Some of the car’s functions can be operated remotely, via iPhone or Android app, using Volkswagen’s Car Net Services that allow owners to monitor the e-up!’s charge status, as well as to pre-set the car’s air conditioning and heater.

The e-up! comes with a standard three-year warranty that can be extended by up to two years. The battery comes with an additional eight-year, 100,000-mile warranty.

As well as the e-up!, an electric Volkswagen Golf – called the Volkswagen e-Golf – will also go on sale in the UK in the near future. As with the e-up!, the e-Golf is supposed to mix everyday practicality with zero emissions and low running costs.

The e-Golf should have a range of around 118 miles, do 0-62mph in 10.4 seconds, and have a top speed of 87mph. It is expected to go on sale for around £25,000 in 2015.

For the full VW range, visit the CarBuyer Volkswagen reviews page.