And The Winner Is... You've Guessed It, The Vauxhall Ampera

LUTON, UNITED KINGDOM – Oct 16, 2012: Vauxhall’s Ampera extended range electric vehicle was honoured with the Industry Innovation prize at the 2012 GreenFleet awards.

This caps a memorable week for the pioneering Ampera, winning a hat trick of top gongs, also including the electric honour at the Scottish Car of the Year awards and the green car category at the British Insurance Security Awards. This brings the ground-breaking Ampera’s tally to over 40 top honours including the current European Car of the Year, What Car? Green Car of the Year and Top Gear magazine’s Green Car of the Year.

The GreenFleet Awards recognise the pioneering efforts of private and public sector fleet managers, vehicle manufacturers, suppliers and other organisations that strive to reduce the environmental impact of transport. The award ceremony at the Emirates Stadium, London was hosted by comedian and impressionist Alistair McGowan.

"For us, the Ampera was a standout winner,” said Colin Boyton, Marketing Manager for GreenFleet. “Since witnessing the chaos it caused at our Arrive'n'Drive event last year, with fleet managers clambering over each other to drive it, we have watched closely and seen it make a lasting impression on almost everyone that experiences it. Above that, the fleets that are actually embracing the vehicle are now reaping the benefits too. With EV's becoming more and more prominent in the fleet sector, Vauxhall has managed to overcome the range anxiety issue with the range-extending technology, and while recharging infrastructure remains an issue, this, for us, is the definitely the way forward.”

“We are very pleased that the Ampera has been recognised by GreenFleet for the Industry Innovation prize,” said Duncan Aldred, Vauxhall’s Chairman and Managing Director. “To win three awards in one week, and over 40 since launch, is an outstanding achievement and shows what a revolutionary vehicle the Ampera is.”

The Ampera arrived in UK showrooms in May this year andhas a real-world battery range of between 25-50 miles, after which a small range-extender motor intervenes to provide up to an additional 300-plus mile range. At all times, the Ampera’s wheels are electrically driven, setting it apart from hybrid vehicles.

Ampera pricing starts at £29,995 (including £5,000 government grant) for the Earth model. The car is available through a network of 24 specialist Vauxhall dealers.