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April 2026 £760 automotive tax hits Mondeo, Golf, Zafira – fashions being scrapped listed

Lots of of hundreds of automobiles are being scrapped as homeowners refuse to pay rising VED costs for high-emission automobiles

Some older Ford Mondeos are being scrapped as drivers realise they will be paying £760 tax from April (Picture: Sue Thatcher by way of Getty Photos)

A £735 tax entice means a whole bunch of hundreds of automobiles on UK roads are being ‘written off’ as individuals refuse to pay the fees.

Some motorists are reportedly reluctant to make the transition to newer electrical fashions, with the consequence being that they are clinging onto their older automobiles.

A few of them have bigger engines – and if the proprietor determined to amass an identical car now they might face a crushing ‘first yr’ further cost relying on emissions of as much as £5490.

Some imagine it’s extra environmentally sound to take care of an older automotive on the street slightly than buy one thing new which has excessive manufacturing emissions.

Nevertheless, the Telegraph reported that a few of the most sought-after automobiles from 20 years in the past at the moment are nearly nugatory and being scrapped as a result of it prices an excessive amount of to tax them.

It implies that automobiles which produce greater than 225g of CO2 emissions per kilometre are hit by Car Excise Responsibility (VED) – with these producing 201-225g/km paying £430, 226-255g/km £735 and Over 255g/km £750.

And the bands are set to rise with the £735 going as much as £760 and the £750 over 255g/km anticipated to hit £790 from April 2026.

However the Telegraph reported that it is not simply excessive finish SUVs with big engines being hit – it is odd household automobiles like Ford Mondeos, Saabs, VW Golfs and Vauxhall Zafiras.

Persons are reportedly scrapping their automobiles because of the monumental tax invoice every year – which rivals how a lot the automotive is price. Nevertheless, the Guardian revealed that manufacturing a medium-sized new automotive might produce over 17 tonnes of CO2e – practically equal to a few years of gasoline and electrical energy consumption in a typical UK family

Associated articles

  • Main UK automotive tax change with new £50,000 rule from April

  • DVLA points pressing 2026 VED automotive tax assertion to each UK driver 

Mike Berners-Lee and Duncan Clark defined: “With this in thoughts, until you do very excessive mileage or have an actual gas-guzzler, it usually is sensible to maintain your outdated automotive for so long as it’s dependable – and to take care of it rigorously to increase its life so long as doable. When you make a automotive final to 200,000 miles slightly than 100,000, then the emissions for every mile the automotive does in its lifetime could drop by as a lot as 50%, on account of getting extra distance out of the preliminary manufacturing emissions.”

The vast majority of pre-2001 automobiles are merely taxed based mostly on engine capability. Something underneath 1,549cc attracts a yearly levy of £229, while motors with cubic capability exceeding this threshold – whether or not it is a Lada or a Lamborghini – face an annual cost of £360.

Following this era, the emissions-based bands have been launched, although automobiles registered between March 2001 and 23 March 2006 had their most price restricted to the Band Ok stage, at present standing at £430.

10 standard fashions caught within the VED entice.

  • Mannequin Annual // street tax price
  • Saab 900 Convertible £735
  • Land Rover Freelander 2 i6 £760
  • Audi TT 1.8T £735
  • Ford Galaxy 2.3 £735
  • Jaguar X-Kind 2.0-litre Auto £735
  • Subaru Forester 2.5 XT £735
  • Volkswagen Golf R32 £760
  • Chrysler PT Cruiser £735
  • Vauxhall Zafira VXR £735
  • Ford Mondeo V6 £735

New 2026-2027 automotive tax charges for automobiles registered between March 1, 2001, and April 1, 2017

  • As much as 100g/km – Stays at £20
  • Between 101 and 110g/km – Stays at £20
  • Between 111 and 120g/km – Stays at £35
  • Between 121 and 130g/km – Rising from £165 to £170
  • Between 131 and 140g/km – Rising from £195 to £200
  • Between 141 and 150g/km – Rising from £215 to £225
  • Between 151 and 165g/km – Rising from £265 to £275
  • Between 166 and 175g/km – Rising from £315 to £325
  • Between 176 and 185g/km – Rising from £345 to £360
  • Between 186 and 200g/km – Rising from £395 to £410
  • Between 201 and 225g/km – Rising from £430 to £445
  • Between 226 and 255g/km – Rising from £735 to £760
  • Over 255g/km – Rising from £750 to £790

Specialists say that is making sure fashions nearly nugatory, resulting in them being scrapped or exported to international locations the place patrons welcome these discount automobiles, lots of that are on the cusp of being classics.

Whereas homeowners of unique supercars and V8-engined 4x4s won’t get a lot sympathy for the hefty tax invoice, the principles additionally penalise way more mundane sporty fashions such because the Audi TT 1.8 and Vauxhall Zafira VXR, larger-engined variations of the Ford Mondeo and even a Volkswagen Golf.

Drivers wanting the additional grip of all-wheel-drive may assume a Land Rover Freelander or Subaru Forester can be excellent and cheaper to run than a big 4×4, however some fashions nonetheless fall into the highest bands and will value greater than £800 a yr to tax.

Wayne Lamport runs Stone Chilly Classics in Kent, which offers primarily in automobiles from round this period. He informed the Telegraph: “We have now to be very cautious after we purchase inventory which is 2006 or newer. Automobiles akin to a Jaguar X-Kind are nice, however who desires to pay greater than £700 for the annual tax? It doesn’t take a few years of possession to spend the worth of the automotive.

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“One instance is the Chrysler PT Cruiser. Lots of people love them and assume it is going to be a novelty, however they go off the concept after they realise the annual value of taxing it. Quite a lot of these automobiles are nearly unsellable.”

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