Australia’s most affordable hybrid and electric cars
The list of electric car and hybrid car options in Australia expands with every passing year, but their often prohibitive cost – particularly in the case of EVs – remains a major barrier to their uptake.
Hybrid drivetrains are complex, while batteries for hybrid or electric cars are expensive to manufacture, which bumps up the price of hybrid and electric cars across the board. Some brands are blessed with scale and long-serving tech that has already paid for itself, but not all can say the same.
And, unlike the United Kingdom or Norway, the Australian government currently offers no major nation-wide incentives or deductions for those purchasing a hybrid or electric vehicle (although the ACT offers a stamp-duty exemption on new electric cars) and charging infrastructure isn't as widely available, which in turn limits uptake and demand.
But with news hybrid sales in Australia surged by 64 per cent in April 2020 compared with the same month last year, the evidence is there that a growing number of Australians are committing to more economical powertrain options.
Currently, Australians have the choice of the following vehicle types: an all-electric car (EV), which doesn’t use petrol and must be recharged via a cable; a plug-in hybrid car (PHEV), which uses a combination of petrol engine and battery power and may also be plugged in to recharge; or the more conventional, now well-known hybrid (HEV) option, which uses the petrol engine and regenerative braking to charge the battery and doesn’t need to be plugged in.
There are also 'mild hybrid' systems, which typically use a small 48-volt motor to provide assistance to the engine in order to enhance performance and efficiency, but they’re less common in Australia and tend to be found in cars from more expensive marques.
And while the concept of ‘affordable hybrid and electric cars’ may be and something of an oxymoron, it is possible to purchase a new fully or semi-electrified model for under $50,000.
Of course, few would call $50,000 a bargain, but when you consider the petrol a hybrid or EV could save you over a period of several years, perhaps that price point becomes justified. Plus, if your budget is $40,000 or below, that rules out all-electric cars entirely – hence why we increased the threshold to include a few more options.
Below, we’ve rounded up every fully or semi-electrified car in Australia under $50,000 – in order from least to most expensive – and will continue to update this list as more affordable models become available.
Toyota Prius C hybrid
Note: The Toyota Prius C was recently discontinued, but we've included it as there may be remaining dealer stock available.
Starting price: $24,040 plus on-road costs
How does it work? Self-charging hybrid, petrol required, but no plug-in required
Claimed combined fuel consumption: 3.9L/100km
Toyota Corolla hybrid
Starting price: $26,335 plus on-road costs
How does it work? Self-charging hybrid, petrol required, but no plug-in required
Claimed combined fuel consumption: 4.2L/100km
Toyota Camry hybrid
Starting price: $30,590 plus on-road costs
How does it work? Self-charging hybrid, petrol required, but no plug-in required
Claimed combined fuel consumption: 4.2L/100km
Hyundai Ioniq hybrid
Starting price: $35,140 plus on-road costs
How does it work? Self-charging hybrid, petrol required, but no plug-in required
Claimed combined fuel consumption: 3.4L/100km
(Plug-in hybrid and full-electric options also available, see below)
Toyota RAV4 hybrid
Starting price: $35,490 plus on-road costs
How does it work? Self-charging hybrid, petrol required, but no plug-in required
Claimed combined fuel consumption: 4.7L/100km
Subaru XV hybrid
Starting price: $35,580 plus on-road costs
How does it work? Self-charging hybrid, petrol required, but no plug-in required
Claimed combined fuel consumption: 6.5L/100km
Toyota C-HR hybrid
Starting price: $36,440 plus on-road costs
How does it work? Self-charging hybrid, petrol required, but no plug-in required
Claimed combined fuel consumption: 4.3L/100km
Toyota Prius hybrid
Starting price: $36,590 plus on-road costs
How does it work? Self-charging hybrid, petrol required, but no plug-in required
Claimed combined fuel consumption: 3.4L/100km
Toyota Prius V hybrid
Starting price: $37,590 plus on-road costs
How does it work? Self-charging hybrid, petrol required, but no plug-in required
Claimed combined fuel consumption: 4.4L/100km
Subaru Forester hybrid
Starting price: $39,990 plus on-road costs
How does it work? Self-charging hybrid, petrol required, but no plug-in required
Claimed combined fuel consumption: 6.7L/100km
Hyundai Ioniq plug-in hybrid
Starting price: $42,410 plus on-road costs
How does it work? Plug-in hybrid, requires both charging and petrol
Claimed combined fuel consumption: 1.1L/100km
Claimed electric-only range: 60km on a full charge
Mitsubishi Outlander hybrid
Starting price: $47,390 plus on-road costs
How does it work? Plug-in hybrid, requires both charging and petrol
Claimed combined fuel consumption: 1.9L/100km
Claimed electric-only range: 54km on a full charge
Hyundai Ioniq electric
Starting price: $48,970 plus on-road costs
How does it work? Fully electric, must be externally charged, no petrol required
Claimed electric-only range: 311km on a full charge
Renault Zoe electric
Starting price: $47,490 plus on-road costs
How does it work? Fully electric, must be externally charged, no petrol required
Claimed electric-only range: Up to 300km on a full charge
Nissan Leaf electric
Starting price: $49,990 plus on-road costs
How does it work? Fullyelectric, must be externally charged, no petrol required
Claimed electric-only range: 270km on a full charge
Coming soon: MG ZS EV
Starting price: While official pricing is yet to be confirmed ahead of the MG ZS EV's launch later in 2020, pre-sale pricing is $46,990 drive-away for the first 100 cars sold in presale and MG tells CarAdvice there is still an allocation of pre-sale models available. Interested buyers should contact their local MG dealer.
How does it work? Fully electric, must be externally charged, no petrol required
Claimed electric-only range: Up to 371km on a full charge