Hyundai challenges Govt to scrap road user charges

4 December Immediate Release

Hyundai challenges new Government to scrap discriminatory diesel road user charges

Hyundai today challenged the Government to review discriminatory road user charges which unfairly penalise drivers of environmentally-friendly diesel vehicles. Philip Eustace, Executive Director of Hyundai Motors New Zealand, says last week’s AA Energywise Rally results showed the diesel Hyundai i30 would have been judged as a far more fuel and cost efficient car if it were exempt from unfair road user charges (RUCs).

“The AA Energywise Rally proves once again that RUCs are a complete nonsense and the RUC structure penalises owners of the most fuel-frugal vehicles,” says Mr Eustace. The four-day rally shows motorists how they can slash their fuel bills by choosing a fuel-efficient car and driving it in a fuel efficient way. It is held every two years around the North Island and is jointly organised by the AA, the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA) and Gull Petroleum New Zealand. The Supreme Winner – the vehicle that cost the least to run over the 1641km rally – was the Honda Civic Hybrid which cost $111.72. But if the Hyundai i30 were exempt from diesel road user charges and instead cost the same amount to fill up at the pump as the Honda Civic Hybrid, if would have cost $96.66 to compete in the rally – $15.06c less than the Honda Civic Hybrid and $43.50c less than the $140.16 it actually cost including its road user charges, says Mr Eustace.

The Hyundai i30 also had superior emissions results at the rally – emitting 108 grams per kilometre compared with the 109.6 grams per kilometre emitted by the Honda Civic Hybrid. “RUCs are a ludicrous penalty on owners of diesel cars who have to pay more than drivers of equivalent petrol-run cars,” says Mr Eustace. “

RUCs are on the policy agenda of the new National-led Government and it urgently needs to encourage more New Zealanders to drive fuel-efficient, low-emission diesel vehicles. “This is a great time for the Road User Charges Review Committee to make road taxes fair for all road users.” It is also unfair that owners of electric cars which have zero emissions must pay road user charges when hybrid car owners are exempt from them, even though hybrid cars are designed to run primarily on electricity, says Mr Eustace. In July, an increase to road user charges for diesel vehicles included an increase of $3.28 to $36.07 for every 1000km travelled by all vehicles under the three-tonne threshold. ENDS Philip Eustace Executive Director Hyundai Motors New Zealand Ph: +64 274 950874 Email: peustace@hyundai.co.nz

For further information, please contact Nicky Clarke, 021 855 978, nclarke@hyundai.co.nz · Currently Hyundai is the number one selling diesel passenger vehicle manufacturer in New Zealand and has numerous new locations among its 24 dealerships. The brand has been imported into New Zealand by the Giltrap Group for the past 26 years

· Established in 1967, Hyundai Motor Co. has grown into the Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group which was ranked as the world’s fifth largest automaker in 2007 and includes over two dozen auto-related subsidiaries and affiliates.

· Hyundai is a committed sponsor of sports and cultural organisations in New Zealand and worldwide. See www.hyundai.co.nz

ENDS

© Scoop Media