What's really the cheapest new car in New Zealand?
Tuesday, 1 November 2022
Before the Clean Car Programme (CCP) affected all new vehicles under $80,000 and not just EVs and plug-in hybrids, the cheapest car on the market was the MG3 hatchback. But now that a great many more cars are eligible for a rebate, the little MG’s status is under threat.
After April 1, 2022, the CCP rebate opened up to every low emission vehicle under the $80k threshold with a safety rating of 3 stars or more on the Rightcar website.
Any new car that emits between 57 and 146g/km of CO2 will attract a rebate calculated by taking the full amount of $7500+GST and deducting the result of “emissions X $50 X 130/145”. This means a car that emits 123g/km of CO2 will get a rebate of $1987+GST.
Considering most cars $30,000 and under will be sitting here (which are generally those considered “affordable”) we thought we’d take a look at which new cars in this bracket represent the best deal, going off manufacturer pricing at the time of writing.
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**
Right off the bat, the Suzuki Swift is swinging for the fences. The base GL with a manual transmission, the cheapest Swift on offer right now, starts at $21,990 plus on-road costs, and gets a healthy $2593.45 rebate on the first registration. That means it comes in at $19,396.55, before on-roads. The auto is a bit less of a steal with a $23,990 starting price and a smaller $2335.69 rebate.
You could also check out the Ignis GLX, the manual version of which starting at $21,990 with a $2490.34 rebate ($19,499.66 total).
The MG3 starts at $20,990 including on-roads, but thanks to an old-school four-speed automatic transmission, the engine spits out enough CO2 to put it into the 147 to 192g/km ‘zero band’. That means it doesn’t incur a fee nor is it eligible for a rebate, as well as pushing it above the entry-level Swift.
Toyota's Yaris starts at $28,290 in GX trim, but with a $2129.48 rebate, it goes down to $26,160.52. Opting for a hybrid means a $31,290 sticker price and a $4294.66 rebate for a grand total of $26,995.34.
Similarly, the Honda Jazz Life kicks off at $28,000, down to $26,850 with a $1150 rebate. The hybrid Jazz doesn’t quite get below $30k even with a $4140 rebate. It pays to mention both Toyota and Honda include on-road costs in their pricing.
The somewhat aging Mitsubishi Mirage puts up a good fight, with an official listed price of $19,990 and a rebate of $2026.38. That actually makes it the cheapest so far, with a total price of $17,963.62, although ORCs are extra.
Kia’s Picanto LX can be had for as little as $19,990 plus ORCs with the five-speed manual, which also pulls a rebate of $1923 for an end price of $18,067. It is on indent order, however, while the four-speed automatic looks to be in stock but asks a higher price of $20,990 and doesn’t get any rebate. The Stonic small SUV goes for $25,990 with no rebate.
Mazda’s cheapest offering remains the Mazda2 in SP15 trim, with a $27,990 sticker price and a $1562 rebate available for $26,482 total. The SsangYong Tivoli Sport also comes in at $26,990 with no rebate.
Of course, all of these prices could change in 2023 as the Clean Car Standard comes into full effect at the beginning the year, which will push local distributors into lowering their fleet CO2 levels or otherwise be taxed.
Waka Kotahi says the regulations that set the formulas for the weight adjustment of targets, specify the types of vehicles excluded from the policy, and other details related to the Standard are expected to be available in November, so we should know more about any potential price adjustments in the very near future.