16.8.2012 Sixth Revolve Eco-Rally has electric focus

The sixth annual Revolve Eco-Rally is due to take place on Saturday – an event where a group of journalists and special guests put low carbon vehicles to the test on a journey from Oxford to London.

The Eco-Rally is not a static motor-show or an economy run. The event uses the most eco-friendly cars available today and uses existing refuelling infrastructure whenever possible.

Whilst previous eco-rallies have featured a vast array of alternative fuels including everything from hydrogen to waste wine; this year's event sees a big emphasis on hybrids, range-extenders and fully-electric vehicles, with UK debuts from the likes of Ford, Mia Electric and Zero Motorcycles.

Electric vehicles have always featured in the final inner-city leg of the event, but technology moves fast and this year extended range vehicles and faster recharge times, mean more electric vehicles can take part on the entire rally from the start.

The range of most electric cars is greatly reduced when travelling at high speeds, but the 2012 event will be led by a Vauxhall Ampera EREV electric police car that is free of the usual restrictions of batteries. This year's rally also features hybrids like the Peugeot 3008 – the world's first diesel-electric hybrid production car.

Former Top Gear presenter and regular Eco-Rally guest driver, Quentin Willson has driven some of the world's best green cars over the years but for the first time, he will be bringing his own green car to the 2012 Eco-Rally.

However, the Eco-Rally is not all about electric cars electric cars – Europe's most fuel-efficient compact diesel family car, the Ford Focus Econetic, will be present, as will Ford's world speed record-breaking EcoBoost petrol engine – amazingly small enough to fit on an A4 sheet of paper.

The rally will start in Oxford, which is amongst the leading cities in terms of electric vehicle charging infrastructure with 65 public EV charge points already installed by Chargemaster. The convoy then travels down the M40 (dubbed the 'Electric Highway' for its network of EV charging stations) to London’s most iconic motoring hang-out, the Ace Cafe London.

At 2pm the quiet cavalcade will leave the North Circular and head towards central London for some inner city driving, scheduled to arrive in Waterloo Place, near Trafalgar Square, between 2.30pm and 3pm. Members of the public will be able to see the entire spectrum of green transport options available all in one place, all in a free exhibition.

The Eco-Rally brings together an array of options that can help make our towns and cities, not only cleaner with less carbon emissions, but also congestion free.