From 1 April 2018 the first-year VED tax rate for new diesel cars will go up by one band. The standard rate after the first-year will remain the standard rate, currently £140.
Every new car will fall into a tax band dependant on its CO2 emissions and each band has a first-year rate which was overhauled last year, from 1st April 2017.
Now, from 1st April 2018, the government has introduced a new tier for diesel vehicles that do not meet the latest Euro 6 emissions standards. At present no new diesels conform to the RDE standards, so the extra fee will apply to all new diesels sold.
A diesel vehicle will cost more to tax in the first year than a petrol, however the difference for a vehicle in the lower bands is minimal in the overall cost of purchasing a new car. See below the difference in cost between petrol and diesel in the Volkswagen range:
Volkswagen up! 1.0 litre
Volkswagen Polo 1.0 litre
Volkswagen Golf 2.0 litre
Volkswagen Tiguan 2.0 litre
Volkswagen Touareg 3.0 litre
From April 2017, only zero-emission vehicles, such as electric cars, now qualify for the lowest band and are therefore tax-free. From the second year onwards, zero-emission vehicles that cost less than £40,000 new remain free to tax – for example the Volkswagen e-up! or e-Golf.
There are no changes to these vehicles car tax in 2018.
e-up!
e-Golf
CO2 emissions (g/km) | Standard rate | First year rate | First year rate - diesel vehicles |
0 | £0 | £0 | £0 |
1-50 | £140 | £10 | £25 |
51-75 | £140 | £25 | £105 |
76-90 | £140 | £105 | £125 |
91-100 | £140 | £125 | £145 |
101-110 | £140 | £145 | £165 |
111-130 | £140 | £165 | £205 |
131-150 | £140 | £205 | £515 |
151-170 | £140 | £515 | £830 |
171-190 | £140 | £830 | £1240 |
191-225 | £140 | £1240 | £1760 |
226-255 | £140 | £1760 | £2070 |
Over 255 | £140 | £2070 | £2070 |