ULEZ Friendly Cars

If you drive in London or any of the growing number of UK Clean Air Zones (CAZ), choosing ULEZ friendly cars is no longer optional — it's essential. The Ultra Low Emission Zone now covers all London boroughs, and non-compliant cars face a daily charge of £12.50 on top of the congestion charge. Similar zones operate in Birmingham, Bristol, Bath, Bradford, Portsmouth, Sheffield, and Tyneside, with more cities joining every year. Driving non-compliant cars into these zones daily could cost you over £3,000 a year in charges alone. Switching to ULEZ friendly cars pays for itself rapidly.

What makes cars ULEZ compliant? For petrol cars, the standard is Euro 4, which became mandatory for all new cars registered from January 2006. This means virtually all petrol cars from 2006 onwards are ULEZ friendly cars, though a few late-2005 models also meet the standard. Check your specific car on the TfL website for certainty. For diesel cars, the bar is much higher — Euro 6, mandatory from September 2015. Most diesel cars before late 2015 will incur the daily ULEZ charge, which is why diesel values have dropped significantly inside the M25. If you need a diesel and drive in London, only Euro 6 diesel ULEZ friendly cars from late 2015 onwards will work.

Beyond compliance, the best ULEZ friendly cars also save you money in other ways. Electric cars are the ultimate solution — zero emissions, zero ULEZ charge, zero congestion charge (with the Cleaner Vehicle Discount), zero road tax, and dramatically lower 'fuel' costs. A used Nissan Leaf or Renault Zoe can be found for under £8,000 and will pay for themselves in charge savings alone within a few years of daily London driving. Hybrid cars offer a practical middle ground: the Toyota Prius, Yaris Hybrid, and Hyundai Ioniq are all ULEZ friendly cars that deliver excellent fuel economy without the range anxiety of a pure EV.

Even if you don't live inside a Clean Air Zone, buying ULEZ friendly cars future-proofs your investment. As more cities introduce CAZs and the standards potentially tighten, compliant cars will hold their value better than non-compliant ones. Browse our selection of ULEZ friendly cars from private sellers below.