New ‘74’ car registration plates are here

It’s the second-most wonderful time of the year. When the weather starts to cool and the sun sets earlier, we dig out the hot water bottles and cozy jumpers, and the new number plates get released in the UK.

As the new plates came into effect on the 1st September, many drivers across the UK will be reflecting on their car’s age. With the price of EVs continuing to fall, more drivers than ever will be considering an upgrade and switching to electric. In fact, when the new plates were introduced in March 2024, 37% of the 200,331 new registrations were alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs), which includes EVs and other forms of electrified vehicles. This was more than the 35% recorded in the previous year.

With the new plates now available, our team had the chance to experience and showcase some of the best electric vehicles available in dealerships this September. We’ve also added some handy tips, like how easy it is to charge them at home with the Pod Point Solo 3S.

BMW i5

The highly-popular 5 Series has finally been electrified, and it’s everything you’d expect it to be. Fast, fancy, and oozing in luxury, the BMW i5 is the perfect way to commute in style. Pictured here is the more premium i5 M60 model, which comes with plenty of high-tech upgrades inside and out.

Its 83.9kWh battery gives it a maximum-rated mileage of up to 320miles, and whilst it isn't industry-leading it’ll certainly take you wherever you want to go (and, with a 0-62mph time of ~3.8 seconds, incredibly quickly). Plus, on a 7kW home charger, you can expect the battery to be full (or near enough) after an 8-hour overnight charge, letting you charge when it’s cheapest.

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The Mazda MX-30 is ideal for those who need a simple and compact EV for driving about town. It’s less tech-heavy than other electric cars and doesn’t have the fastest acceleration in the market, but the MX-30 is nonetheless a brilliant small electric SUV. But don’t be fooled; despite its small stature, it boasts a surprisingly impressive amount of boot space of up to 1,155l with the rear seats folded down.

The all-electric version has a range of 124 miles, so it’s not designed for long-distance drives. But this is still plenty to get around a large city – for example, it’s enough to drive you (almost) around the circumference of Greater London. Plus, the lower battery means a faster charge time, with the MX-30 taking around 4 hours for a full charge on a 7kW home charger like the Solo 3S.

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Mercedes-Benz is synonymous with luxury and premium products, and the electrified EQS is no exception. If you’re after a high-end car powered by electricity, you’d struggle to do better (provided you can afford it!). It features a gorgeous cabin and an equally stunning exterior, including a high-tech display on the dashboard and lots of smart internal storage for a clutter-free drive.

The battery is equally impressive, giving it an exceptional range, with the EQS 450 boasting an official range of up to 400 miles. It’ll take more than one night’s sleep to fully charge it on a 7kW charger, but even then you’d be getting well over 200 miles of range, which should certainly get you moving. You could choose to charge overnight when it’s cheapest and, if you have solar panels, continue to charge using solar throughout the day.

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If you’re the kind of person who finds driving fun (and honestly, who doesn’t?), you’ll certainly appreciate the MINI Cooper SE. Like many MINIs, it’s compact, cheeky, and characterful, and offers plenty of thrills to drive. Interior space, especially in the boot, is naturally restricted, but that’s just the nature of the iconic hot hatch.

Overall, there’s a lot to love for this British classic, with this variant – the MINI Cooper SE JCW – giving you a decent 250 miles of range which is easy to charge overnight with our award-winning Solo 3S home charger.

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The Japanese brand’s first electric car for more than a decade since the Leaf was launched, the Nissan Ariya is a smart, stylish, and practical SUV. It’s available in two variants, with even the entry-level Engage trim coming well-equipped in a highly competitive segment of the car market, including features like adaptive cruise control, dual-zone climate controls, a heat pump and automatic emergency braking (AEB) as standard. It’s at the more premium end of the SUV market, and the added cost translates to a decent driving range, making it great for both commuters and families looking for long-distance escapes.

The entry-level model comes with a 63kWh battery that translates to around 250 miles of range. Or, if you need something more, the 87kWh battery variant will push this to well over 300 miles in optimal driving conditions. We recently witnessed the Nissan Ariya in action as the pace car for this year’s London to Brighton EV Rally, fully charged using excess solar energy thanks to the Solo 3S.

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For those who don’t know, new number plates are released twice a year in the UK – first in March, and then in September.

As for how the standard UK number plate works, it consists of:

• Two letters to represent where the car was registered
• Two numbers representing when the car was registered
• Three randomly generated letters

This isn’t just a great piece of pub quiz knowledge; it also means you can easily tell when the license plate was issued. For example, plates issued between March and September will have numbers equal to the current year (such as 2024, 2023, 2022 and so on). Between September and March, the numbers will be the current year plus 50 (so 74 for 2024, 73 for 2023, 72 for 2022 and so on).

March 2024 saw the release of the 24 plate, and the 1st September saw the release of the newest number – 74. But why does this matter? Why does anyone get excited about this kind of thing?

Well, there are two reasons. For starters, drivers can show off their new brand-new cars with the latest license plate numbers.

But the bigger reason is March and September are significant months for the UK’s car industry, as the car brands typically launch new models and promotions to coincide with the plate change dates. Major car brands also use these times in the year to help reach the ZEV mandate imposed by the government.

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Whether you’re looking to buy the latest electric car or a second-hand model, the Solo 3S will make sure to keep it charged and ready to go. Ideal for overnight charges, the Solo 3S is priced from £849, including standard installation as well as:

• Easy-to-use solar charging modes, letting you harness the full benefits of zero-cost and zero-carbon charging if/when you have solar panels installed
• Easy energy usage and costs monitoring via the intuitive Pod Point App
• Charge scheduling that can sync with your off-peak energy tariff, letting you charge when it’s cheapest
• Over-the-air software updates to keep it updated with the latest features

If you’re getting a new car this September, speak to your local dealership to arrange a home charger installation in time for your car’s delivery.

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