You needn't look much further than the latest Skoda Superb IV plug-in hybrid to get an idea of the effect WLTP-based taxation will have on the fleet market. 

While the Superb has always provided a strong proposition to both business and private users - thanks to its impressive driving manners, immense interior space, and strong, efficient powertrains - Skoda predicts 80% of its new plug-in hybrid models will find homes in the fleet market. 

It is easy to see why when the hybrid's official CO2 output of 35g/km will currently command a 16% BIK rating and that figure will fall to 12% in the upcoming 2020-21 tax year.

Contrast this with the similarly powerful 190hp, 2.0-litre diesel engine's 31% and 32% figures, and the hybrid's appeal becomes quite stark.

Granted, the hybrid does cost in the region of £2,275 more than the equivalent specification 190hp diesel, but even taking that into account the savings are substantial.

Precise engineering

So, other than the BIK advantage, what do you get for your money?

Well, the Superb uses the same hybrid powertrain as the one in the recently launched Volkswagen Passat GTE, and this powertrain will eventually find its way into every nook and cranny of the VW empire. Consequently, you would be right to assume it has been developed with some pretty exacting scrutiny.

Using a combination of a 1.4-litre TSI petrol engine and an electric motor mounted within the gearbox to produce a combined power output of 218hp, it is an impressively powerful and immensely cultured device.

This is true not only of the way it amalgamates the two power factions to deliver strong, linear performance, but also in the way the electric motor squeezes additional torque in-between the gearshift pauses to deliver near-seamless transitions. Of course, the big advantage of any plug-in hybrid lies in its ability to be driven purely on electric power alone.   

Charge the battery to the max - which takes around three-and-a-half hours from a typical home wall box - select E-mode, flick the automatic shifter into drive, and the Superb caresses the tarmac and slips away from the mark in near-silent fashion.

Bringing the noise

Well it would, had Skoda not decided to warn pedestrians of the Superb's imminent arrival by emitting something akin to a ghostly wail. Although an outward aural alert is clearly essential when driving in this stealthy E-mode, Skoda's decision to pipe the wail into the cabin so vehemently seems a strange one.