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New electric vehicles will become more affordable this year with a price war set to unfold, experts predict.

The arrival of less expensive Chinese brands and the introduction of the Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) Mandate is going to force the hands of other makers to slash their prices in order to remain competitive and meet new binding targets for EV sales set out by the Government.

'Drivers considering taking the first step on their electrified driving journey have never been in a better position to benefit from falling EV prices than in 2024,' says Auto Trader, the country's largest automotive marketplace.

The emergence of Chinese manufacturers is going to cause a big shift in the nation's new car sector.

Brands from China are expected to capture a sixth of the UK's EV market by 2030 as its manufacturers look overseas after conquering their domestic market, Auto Trader's Road to 2035 report states.

China has already cemented itself as the world's biggest exporter of cars, overtaking Japan last year. 

And exclusive analysis by MailOnline and This is Money's motoring department found that some are already having a huge impact on the UK car market.

MG, with its focus on affordable EVs like the latest MG4, accounted for over 4 per cent of vehicle registrations in the UK last year.

In just a decade, Shanghai-operated MG Motor has increased its market share of new motors sold per year by a massive 19,094 per cent - more than any other brand over the last 10 years - and now sells more new vehicles than Skoda, Peugeot, Land Rover, Volvo, Renault and even Tesla.

Other Chinese brands, like GRW (Great Wall Motor) and BYD (Build Your Dreams), are just breaking into the UK market and are still establishing themselves.

It was recently confirmed that BYD overtook Tesla as the world's biggest manufacturer of electric vehicles in the final three months of 2023, selling a record 526,000 vehicles globally.

Searches for BYD cars trebled on Auto Trader in the days after the news, accounting for more than 6 per cent of all new EV advert views.

And Chinese brands have the capacity to slash their prices even more.

BYD's Dolphin EV, for instance, costs from £13,000 in China but starts at £25,000 in the UK.

As for GRW's ORA 03 (formerly the Funky Cat) supermini, the gulf is £19,000 (£12,000 starting price in China and £31,000 in the UK).

However, this is also courtesy of huge Chinese-Government subsidies and big import taxes.