Abstract Premium luxury vehicles face particular challenges as we move towards a society where CO2 reduction is a priority, because they tend to be larger, heavier, have higher performance or more features than vehicles in other sectors of the market. Various methods exist to reduce CO2 emissions. These focus on the areas of propulsion, weight and parasitic losses. These need to be taken in the context of the overall life cycle of the vehicle. That is the cost, in CO2 terms, of manufacturing, using and disposing of the vehicle at the end of its life. As well as conventional vehicle optimisation, research and advanced engineering is being undertaken on various forms of hybrid vehicles, specifically hybrid electric vehicle, plug in hybrid electric vehicle and kinetic hybrids. This paper:  Summarises the low carbon research and development being undertaken by Jaguar Land Rover and its partners in the context of the technical route towards hybrids and electric vehicles.  Examines potential solutions for premium vehicles along with the attribute trades that these solutions engender.  Presents comparative results from the recently completed part TSB funded REHEV and LimoGreen projects concluding with a view of the optimum solutions for various potential hybrid products.