Although the vast majority of EV drivers love their cars, and would never go back to a combustion engine, going fully electric can be a daunting thought for someone looking for a new car. So for some people, a hybrid represents a chance to dip their toe in the market, and avoid some of the worries and concerns they may have about going electric.

Hybrids

In a previous piece, we asked ‘what is an EV?’ We looked at what a full Battery Electric Vehicle was and how they differed from combustion cars and hybrids. In this piece, we’re going to focus on Hybrids, and look at the benefits and drawbacks of ownership. So let’s do a very brief recap before we go into detail:

A full Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) has no combustion engine. It is only driven by the energy stored in its battery. It has to be charged up with electricity. On the other hand, a Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV) has both a combustion engine and an electric motor. You can put in petrol/diesel, but there is also a plug socket to charge it up. Then you have hybrids that have both an electric motor and a combustion engine. They also have both a battery and a fuel tank. But the difference here is that you cannot recharge the car by plugging it in. They are comparatively tiny batteries with very weak motors and extremely small ranges. There is also a sub-category of ‘mild’ hybrids. This type of hybrid may have a small battery but you cannot drive the car in electric mode only.

Of course, you could include Range Extenders and potentially draw a link with hydrogen vehicles, but today we’re going to focus on the Hybrids that are available and popular in Ireland.

PHEVs

So let’s look at what a PHEV is. It stands for Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle. It has two forms of propulsion and two forms of fuel. In general, you can choose to drive the car in electric mode only. Some PHEV owners manage to complete the majority of their miles in electric mode only. On the other end of the spectrum, unfortunately, some PHEVs were bought purely for tax purposes and were almost never plugged in.

The Motors

PHEVs tend to have small engines and small motors, and then use them both in conjunction for what can be very fast cars. We’ll get on to a specific example in a moment.

In a PHEV, you can drive the car in various modes, and each manufacturer has a slightly different take on it. So as a generalisation, you can drive the car in fully electric mode, using the fossil fuel only, or in a hybrid mode that will switch between the two depending on driving conditions.

The majority of car journeys in Ireland are very short, so many people can drive in electric mode only. Dropping kids to school, going to the gym, the daily commute to work. Most can be done on a full charge in a PHEV.

So let’s take an example of the ever-popular Hyundai Tucson. The PHEV starts off at around €40,000 in Ireland, but what do you get for that? It has a combined power output of 265PS and 350Nm of torque. The 1.6 litre engine is complemented by a 67kW motor. And just to give you some perspective, even the decade-old, original Nissan LEAF had an 80kW motor. The battery is a 13.8kWh unit that will be good for nearly 50km of driving.

Hybrids

Now that we’ve covered PHEVs let’s move on to those type of hybrids that cannot be plugged in. This means that these types of cars are powered exclusively by fossil fuels, and never have the chance to be plugged in for clean electricity.

Just like in a PHEV, these types of hybrids use a combination of the electric and fossil fuel engine to drive the car. The electric motors and batteries in these types of hybrids are very small.

One aspect of these type of hybrids that some find confusing is how the batteries are charged. If they have no plug, how do you charge them? They are charged in two main ways, one is by regenerative braking, and the other is using the combustion engine as a generator. Either way, 100% of the distance you cover is ultimately powered by fossil fuels.

But they can be of benefit in some conditions such as slow-moving traffic. As long as the battery is not close to empty, the combustion engine shuts off when not needed, or when moving slowly. This cuts down on engine idling and emissions in the type of driving that combustion engines are quite inefficient at. Some drivers find that their fuel consumption drops a little bit in these types of hybrid engines.

On the other hand, detractors say that due to the added weight of having two powertrains and fuel sources, they are no more efficient than other similar-sized cars. They are also very limited in terms of range and power. In fact, some of these hybrids could be out-accelerated by a fit cyclist, are limited to about 50km/h in EV mode, will run out of charge in a couple of kilometres, or will not be able to ascend a steep hill in electric mode only.

Cost differences

Cost is a huge factor when we are considering buying a car. We have to carefully figure out our budgets. PHEVs can cost substantially more than their combustion counterparts. If you use the electric motors as they were designed, then you will save money on fuel. However, it may take a very long time to make back the fuel savings.

Even non-plug-in hybrids are typically more expensive than their ICE counterparts. So it’s worth looking at your options and carefully comparing the prices of the cars you have in mind.

Summary

There are a lot of people that like the idea of going electric but are just not yet prepared to make the leap. PHEVs often play the role of a first step. Drivers get accustomed to charging up and love the cheaper cost and smoother drive. Then when looking for their next car, that bit of experience with electric driving gets them to go full electric.

If you are drawn to the idea of going electric or even a hybrid, then check out our other piece about whether or not an EV is right for you. We break down the various factors that you should consider if thinking about electrifying your next car.

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