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Out and about there is a network of charging stations. At home you can plug the car directly into your mains or you can get a home charger installed. As well as charging on the move, they also can be plugged into the mains to charge. Plug-in hybrids (called PHEVs – Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles) get their power in a similar way to how pure electric cars do. That’s why they are also sometimes called self-charging hybrids. The batteries in hybrids that aren’t plug-ins get their electricity from regenerative braking (recouping the energy otherwise wasted as your car slows down or comes to a stop) or from the combustion engine itself. The second difference is how they get their electrical power. Plug-ins cost a fair bit more than a normal hybrid car thanks to the expensive plug-in technology they have.
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There are two main differences between hybrids and plug-in hybrid cars. This means that you do still need to take them to the petrol station, but the electrical power will make your car more economical than without it. For a start, they both pair a regular combustion engine (usually petrol-powered) with an electric motor. Thinking about buying a hybrid car? You may have heard phrases such as self-charging hybrid, plug-in hybrid and PHEV, but what do they actually mean and, more importantly, which hybrid is the right one to suit you? Read on for all the essential info to help you decide…Īs you might expect, traditional hybrids and plug-in hybrids do have quite a bit in common. You can drive them on petrol or diesel alone, but you won’t get anywhere near the published fuel economy figures if you do so regularly. These cars have almost unbelievably high average fuel economy figures but to achieve these figures you need to make sure the batteries are charged so the electric motor can help the engine out. Acceleration is not quite as instant as in a conventionally powered car (or even an electric car) and the engine can get noisy as you get up to speed.Ī particular disadvantage for a plug-in hybrid car – sometimes called a PHEV – is that… well, you have to plug them in. Some people also don’t like the feeling you get when you press the accelerator hard in a hybrid car. Hybrid cars recover kinetic energy when you brake, but in some hybrid cars, this can feel as though it’s slowing down a lot quicker than you expect, and it can take a little while to get used to.
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But you are still burning fuel, albeit less than in a normal car.Īnother disadvantage, for some people, is how it feels when you drive one. You can drive on electric only for a limited amount of time, but for the most part, the electric motor is working in conjunction with the internal combustion engine to help lower emissions and improve MPG. The disadvantages of a hybrid car are – well, a hybrid car is not a pure electric car so you don’t get completely emissions-free driving. If you mostly do motorway driving, however, a hybrid might not be as economical as a diesel car because you’ll be using the combustion engine most of the time.Īnother downside is that many hybrids use CVT automatic gearboxes, which can make a lot of noise when you put your foot down and blunt the feeling of acceleration. Still, if you stick to town driving and keep the batteries charged then a hybrid will usually be more economical than a regular petrol or diesel car – we got 80mpg from a Toyota Prius in a mix of town and rural driving.
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These figures are obtained under laboratory testing and you won’t get anywhere near this fuel economy in real-world driving. If you’ve done any research you will have seen huge mpg figures for some hybrid vehicles – for example, the Volvo XC90 T8 SUV can achieve a claimed 134.5mpg. To find out if a hybrid car is for you, use the carwow Fuel Chooser. If you can drive in electric-only mode (ie at low speeds and without putting your foot down much) they’re serene and relaxing to travel in because there’s no engine noise. They can cover longer distances than electric-only cars, and if you mostly drive around town you’ll get impressive fuel economy. Is a hybrid vehicle the right choice for you? If you’d like to cut the costs of running a car then this could be a good option.