Confused by Hybrid Cars? Here’s the Real Breakdown
Welcome to Car and Driver. Chances are, if you’re looking for a new vehicle to buy, it’s probably available as a hybrid. These things are everywhere these days, from SUVs to trucks and, yeah, even sports cars. The challenge, though, is finding the one that’s actually going to work best for you. That’s a challenge because automakers generally do a poor job of explaining the differences and benefits of each type of system. What’s a mild hybrid? How about a parallel hybrid? What about a plug-in hybrid? Here, we’ve answered questions like those. so you know what to look for before you buy. After all, the vehicle that you end up with should make sense for your lifestyle and ideally be something you actually enjoy driving. [Music] What’s nice about hybrids, especially compared to EVs, is that they have a much easier learning curve. You can treat hybrids like any normal car, truck, or SUV. You fill them up with gasoline like a normal vehicle. just possibly less often. That makes these vehicles ideal for people who have to cover long distances or who have unpredictable commutes. Also, those who have to park on the street, like if you live in an apartment. The exception, though, is plug-in hybrids, and we’ll cover those in a bit more detail. [Music] The concept of a hybrid is pretty simple. You have one or more electric motors that either supplement the output of the gasoline engine or power the vehicles by themselves. On de acceleration or light braking, the motor becomes a generator to recoup energy into the battery. Some hybrids can even run on electricity alone at very low speeds for short periods. The benefit to all this is fuel economy and acceleration in some cases, especially sports cars. [Music] The types of hybrid systems out there exist on a spectrum between small batteries and not so very powerful electric motors like mild hybrid systems. In the middle, you have parallel and series hybrid systems. And at the end with the largest battery capacity, you have plug-in hybrid systems. Let’s start with mild hybrids. You may hear these called 48vt hybrids, and some automakers don’t even call them hybrids at all. The way they work is they have a small electric motor that isn’t powerful enough to run the vehicle by itself. It’s there to supplement the gasoline powered engine and do things like prevent a downshift from happening or extend the period of time that the engine can be off when you’re stopped. Now, as you might expect, the fuel economy benefits aren’t as significant as they would be with other hybrids or plug-in hybrids, but they’re still noteworthy, especially in situations like a full-size pickup, where going from 16 to 19 or 20 MPG is a more substantial improvement than going from, let’s say, 36 to 39 or 40 MPG. You can also expect this type of hybrid system to be much more prevalent in vehicles as the years go on. Next, you have parallel and series hybrids. These are the kinds of hybrid systems that most people think of when they hear the word hybrid. You know, like a Prius. A parallel hybrid is pretty straightforward. You’ve got a gas engine, you’ve got an electric motor, and they power the wheels either together or separately. Super straightforward, right? A series hybrid is a bit different because in that case, the wheels are only powered by electricity. And when the battery is empty or you need a bit more power, the gas engine kicks on and runs a generator that supplies a more electricity. The key difference between the two is that in a series hybrid, the engine isn’t mechanically connected to the wheels. Making this more confusing is that some hybrids can run as both series and parallel depending on your driving situation, but the result is the same. You generally shouldn’t recognize that the difference is there while you’re driving and you just reap the fuel economy benefits which in the city happen to be very good. Now, plug-in hybrids or P heads, PHEV being the acronym for plug-in hybrid vehicle, these can be a great option for the right buyer. Larger batteries mean the longest range ones get between 20 to 50 miles of electric only driving. But because the batteries are nowhere near as big as those in EVs, you often can charge them overnight with a 120 volt outlet in your garage. You don’t necessarily need to install any expensive EV equipment. The thinking is on average most people commute about 40 m a day. And if you’re within that range with a PB, you could use most of your commute if not all of it without the engine ever turning on. plug the PV in every night and you can go days if not weeks without ever burning fuel. Although some Pvs do run their engine during sustained hard acceleration and sometimes to work with the accessories like running the heater during winter or the air conditioning during summer. And when the batter is empty, you don’t have to worry about range anxiety like you do with some EVs because at that point you just have a normal hybrid. Keep in mind though that a P head isn’t as fuel efficient as a traditional hybrid if you never plug it in. And so that’s okay every once in a while, but if you want to get the most benefit out of these vehicles, you’ll want to plug them in every night. Also, keep in mind that you’ll want to look out for any available incentives because PBS can cost significantly more than their hybrid counterparts, and it could take hundreds, if not thousands of miles to recoup the fuel economy savings to account for that additional upfront cost. The thing is, aside from PHVs, none of this technical stuff really matters to most shoppers. you likely just care about the results. Fuel economy. Fortunately, EPA fuel ratings can clearly show you what you can expect from the hybrid you’re considering. But there’s another factor to take into account. When you look at the ratings, you’ll probably notice that hybrids tend to have better city MPG than they do highway MPG. Because in the city is where hybrids reap the most benefit. Their highway fuel economy rating will still be higher than an equivalent non-hybrid, though. Still, you should factor in what your commute looks like. If you spend a lot of time on the freeway, you should take a look at the 75 mph highway fuel economy test we run on every vehicle we evaluate because there you can see the effects that real world highway speeds have on the car that you’re interested in. What you’ll find is that typically hybrids do a little bit worse in highway fuel economy in that test than they do versus the EPA fuel ratings, while non-hybrids that are gasoline powered tend to do a little bit better. It’s worth looking into. Another thing to keep in mind is the driving experience. All the fuel economy in the world, it doesn’t matter if you hate the way your car behaves. And not all hybrid systems are created equal. And because they blend various power sources at different moments while you’re driving, the software to make them all work can be incredibly complex, upping the chances of undesirable driving characteristics. For example, it might feel weird as the engine speed goes up or down without matching the speed of the vehicle on the road. You might go to the gas pedal or brake pedal and feel a weird delay or a surge. And none of that stuff feels particularly good. We like hybrids that feel smooth. We like hybrids that feel like normal vehicles where you can drive it and not think about what’s happening under the hood, but still reap the fuel economy benefits at the gas station. Be sure to look at our reviews to see what the driving characteristics are of the hybrid vehicle that you’re interested in. [Music] One last thing we’ll mention because we’re driving is that hybrid vehicles generally don’t need brake pad changes as often because most of the braking is regenerative through the electric motors, you know, like an EV. [Music] Hopefully this video answered all of your questions about which hybrid is right for you. If you still have more questions or things you’d like to research, check out the stories below on carandry.com. Chances are we’ve answered your questions with exhaustive detail. Thanks for watching.
With so many types of hybrid cars, trucks, and SUVs on the market, it can be tough to figure out which is right for you. We break down the differences between mild hybrids, parallel hybrids, series-and-parallel hybrids, and plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) so you can make an informed choice. Join us for a detailed explanation of how each system works, their pros and cons, and what to expect from the driving experience, featuring examples like the Toyota Prius Prime, Honda CR-V Hybrid, and even the Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray.
Learn more about every type of hybrid vehicle:
https://www.caranddriver.com/features/a26390899/what-is-hybrid-car/
Timestamps:
00:00 Introduction
00:47 What’s nice about hybrids
01:18 What is a hybrid?
02:11 Mild hybrids explained
03:00 Parallel and Series hybrids explained
03:58 Plug-In Hybrids (PHEVs) Explained
05:30 Real world fuel economy and the driving experience
07:51 Final thoughts
