Electric vehicles are becoming more commonplace, and this trend is likely to continue well into the future if we plan to achieve net-zero. Therefore, it is important to know the difference between the types of EVs on the market.
Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs)
These are EVs that are powered solely by chemical energy stored in rechargeable battery packs, with electric motors and motor-controllers rather than internal combustion engines (ICE). These cars have no tailpipes and therefore produce no emissions.
Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEVs)
These vehicles are equipped with a petrol or diesel engine, as well as a battery that is charged by plugging it into a charging point. While only considered zero-emissions when driven in electric-only mode, they will typically run on electric power and only switch to ICE when the battery is nearly depleted. They are joined by Range-Extended EVs (RE-EVs) which use engine or fuel cells to charge up the battery.
Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEVs)
These vehicles are similar to PHEVs but with smaller electric motors and batteries that are charged by braking/cruising. They cannot be plugged in and so are sometimes referred to as ‘self-charging’ hybrids. Many of these cars reduce idle emissions by shutting down the engine when idle and restarting it as needed, however, they otherwise have very limited ‘zero emissions’ electric-only modes.
Mild Hybrid Electric Vehicles (MHEVs)
Powered by petrol and diesel engines and assisted by a secondary electric battery, these cars cannot be driven in a zero-emission mode. They have small electric generators instead of traditional starter motors, and run on an electrical system that distributes power that typically runs off the engine directly.