Hybrid Cars and Plug-in Hybrid Cars

Hybrid cars are on everyone’s minds these days. $20, $30, $40 or even $50 for a tank of gas? Who really wants to pay that sort of money? But, frustrated, the fuel customer sighs, but pays up. However, hybrid vehicles are being richly applauded for the small amount of petrol they need to operate, and they are flying off the forecourts of car dealerships each and everyday in ever increasing numbers.

But what about a plug-in hybrid? Most consumers have heard that these cars are fantastic as well. So, someone might be asking him or herself, what exactly a plug-in hybrid is? How do they work, and what the difference between a plug-in hybrid and a regular hybrid is?

Plug-in hybrids are able to run just on batteries, but they use gas also. These kinds of hybrid cars share some of the characteristics of hybrid vehicles. They are also are very similar to electric vehicles.

Plug-in hybrid vehicles must be charged externally by plugging them into an electrical power source. The combustion engine of plug-in hybrid vehicles is used only as a back up. These cars can run only on batteries if desired, but it is expected that these types of hybrid cars are recharged every day.

Hybrid cars can go just as many miles as a conventional car. Designed to go the extra mile where fuel-mileage is concerned, hybrids can be driven on the motorway, in cities, or wherever else anybody needs to drive.

On the other hand, plug-in hybrids are meant to handle commuter-type distances, meaning between twenty and sixty miles. Used in this fashion, the plug-in hybrid does not have to make use of its back up combustion engine, but plug-in hybrids can go further using fuel as well.

Hybrids help to minimize pollution, but they still pollute the air. Compared with plug-in hybrids, hybrid cars still have a long way to go as far as pollution is concerned. Since plug-in hybrid cars can run solely on their battery power, they don’t have to emit waste gases at all.

Plug-in hybrids actually do combat greenhouse gas emissions and plug-in hybrids use virtually no oil imported or not. Studies have shown that electric hybrids emit at least 67% less greenhouse gases compared to petrol cars. Since the electric used to power plug-in hybrids is renewable, the difference in greenhouse gas emissions may be even greater than the study showed.

So there you have it – those are the main differences between plug-in hybrids and regular hybrid cars. It could make a big difference, but you would be surprised at how little it actually matters at the moment, but tht’s only because plug-in hybrids are not being marketed to consumers yet! But this article should make you enthusiastic about the wonderful plug-in hybrid car, coming soon to a dealership near you.

And it’s going to be a spectacular debut too – people already like regular hybrid cars, but they haven’t seen anything until they see the new plug-in hybrid cars. However, for now, maybe we should just be satisfied with what we already have, because who knows? Before plug-in hybrid cars come out onto the forecourts, something even better might be introduced onto the market.

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