How To Charge A Hybrid Car

How you charge a hybrid car depends on the type of hybrid you have.

With a self-charging hybrid, the battery can only be changed through regenerative braking and starting.

In contrast, a plug-in hybrid allows you to use both regenerative braking and a charging point that charges it from an external power source.

a hybrid electric vehicle car connected to a charger via a charging plug which is inserted into the car's plug socket

In this article, we will be talking about all things hybrid and discover how you are supposed to charge your hybrid car.

Thinking about going hybrid? Discover the real value of a hybrid with my thorough article that delves into the pros and cons of hybrid cars.

What Is A Hybrid Car?

Before we start talking about how to charge a hybrid car, let’s make sure that everyone understands what a hybrid car is.

There are various different types of a hybrid car today. However, the purest form of a hybrid car has both a battery and a combustion engine that you use.

Therefore, it is both a gas powered car and an electric car in one. By using both types of engines and power sources, you can easily drive your car anywhere.

However, there are different types and configurations of hybrids nowadays.

With that being said, all types of hybrid cars will automatically manage the flow of energy.

With a lot of newer models allowing you to drive just in electric mode, therefore only using the battery as your power source, if that is what you want.

However, you can switch between the two if you wish as well. Especially when driving on open stretches of roads that eclectic batteries struggle with.

The aim of producing hybrid cars is to reduce the amount of emissions that come from the exhaust pipe.

While also reducing the amount of fuel that is consumed as well. This then means that motoring costs and even air pollution can be reduced in time too.

In some areas, there are reduced rates due to driving a hybrid car, as they have less of an impact on the environment compared to a traditional fully gas powered car.

There are two types of hybrid cars that are quite popular.

One is known as a plug-in hybrid and the other is a self charging hybrid. It is important to note that these games are referring to who can charge these cars.

In the sections bleep, we will be going through how you can charge these two types of hybrid cars.

Self-Charging Hybrid Cars

Self-charging is the latest term that a lot of car manufacturers are using when it comes to talking about one of their hybrids.

Yet, a self-charging hybrid is really a normal hybrid, as to a degree all hybrids are technically seen as self charging.

This is because with hybrid cars, they use regeneration to be able to recharge the electric battery. Therefore, the engine recharges the battery.

a hybrid electric car being charged via a charger and charging plug

Whereas in a traditional gas car, you would break and the friction would turn into kinetic energy and the excess is turned into heat.

Yet with electric and hybrid cars, the excess is used to help recharge the battery instead.

As a result, when it comes to self-charging hybrid cars, they are great when it comes to starting and stopping driving.

It is a kind of car that you can’t plug in anywhere as it doesn’t have a port either.

Therefore, the only way you can charge your car is to start and stop driving.

Thus, when you are driving at a constant speed on the freeway, the chances to recharge your battery are really low, therefore, the engine will have to kick in a lot more.

Plug-In Hybrid Cars

The way that plug-in hybrids differ from self-charging hybrids, is the fact that this hybrid comes with a port.

Hence, you can plug the car into your main electrical outlet or at a charging point to be able to charge the battery this way.

As a result, you don’t need to be relying on charging your battery through regeneration, or using the combustion engine to recharge it either.

Therefore, by being able to charge your hybrid at some form of outlet, means you have greater comfort that you will be able to drive with a full battery and don’t need to worry about how you are going to recharge your battery next time the levels get too low.

The battery in a plug-in hybrid is known to be slightly larger than a battery in a self-charging hybrid car.

Thus, you can do your local or urban driving while in battery mode and then switch to your engine when you are driving on larger stretches of road.

With that being said, with regenerative driving, which is the way that a self-charging hybrid charges, still works on a plug-in hybrid as well.

Therefore, you don’t lose out on gaining energy at all.

Although, the amount of electrical energy you get by this method will vary depending on your driving.

If you aren’t doing stop and start driving, then the electrical battery will run out quite quickly, and then become a dead weight within your car.

Thus, when you are driving on the freeway, it’s best to use the engine.

However, it is important to note that a plug-in hybrid is much more expensive than any other type of hybrid.

This is due to the car being fitted with a bigger battery and the ability to be charged by the mains.

Final Thoughts

Hybrid cars are becoming a much more common sight. They contain both a combustion engine and an electrical battery.

However, how you charge this car, depends on the type of hybrid that you have got.

With a self-charging hybrid, you can only change the battery using the regenerative process of stop and start driving.

While with a plug-in hybrid you can also use that process, and you also have the ability to plug the car into a chagrin point as well.

We hope you now have a clever understanding on how to charge your hybrid car.

Jonathan Rice

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