All You Need to Know About Hybrid Cars and Their Benefits

We’ve had cars powered by either petrol or diesel for many decades now. There was even a time when cars ran on steam to run on any fuel, including wood. However, with the increasing need to reduce environmental emissions, electricity has emerged as a source of efficient fuel for cars.

Electric cars are highly efficient. But battery technology has not yet progressed to the stage where it can give an electric car the range of a full tank of petrol or diesel. Therefore, hybrid cars are a sensible choice; besides being the bridge between the present and future, they also offer the best of both worlds.

Here’s what you need to know about hybrids.

1. Great fuel efficiency.

Internal combustion (i.e., petrol and diesel) engines run at a maximum of 30 percent efficiency — only 30 percent of the available energy in the fuel results in useful work. This is due to the technology that we use, even though it has been refined over the years since the 1880s due to metallurgy and computer control improvements.

In contrast, an electric motor has very few moving parts and doesn’t need a gearbox at all. These make it supremely efficient. It will always answer ‘Kitna deti hain?’ with a grin-inducing number in layperson’s terms.

2. Different kinds of hybrids.

A hybrid vehicle can draw power from more than one source. And, electricity is one of those sources. Let us run through a few of the different types of hybrid vehicles:

1. The mild hybrid

This hybrid type has an electric motor that allows the petrol/diesel engine to shut off when braking, coasting, or when stopped. It then restarts the engine quickly when acceleration is demanded. The electric motor cannot provide motive power to the vehicle; it solely performs the role of starting the internal combustion engine.

2. The full hybrid

It has an electric motor that can power the car, either by itself or in combination with the petrol/diesel engine. Here, there can be two subdivisions. The full hybrid directly connects the internal combustion engine to the wheels to drive the vehicle, or the hybrid that uses the engine as a generator/range extender, to charge the batteries that power the electric motor. In the latter, the internal combustion engine is not connected to the driven wheels at all.

3. The plug-in hybrid

It is similar to the full hybrid with one difference: the battery pack can be recharged by plugging into a source of electricity. This source can be a wall socket in the house or garage or a proprietary quick charger that can top up the battery in as little as an hour.

Hybrids are great vehicles to own because they offer more kilometers per liter of fuel, and they don’t let the driver get range anxiety. Once the government installs the requisite charging infrastructure in place, hybrid vehicles will be the future of the Indian car market.

Due to their future-ready tech, hybrids can be a little expensive to purchase new. However, hybrids like the Honda Civic Hybrid and Toyota Prius have been on sale for a short while in the Indian market well over a decade ago, so there is a chance that you will find a used hybrid. Getting a used car loan is not difficult today – you look up your used car loan eligibility on a lender’s website.

If you are eligible, you will even find useful tools like the used car loan interest rates, tenures, and a used car loan EMI calculator on the same websites. Loan approvals and disbursals are quick and easy, so you don’t miss out on a great deal!