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Technology
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Five key electric drive technologies power
the electric cars and vehicles that EDTA
advocates for: hybrid, plug-in hybrid,
extended-range, battery, and fuel cell electric
technologies.
Hybrid electric vehicle
A
hybrid car, or hybrid electric vehicle (HEV),
uses both an electric motor and an internal
combustion engine to propel the vehicle.
Hybrids are efficient, eco-friendly cars and
vehicles that are available to meet multiple
driving needs. The first HEV cars introduced in
the U.S. were the Honda Insight and Toyota
Prius.
A plug-in
hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV), or plug-in car,
has a battery that can be charged off
board by plugging into the grid and which
enables it to travel a certain number of miles
solely on electricity. After the electric-only
range is exceeded, the vehicle continues to
operate as a hybrid vehicle. Current examples
include the Toyota Prius Plug-in Hybrid and the
Ford C-MAX Energi plug-in hybrid.
An extended-range
electric vehicle (EREV) operates as a battery
electric vehicle for a certain number of miles.
After the battery has been discharged, a gas
engine powers an electric generator for several
hundred miles of ‘extended-range’ driving.
A current example is the Chevrolet
Volt.
Battery electric
cars are often referred to simply as electric
cars, or ‘pure’ EVs. A battery electric
vehicle (BEV) is powered exclusively by the
electricity from its on-board battery, which
replenishes its energy by plugging-in to the
grid, or charging. Current examples include the
Nissan LEAF and Tesla Model S.
Fuel cell electric vehicle
A
fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV) converts the
chemical energy from a fuel, for example
hydrogen, into electricity through a
chemical reaction to drive an electric motor.
FCEV's only emissions are heat and water.
Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles include the Hyundai
Tucson and Honda FCX Clarity.
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