Whether you’re selling your old car to we buy any car company or trading it in for another, you are in the market for a new car. But whether or not you realize, you have a choice to select something other than the conventional gas-powered car. The future of cars is in fuel-efficient vehicles like the latest hybrid and electric cars. So, which one should you purchase?
Though they might seem pretty much the same, there’s a big difference between fully electric cars and partial or hybrid vehicles. Electric cars don’t use typical petrol or diesel for their internal combustion engine, but instead uses electric power stored in rechargeable batteries that power the electric motor into running the car. On the other hand, hybrid vehicles use more than one source of energy, i.e., a petrol or diesel-based engine along with an electric motor.
This probably still hasn’t solved your dilemma of which car to buy. So, we’re going to tell you exactly why you should choose a hybrid car over an electric one even though both of them have their own advantages and disadvantages.
- More choices
Depending on the power that is used to power up the hybrid car, you can find three distinct types or categories available in the market. You can choose between a full hybrid, a mild hybrid, and a plug-in hybrid.
A full hybrid, like the Toyota Camry, gives you the option to use either the gas engine, or the electric motor, or both of them together to drive the car. A mild hybrid (also called a light hybrid), such as the Ferrari Laferrari, lies in the center of the full hybrid and standard gas vehicle spectrum. Basically, it runs on the gas engine, but the electric motor is present to boost performance or save fuel from the gas engine during some situations like stopping the car, starting the car, or when you’re just cruising. A plug-in hybrid, such as the Toyota Prius Prime, operates somewhere in the middle of a full hybrid and an electric car. A plug-in hybrid has a much larger battery with a greater capacity which cannot be solely charged from the gas engine. Instead, the battery has to be charged by plugging it in like an electric car. Depending on how you plan to use your car and what your budget is, you can easily get a hybrid car that fits your needs perfectly.
- Farther driving range
As compared to electric cars, hybrids have a much longer driving range. Because they are not entirely dependent on the electricity stored in the vehicle and use an internal combustion engine, they can drive as far as any traditional gas engine vehicle. There’s no fear of running out of juice or restriction on driving range. Since electric cars can only run through the electric motor, you can encounter a risky situation where the battery runs out and the car needs to be recharged before it can be driven again. And even that is only possible if there is a charging station nearby, or else it’ll be hard for you to get home.
In hybrid cars, if the battery runs out, you can just switch to the gas engine and keep on driving. Even if you run out of fuel, you can refuel at any gas stations on your route. So, you can stop worrying about getting stranded while on a road trip with your family.
- Faster refills
Hybrid cars are much more convenient to drive in the sense that they can easily and quickly get a gas refill anywhere. If you’re on the way to your office and the gas tank is draining quickly, you can just pull over to the gas pump, fill the tank and be back on your way within a few minutes. And with the gas powering the electric motor in the hybrid, you won’t even need to get that many refills anyway. However, electric cars take a long time to get refilled. They take about 3 to 4 hours to reach full charge. Which is fine if you’ve got enough time every day, but if you’re ever in a hurry and the electric power runs out, you will still need to charge it for at least 45 minutes to an hour to get to where you need to go.
- Less expensive
Electric cars have exorbitant prices. In comparison, hybrid cars are a lot cheaper. Electric cars rely entirely on their batteries which are usually very expensive to make. In fact, the batteries alone make up a huge portion of the manufacturing cost. And since the whole car runs and depends on the lithium-ion battery, they can’t compromise on its quality by opting for cheaper material. Hybrids have much smaller electric batteries which aren’t as expensive and the other car parts are also similar to standard car parts. Even though hybrids do cost more than traditional gas engine vehicles, it’s usually only twenty percent more and in return, hybrids help you save up on fuel cost as it uses energy much more efficiently.
- Maintenance
Electric cars are still far from being completely developed. There is still room for improvement and cost efficiency and they are quite expensive to maintain. Their battery, which is the main component of the car, is very costly to fix or replace. Hybrid cars, on the other hand, are relatively easier to maintain. Moreover, since they use two power-sources, the wear and tear is divided and both the systems don’t get damaged easily, and you don’t need to get parts changed or repaired as often.
Conclusion
Some might still argue that electric vehicles are better than hybrids, but there’s no denying that electric cars are still new to the game. Maybe in a few years’ time, they’ll become common enough to be in every garage, but as of now, we recommend hybrids as the better choice.