Pwning Elon: Plug-In Hybrids Are Not EVs
By Edward A. Sanchez — Aug. 22, 2024
I can’t tell you how many times in the last few years I’ve seen the headline “[Brand] Out-Sells Tesla in Total EVs” only to read the fine print and realize that total includes either hybrids or plug-in hybrids. Or my personal favorite, “[Non-Tesla Brand] Leads in Electrified Vehicle Sales.” Well, if that were the case, Toyota has held the crown for more than two decades with the Prius and its lineup of hybrids. Everybody go home, nothing to see here.
I’m just going to come out and say it: Hybrids and plug-in hybrids are not EVs.
If it has an internal combustion engine on-board, it is not an EV. Full stop. I will include the newest twist in this word soup game, EREV or REEV, or “range-extended electric vehicle” in which case the internal combustion engine may have no direct connection to the drivetrain, but merely works as a generator to keep the battery topped off. I’m sorry, in my definition, it’s a series hybrid, plain and simple.
The only logical reason I can find for this latest definitional muddying of the waters is companies wanting to have bragging rights over the undisputed global EV leader, Tesla. Yes, yes…I can hear already, “What about BYD?” While the Chinese OEM is expanding rapidly in global markets, the vast majority of its sales are still in mainland China. Geographically, Tesla’s reach is much broader.
I get it, Elon Musk says and does controversial or distasteful things constantly on X, or makes mercurial and draconian decisions in regard to personnel and staff with the companies he owns. This does not exactly give the warm fuzzies to everyone. I’m sure his name is cursed in automotive boardrooms across the world for causing them to invest billions of dollars into EVs, only to see the market bottom out and have to close factories or apply hefty incentives to move models off the lot.
But let’s be honest about definitions. Tesla is – and will always be – a pure-play EV company, as are Lucid and Rivian. Ford, Toyota, Chevrolet, etc., are mass-market brands that sell a variety of different vehicles with varying powertrain technologies. But let’s keep the comparisons apples-to-apples. EVs have batteries and electric motors, NOT internal combustion engines, regardless of what specific purpose they’re used for.
To be clear, I’m not an EV “fundamentalist” in that I think EVs are for everyone at this moment in time, and there should be a massive “Cash for Clunkers” type buyback scheme to get ICE models off the road and mandatorily replaced with EVs. As discussed exhaustively in blog posts and on our podcast, pure battery-electric trucks are not very well-suited for towing with today’s technology.
Until curbside and urban charging infrastructure improves immensely, car owners in urban areas may be better served with hybrids. Will the day come when charging stations of all types (Level 2, Level 3, pull-through, curbside, etc.) are as – if not more – ubiquitous than gas pumps? I believe it will. We’re not there yet. But until we are, can we please quit playing word games to give perceptual advantage to companies that in reality are laggards?
(Image courtesy Toyota)
