TYPES OF ELECTRIC VEHICLES – DO YOU KNOW THEM ALL?

HEV, PHEV, BEV, FCEV… Do you, too, occasionally find yourself losing your way in this labyrinth of abbreviations?

Electric vehicle (EV) is a sweeping term that, in its broadest sense, encompasses any car that uses electricity for propulsion. Electric vehicles can be broken down into battery electric vehicles (BEVs), hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), and fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs). Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) rely solely on electric motors for propulsion. They derive their electricity primarily from charging points and store it in battery packs. This type of electric vehicle is exemplified by the forthcoming electric ŠKODA CITIGO. What makes hybrid electric vehicles different from BEVs is that their electric motor is still accompanied by an internal combustion engine. This type is exemplified by the forthcoming ŠKODA SUPERB PHEV.

A fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV), like a BEV, only has an electric motor, but it uses a different method to store and extract electricity. In FCEVs, much of the traction battery is replaced by a hydrogen tank and a set of fuel cells in which a chemical reaction transforms hydrogen into electricity and water vapour. This may sound like a highly promising solution, but when we take into account the design complexity and production costs, hydrogen remains a long way off.

CLICK HERE for more information and to view the different forms of Hybrids.