What is a HEV (hybrid electric vehicle)?

HEV stands for Hybrid Electric Vehicle. A HEV uses both an electric motor and a fuel-powered engine to drive the wheels. The ‘hybrid’ part of the name denotes that these models rely on both an electric motor and battery setup, and a fuel-powered engine. Hybrids usually automatically swap between the two power sources depending on driving conditions (e.g. lets you use electricity at slow speeds and stop-start traffic, and only rely on the engine for longer runs and faster speeds). This category includes mild-hybrids, self-charging hybrids and plug-in hybrids. Unlike PHEVs, HEVs cannot be externally charged and recover all the energy they use directly from the car’s engine or from regenerative braking when the car’s slowing down.