Are hybrid cars good for motorway driving?

Since they were first introduced, electric vehicles have evolved massively and are no longer the inner-city runabouts they were originally designed to be. With battery technology constantly improving, maximum ranges on a single charge have increased, unlocking the potential of hybrid car motorway driving.

This has benefited further from the expansion of EV charging infrastructure. Not all hybrid vehicles can charge their battery directly from the mains. Still, as hybrids move away from primarily internal combustion power towards primarily battery electric power, better charging infrastructure is helping drivers to cover more miles.

What does all this mean for hybrid vehicle motorway driving? This article will examine the different types of hybrid cars, how you can refuel them throughout a long-distance journey, and what driving a hybrid on the motorway might mean for the economy.

Types Of Hybrid Cars

Hybrid cars fill the spectrum between petrol and diesel-driven internal combustion engines (ICEs) and purely motor-driven battery electric vehicles (BEVs). In between, you’ll find several common categories of hybrid vehicles:

• MHEV: Mild hybrids, with only a small electric motor to assist with acceleration
• FHEV: Full hybrids, which cannot plug into recharge but can run in ICE or electric mode
• PHEV: Plug-in hybrids, capable of charging from the mains, but still have an ICE
• REEV: Range-extended EVs, with a small ICE and fuel tank to get home with a flat battery

FHEVs are in the middle ground. They usually have a fairly even balance between the ICE and the electric motor, but no way to directly recharge the battery. Instead, the battery recharges while driving, taking its power from the ICE and regenerative braking.

Hybrid Cars On The Motorway

When driving hybrid cars on the motorway, there are a few questions we need to ask. The range is one of the most important factors to consider, but there are others, like driving style and fuel economy.

Maximum Range

Different types of hybrid cars – and different models within each category – have different maximum ranges. If you’re keen to drive in all-electric mode as far as possible, then a PHEV or REEV is the way to go.

However, be aware that REEVs are quite rare. At the end of 2021, just 10,000 were registered in the UK, accounting for less than 1% of new plug-in vehicles sold yearly, according to DfT figures.

It also depends on where you’re likely to go driving. If you’re sticking to the major motorways, e.g. for business use or a daily motorway commute, it’s likely you won’t be far from somewhere to recharge, and superfast charge points can now get you going again in as little as 20 minutes.

Driving Style

Some motorists are surprised by how well hybrid engines lend themselves to motorway driving in all its different phases:

• Accelerate gradually, potentially drawing on only one power source
• Accelerate faster by using both power sources together
• Cruise at speed in electric mode when little to no acceleration is needed
• Regenerative braking reduces lost energy during roadworks and traffic jams
• Ability to refuel and/or recharge no matter which infrastructure you reach first

This depends on the type of hybrid you drive. Some are designed to rely mostly on one power source — either the electric battery or the ICE, which will affect the list above. But on the whole, the different systems in a hybrid make for very versatile driving.

Fuel Economy

Hybrid cars are typically heavier because they contain both a sizeable battery pack and an internal combustion engine and fuel tank. This can be a literal drag on the vehicle, especially when accelerating to motorway speeds.

However, this all depends on the price of petrol or diesel, compared with the price of recharging the electric battery in your hybrid. In recent years oil and electricity prices have been very turbulent, but over the long term, it’s usually cheaper to charge a hybrid than to fill it with the equivalent in petrol.

Of course, in practice, you’re likely to refuel or recharge as and when you can, at least to an extent. This means the more of your range you can get from the electric motor without engaging the ICE; the better your fuel economy will likely be.

Final Thoughts

Range was always the limiting factor with early EVs when it came to motorway driving. With the top models of hybrid EVs now on the market, combined with wider availability of superfast charging infrastructure, long-distance motorway driving in hybrid cars has become a common feature of many motorists’ day-to-day driving.