It is a very exciting time to be shopping for cars, particularly for people trying to do better for the environment. If you’ve come to the conclusion that you want to buy or lease a car that is better for the environment, then one of these five types of Electric Vehicles (EVs) will likely be for you. The EV market is developing very quickly, and it is important to know what’s out there right now, and what makes sense for you.

When considering what your next car should be, typical criteria might be 1) fuel economy, 2) range and charge time, 3) safety, and of course 4) price. With regard to safety, EVs of all types are equally as safe as conventional cars, and so we are going to focus on comparing fuel economy, range, charge time, and price, as well as, the fundamental differences between each kind of Electric Vehicle.

Before we compare the five different types of current Electric Vehicles, it is worth noting that we are clearly starting to realize a new ecosystem of EVs in America that we once only dreamed about. In a TED Talk in 2009, Shai Agassi outlined what would need to happen for a whole country to run without oil, the key being the mass adoption of EVs. Believe it or not, we are at a turning point. Electric Vehicles are about to become more common than gasoline-powered cars. Over the next decade, we will see this transformation happen very quickly.

Shai Agassi | A New Ecosystem for Electric Cars | TED2009

“I got to the thought that actually if you could convert an entire country to electric cars, in a way that is convenient and affordable, you could get to a solution. Now I started this from a point of view that it has to be something that scales en masse. Not how do you build one car, but how do you scale this so that it can become something that is used by 99 percent of the population? The thought that came to mind is that it needs to be as good as any car that you would have today. So one, it has to be more convenient than a car. And two, it has be more affordable than today’s cars. Affordable is not a 40,000-dollar sedan, right? That’s not something that we can finance or buy today. And convenient is not something that you drive for an hour and charge for eight.” — Shai Agassi

Without further ado, below are the five different types of Electric Vehicles, and some notes on each. We’ve also included examples of each kind of EV that are currently on the market so as to get specific about typical features and pricing. It is worth noting that for the fuel economy of EVs, we use miles per gallon equivalent (MPGe) to be able to compare different types of vehicles.

Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs)

For those of you that are looking for cars that are zero or near-zero greenhouse gas emissions, Battery Electric Vehicles are the purest form of EVs, and they take the biggest strides toward cutting emissions. Battery Electric Vehicles don’t use any gasoline to power the vehicle, and therefore, have no tailpipe emissions. This means that if your electricity comes from renewable energy, your carbon footprint is far closer to zero at least when it comes to your transportation. If your utility or your home is powered by solar panels or wind turbines, then your car will also be powered that way and not by fossil fuels. Some notable Battery Electric Vehicles include the Tesla S, the BMW i3, and the Nissan Leaf. The Nissan Leaf is the most affordable of this type of EV. The 2019 Nissan Leaf started at an MSRP of $29,990 with a range of 150–225 miles. For a typical daily commute and for short weekend trips escaping the suburbs or city, this type of EV is more than capable. The charge time for the Nissan Leaf is 8 to 11 hours with at 220 volts, which is essentially an overnight session. At 440 volts, the Nissan Leaf charges in under an hour though. The fuel economy for a Nissan Leaf is up to 124 MPGe in the city and 99 MPGe on the highway.

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Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles (PHEVs)

Plug-in Hybrid EVs have much smaller battery packs than the Battery EVs. The idea with Plug-in Hybrids is to shift the short trips to run on mostly battery power. The range for the battery power is typically between 5 and 30 miles, and then the internal combustion engine is responsible for anything beyond that. So, if you think about all of the trips you do to the grocery or running short errands, Plug-in Hybrids would effectively reduce your emissions for those short trips, and then the longer trips would continue to be powered by gasoline. A good example of this type of EV is the Audi A3 Plug-in Hybrid. The Audi A3 Plug-in Hybrid has been around for a few years and has been well received. The 2018 model had a battery range of 16 miles, and that number has since improved to over 30 miles on their newer and more expensive e-tron cars. The 2018 Audi A3 Plug-in Hybrid started at $40,475 with a fuel economy at 83–86 MPGe, significantly lower than Battery EVs, but still much better than typical all-gasoline powered cars. While $40k is a bit expensive, the used car pricing for a 2018 Audi A3 Plug-in Hybrid is closer to $20–25k right now.

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Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEVs)

Hybrid Electric Vehicles are what people are most familiar with. The most common among these is the Toyota Prius Hybrid. The hybrids include a small battery pack is not charged by plugging in, but rather the batteries in hybrids are charged by the internal combustion engine and/or the braking process. There are different versions of hybrids, but in general these are more like battery-assisted vehicles than vehicles that are powered by batteries at any given time. The Toyota Prius was first introduced in Japan in the late 1990’s, and it reached the U.S. market in 2001. The second and third generation Priuses dominated in the United States from 2003–2015, and now we have the 4th generation family of Prius models. There are now Plug-in Hybrid versions of the Prius, but the traditional Prius is the best example of a Hybrid EV. The 2020 Toyota Prius MSRP starts at $24,325, and the fuel economy is 58 MPG in the city and 53 MPG on the highway. It is conceivable that in the near future, we’ll consider a car that gets 58 MPG in the city a gas-guzzler. With so many Battery EVs being developed, the traditional hybrid is becoming more of a “status quo” car for environmentalists seeking to significantly reduce their carbon footprint.

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Range Extender Hybrid Electric Vehicles (REHEVs)

Range Extender Hybrid EVs are functionally the same as Plug-in Hybrid EVs, but the engineering is different. REHEVs are often considered PHEVs, but the REHEVs typically have higher battery ranges than Plug-in Hybrid EVs. The best example of a REHEV is the Chevy Volt. The 2019 Chevy Volt has a starting MSRP of $33,520 and an all-battery range of 53 miles. For people dipping their toes in the EV market, this is probably the ideal vehicle as it has a high all-battery range, and beyond that is powered by the internal combustion engine that people are accustomed to. For someone with a hefty commute, the Chevy Volt could potentially still get you to work and back every day on just the battery without having to worry about getting to a charging station before making it back home. The Volt’s fuel economy without the battery is 42 MPG.

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Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles (FCEVs)

Fuel Cell EVs are not like the other EVs. Fuel Cell EVs are powered by a hydrogen fuel cell and don’t produce any tailpipe emissions, just water vapor and warm air. So, if your goal is zero greenhouse gas emissions, FCEVs check that box, but there are very few fueling stations, and it is much more likely that national EV charging networks will continue to be developed with Battery EVs in mind. It is conceivable though that a company or set of companies could invest heavily in hydrogen fueling stations to advance the market for FCEVs. The 2019 Honda Clarity Fuel Cell is a good example of an FCEV, though it is far from affordable to the average consumer starting at $58,490 with a fuel economy of 69 MPGe in the city and 67 MPGe on the highway. Fuel Cell EVs are early stage, and the vehicles and fueling infrastructure have a long way to go before we will see mass adoption.

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Conclusion

There are a growing number of options for consumers seeking to buy or lease vehicles with smaller carbon footprints. The future of EVs is bright with more charging infrastructure being built every day, and more car companies pursuing affordable EVs. As EV technology improves, we will see longer battery ranges and quicker charging times, which will effectively reduce range anxiety and necessary trip planning.