Tips on How to Efficiently Drive a Hybrid

Hybrid cars offer a taste of the fuel efficiency enjoyed by electric vehicles (EVs) while retaining the tried-and-tested internal combustion engine (ICE) for longer drives. However, they’re also trickier to use when compared to either ICE-only vehicles or pure electric cars. If you don’t know how to leverage a hybrid’s advantages and compensate for its weaknesses, you cannot get your expected fuel economy from it. Getting the most out of your hybrid car requires adjusting your driving habits accordingly.

How to Drive a Hybrid Car Efficiently

The following tips and tricks can help you get the most out of your hybrid car:

Know Your Hybrid’s Driving Modes

Hybrid vehicles offer multiple driving modes. First is EV mode, a fully electric mode of operation where the battery powers electric motors attached to the wheels. Next is “normal mode,” which operates the engine and also uses the battery as needed. Finally, sport mode changes the control parameters of the transmission, throttle, and power steering. Also called power mode, it delivers higher performance at the cost of fuel economy.

Many hybrid car models also incorporate an Eco mode that maximizes fuel efficiency. Eco mode reduces how fast the throttle reacts to inputs, enabling the engine to deliver power more smoothly, gradually, and in a better-controlled manner. The gentler acceleration curve consumes less fuel and encourages you to drive slower and more economically.

In summary, Eco mode reduces the hybrid’s acceleration rate without affecting its top speed or engine power. This fuel-saving mode encourages you to drive more slowly with a lighter foot on the gas and brake pedals.

Use EV Mode For Quick Trips

Do you expect a brief drive where you stay at low speeds throughout the short trip? If you intend to drive to a nearby location, switch to your hybrid’s EV mode.

Driving in EV mode uses available power far more efficiently than driving with the engine running. Since the battery charges while driving in other modes and when you engage the regenerative braking system, you’re using free electricity instead of burning costly fuel.

However, there are some limitations to EV mode that you must keep in mind. In many hybrids, the electric motors generate less power than the engine. Therefore, hybrid vehicles often cannot go as fast in their EV mode as in sport mode.

Furthermore, hybrid batteries are usually smaller and have lower capacity than the battery packs in plug-in hybrid EVs (PHEVs) and battery EVs (BEVs). Hybrid cars have shorter ranges and operating times when running purely on battery power.

EV mode works best when you’re not going far and fast. Switch to this driving mode for tasks like maneuvering your hybrid in and out of the garage, navigating the confines of a parking lot, and driving to the local grocery.

Use Eco Mode When Driving on Highways

Highway driving is the opposite of what EV mode is intended for. You must go fast and keep your vehicle’s speed up for a good distance. If you try to drive your hybrid in EV mode on the highway, the battery pack will quickly run out of charge long before you arrive at your exit.

Fortunately, you can switch your hybrid to Eco mode for driving on a highway. While Eco mode reduces acceleration to improve fuel economy, it doesn’t affect your hybrid’s top speed and engine power.

On highways, maintaining high speeds is more important than quickly getting up to those speeds. Thus, Eco mode’s lower acceleration poses no problem. You get to drive at high speeds while also saving fuel.

Don’t Brake Hard

Hard braking is rarely good for a vehicle, but it causes more problems for a hybrid. When you hit the brakes hard, the friction generated by the braking process drains electricity from the electric motors. Your hybrid will quickly lose power.

Even worse, hard braking halts your hybrid so quickly that the regenerative braking system doesn’t get a chance to do its job. Regenerative braking collects kinetic energy that usually gets lost while stopping your vehicle. The recovered energy goes to the battery pack.

You can give the regenerative braking system the time it needs by easing on the brake pedal as early as possible. Watch out for signals like illuminated brake lights and lift your foot from the brake pedal to take pressure off it. If you know the highway route, you can prepare for the places that require you to slow down or stop,

Coast Whenever You Can

Coasting is another way to charge hybrid batteries with recovered kinetic energy. The regenerative braking system can convert rotational energy into electricity. If you take your foot off the gas pedal and let your hybrid coast, your vehicle will collect energy from the free-spinning wheels and tires and store it in the battery for later use.

Avoid Shifting Into Neutral During Brief Stops

In most vehicles, you must shift to neutral when you stop your car at a red light or find yourself stuck in a traffic jam. However, this is not recommended if you drive a hybrid.

As mentioned earlier, hybrids charge their battery pack through a combination of the engine-powered alternator and the regenerative braking system. If you shift to neutral while driving a hybrid, your vehicle won’t generate the power that charges its battery. Instead, the hybrid will continue running its engine, burning fuel.

While the manufacturer sets the overall performance of their hybrid models, you can improve your vehicle’s fuel economy by adopting good driving habits. These tips on how to efficiently drive a hybrid can help reduce your expenses by saving on fuel and reducing wear.