Different Types of Electric Vehicles and its Mechanism

With the rise in demand for electric vehicles, knowing the types of electric vehicles that will suit your needs is necessary. Each kind has a unique technological structure, making it worth learning. Here's a comprehensive guide to the different types of electric vehicles available in the market.

Electric vehicles have taken the vehicle market by storm and revolutionised the industry. However, they aren't restricted to batteries for their functioning. Broad opportunities are available with the different types of EVs. You must have heard of the terms BEV, HEV, PHEV, and FCEV when it comes to electric vehicles. Let this guide fill you in on their details if you haven't.

What Do Electric Vehicles Mean?

Electric vehicles like commercial autos and scooters get their power from one or more electric motors. These motors get their power from a battery pack that enables them to accelerate and drive. Based on the classification of electric vehicles, the electric motors either support a conventional internal combustion engine (ICE) or power the entire vehicle.

Commercial vehicles like buses, trucks, vans, and electric autos are useful in the agriculture and building industry. These commercial electric vehicles ensure a quiet and eco-friendly model, which is highly efficient while compared to a combustion engine.

Different Types of Electric Vehicles

1. Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV)

   An all-electric or fully electric vehicle, powered solely through electricity, is known as a battery-electric vehicle. There's no internal combustion engine in these vehicles, and the electric motors draw current from the onboard battery packs.

   Driving this type of electric vehicle such as electric two wheelers and electric load vehicles requires charging through a home charger or fast charging station. It can also recoup energy through regenerative braking. BEVs have significantly high-capacity batteries and kilowatt-hour outputs, making them a costlier option.

2. Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV)

   In an attempt to reduce fuel consumption, a hybrid electric vehicle combines the internal combustion engine with an electric motor and a battery pack. Among the different types of electric vehicle, Hybrids favour the efficient and inefficient times of ICE units and allows the use of electric motors.

3. Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV)

   A plug-in hybrid electric vehicle combines ICE, electric motors, and a battery pack with specific differences. In PHEVs, the electric motors do the heavy lifting, so you can completely switch to it and turn ICE off completely.

   Further, you can drive PHEV among the different types of electric vehicle on both fuel and electricity, depending on the conditions. Even drivers can power the vehicle with both options, but the battery recharges automatically.

4. Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle (FCEV)

   Another variant in the different types of electric vehicles category is FCEV. Fuel Cell Vehicles are also known as Zero-emission vehicles and use fuel-cell technology to generate the electricity needed to power the vehicle. These vehicles store energy differently. If you fill FCEVs with hydrogen, the chemical reaction will create its own electric charge. Thus, they may not require charging from the grid.

Bottom Line

Significant developments have occurred in the electric vehicle industry. Hopefully, this classification of electric vehicles clarifies every detail and influences your purchasing decisions.