By Rick Cotta
Headings below, in order:
In Praise of Plug-in Hybrids
Advantages
What Plug-in Hybrids are Available?
List of New Plug-in Hybrids
Used Plug-in Hybrids
How to Evaluate a Used Plug-in Hybrid
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In Praise of Plug-In Hybrids
“Range anxiety.”
That’s often listed as the #1 reason more folks don’t consider an electric vehicle — the fear of being left stranded when the battery runs out of charge. And it’s not without merit.
Even as more public charging stations are being built, they’re nowhere near as plentiful as gas stations, nor is “filling up” anywhere near as quick. And if you run out of charge and are left at the side of the road, you can’t fix the problem with a simple can of gas.
Enter the plug-in hybrid.
As somewhat of a “crossover” between traditional hybrid vehicles and pure electric ones, plug-in hybrids (often abbreviated as “PHEV,” for Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle) have often been viewed as the bastard child of automotive electrification. But they really shouldn’t be.
Like regular hybrids, plug-in hybrids have both gas and electric powertrains. But unlike regular hybrids, they and can run for quite some distance on just electric power. They typically need to be plugged in like an EV to run on just battery power, but when that battery power runs out, they switch seamlessly over to their gas powertrain. When you run low on gas, you simply stop and fill up as in a normal gas car. So even if you forget to plug in, it isn’t a problem.
While current, moderately priced plug-in hybrids can typically only go 20-40 miles on electric power, some older ones could go farther. (We touch on those under the Used Plug-in Hybrids heading below.) And some new ones are coming that may as well. This often allows folks to drive on all-electric power during their weekday commute (as long as they plug in every night), then just let it run on the gas powertrain for long trips — or if they forget to plug in. This essentially eliminates the “range anxiety” that plagues electric vehicles, making plug-in hybrids a good stepping stone for those who have qualms about committing to an all-electric vehicle.
Advantages
Not only do plug-in hybrids provide full electric driving without the range anxiety normally associated with it, many also bring “electric” advantages that aren’t typically offered by a regular hybrid.
Chief among these is the ability to pre-heat or pre-cool the interior without running the engine — a huge advantage when the vehicle is stored in a garage. Granted, some plug-in hybrids may not offer it and for those that do, it’s usually only allowed when the vehicle is plugged in. But it’s still a big deal, at least here in the snow belt … where humid summers are no picnic, either. And when outside — such as in a company parking lot — you can still pre-condition the interior by running the engine.
A few plug-in hybrids are also on the list of vehicles (along with EVs) that are eligible for some amount of the federal tax credit available under the Clean Vehicle Credit, formerly known as the “EV tax credit.” (it applies to any vehicle with a minimally sized battery that can be plugged in). More information about the Clean Vehicle Credit — which includes rules not only on what vehicles are eligible for the credit, but also what buyers are (based on income) — can be found by clicking on the “EV Tax Credit Info” icon (a “$”) on the home page.
As with the electric motors used in regular electric vehicles (EVs), those in plug-in hybrids turn into a generator when slowing down. That’s possible because a motor and a generator are largely the same mechanically; one takes electric power and turns it into rotary motion, while the other reverses the process, taking rotary motion and turning it into electricity. Thus “motors” in a plug-in hybrid are often referred to as “motor/generators.” Not only do they help recharge the battery when slowing down, they also help slow the vehicle, as it takes power to turn what is now a generator, and that “power” comes from the vehicle’s momentum. So as in an EV, brakes in a plug-in hybrid tend to last longer than in a gas car.
While EVs have far larger batteries that provide far longer electric driving ranges, those batteries can take a long time to recharge. If you’re planning to do that mostly at home, it’s best to have 240-volt power run to your garage so that you can make use of Level 2 charging. And doing that can be expensive. But with the smaller batteries used in plug-in hybrids, Level 1 charging through a common 120-volt outlet should be enough to fully recharge the battery over night. And If you forget, so what? You just run on gas power.
While plug-in hybrids normally run on electric power until the battery gets low and then switch to gas power, many plug-in hybrids allow you to “bank” your battery charge for later down the road rather than running on it initially. The intent is to let the driver choose to use electric propulsion when it’s most efficient, such as in heavy city traffic that may come at the end of their drive.
What Plug-in Hybrids are Available?
If you think a plug-in hybrid might be for you, a list of more than 20 that are offered for 2024 can be found below, running up to about $75,000. For the list, skip down to “List of New Plug-in Hybrids.” Following the 2024 entries are those for the 2023 model year, some of which may still be available at dealers. There’s also some information on older plug-in hybrids under the Used Plug-in Hybrids heading.
It’s worth noting that new plug-in hybrids are coming to market all the time. For a current listing of plug-in hybrids offered in the U.S. — both new and old — along with their all-electric ranges, you can go to the fueleconomy.gov website run by the U.S. Department of Energy. (That’s not a link; you’ll need to copy and paste it into your search bar.) A direct link to a list of plug-in vehicles is: https://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/powerSearch.jsp?keep=1&action=noform&path=1&year1=2023&year2=2025&vtype=Plug-in+Hybrid&pageno=1&rowLimit=50
Note, however, that there may be a bit of a delay before new plug-in hybrids appear on the site.
Here’s how to find them:
Underneath the photo at the top of the site are four blue topic heads. At far right is, “Hybrids & Electrics.” Underneath the little photo, you can click on “Plug-in Hybrids.” (You could also choose Hybrids, or All-electric Vehicles.) That will bring up some good general information, but to see what vehicles are available — both new and older (Used) — look to the far right, and under the tiny grey heading, “Also in this Section,” click on the first item, “Compare Side by Side.” That will let you choose New Models or All Models (which goes back years), and either choice will give you a long listing of every plug-in hybrid sold in the U.S.
Once you choose a vehicle from the list, click on its blue model name (such as, “2022 Toyota Prius Prime”), and that will bring up a second page with much more info, including the electric and gas driving ranges.
There’s also “Find and Compare Cars” that allows you to “Browse by Model.” This is great if you already know what model you’d like to look at, and you can choose to go back any number of years.
List of New Plug-in Hybrids
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2023 Plug-in Hybrids
Used Plug-in Hybrids
Perhaps the first plug-in hybrid to make a name for itself was the Chevrolet Volt, introduced for 2011. Other plug-in hybrids joined in, but none have ever been as popular.
Starting with debut 2011 models currently priced at about $5000 – $10,000, the Chevrolet Volt originally carried an EPA-estimated electric range of 35 miles, after which it seamlessly switched over to running on its gas engine for another 345 miles (380 total). After that, you could just refill the fuel tank as on any gas car and keep on going. The range jumped to 53 electric/420 total with the Volt’s 2016 redesign, but it was sadly discontinued after 2019. For many folks, this plug-in hybrid might be a good way to break into EVs, as it provides a fair amount of electric driving while relieving the whole “range anxiety” issue.
A similar concept — with somewhat different engineering — can be found in the BMW i3 … an oddball here, in more ways than one. Not only does it look like no other BMW (or really, anything else), it was an EV at its core, but offered an optional gas engine/generator that was referred to as a Range Extender. And it did just that: The gas engine could fire up to increase the range from roughly 72 miles to about 150, and then you could just refill the very small fuel tank like on any gas car. (That tank held less than two gallons, so you’d have to stop fairly frequently, but at least you wouldn’t be left stranded with no battery power.) After the inaugural 2014 model, a larger battery was offered for 2017 that increased the range to 97 electric/180 total by firing up the Range Extender, increasing to 126/200 for 2019. However, the Range Extender was an option, so not all had it. Figure a starting price of around $15,000 for an early i3 with Range Extender, $30,000 for a long-range 2019.
Both the Volt and i3 are called “Series Hybrids,” which means the gas engine only drives a generator; it never drives the wheels directly. Most other plug-in hybrids are “Parallel Hybrids,” which means either the electric motor or the gas engine could be used to drive the wheels. While the Volt and i3 probably make up the bulk of the used plug-in hybrids you’ll see on offer — at least in the lower price ranges — others are certainly available. If you want to see a listing, you can visit the fuel economy.gov website discussed above under the heading, What Plug-in Hybrids are Available?
As for finding used plug-in hybrids in your area, the internet is a great place to start.
While Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace are popular — especially for cars sold by owners — many Plug-in Hybrids were originally leased, which means they often end up at dealers. One site that claims to include listings from a variety of other sites — both by owners and by dealers — is Autotempest.com, though others include Cars.com and Autotrader.com.
At Autotempest.com, you can start by entering your zip code and distance limits. If you already know what model you’re looking for, you can enter the make and model into the search boxes. If you don’t know what you want — or just want to see what all is out there — you can scroll down and click on “Fuel Type,” then click on “Electric” (it seems this category also includes plug-in hybrids), then down to the yellow SEARCH button. When the list comes up, find the box that says “SORT BY,” and choose something — let’s say, Lowest Price. That will arrange the cars (after a few annoying pushes for other types of cars) from lowest to highest price. Note that most of these will be EVs — not plug-in hybrids — so it really helps to know the PHEV players before you search. Also note that some sellers may not categorize a plug-in hybrid as “Electric,” so entering the make and model you’re looking for into the initial search box may bring up more results.
How to Evaluate a Used Plug-in Hybrid
As with pure electric vehicles, the batteries in plug-in hybrids can deteriorate over time. With that, their electric-only range will be reduced, so it’s a good idea to run a “battery check” on any used plug-in hybrid you’re considering.
Methods for doing that are covered under the “Used Car” icon on the home page. Scroll to the bottom and look for the heading, “Testing the Battery.” While the focus there is on pure electric vehicles, many of the same steps apply to plug-in hybrids. Ditto for the suggestions under the “Other Checks” heading that follows.
However, with a plug-in hybrid, there’s also a concern over the condition of the gas engine and its associated hardware, including the transmission, cooling system, charging system (primarily the alternator and battery), and exhaust system. As in a traditional gas car, those can be complicated to thoroughly check out, and thus require some technical knowledge that’s beyond our scope here. But simple checks can be done simply by looking for warning lights being on, and driving the car to see if everything “feels” right. But there’s a catch.
Under the “Testing the Battery” heading mentioned above, one suggestion is to start with a fully charged battery so that you can look at the number of charge bars lit up, and also to check the estimated number of electric-only miles you should have. Ideally, all the charge bars should be illuminated, and the electric-only range should be close to the original EPA estimate — though it’s based on the way the car was recently driven. Trouble is, under normal driving, the gas engine may not kick on until that range has been depleted, which could be 30-60 miles (even longer in a BMW i3 with Range Extender).
Particularly if you’re buying from a private owner, this can get tricky. If you’re buying from a dealer, they may let you take it home overnight to put some miles on it (which — assuming you have an electrical outlet handy — would also allow you to fully charge it for the next morning), or they may provide a warranty or money-back guarantee for long enough to establish that everything’s OK. Since many of these vehicles were originally leased (after which they’re often returned to the dealer), you’ll likely find more for sale through dealerships anyway.
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