Here is the important terminology you need to know about to be familiar with Electric Vehicles, especially if you intend to drive an electric vehicle because governments across the world have been promoting Electric Vehicles as a means to minimize vehicular pollution.
Going electric is one method to reduce the rising levels of air pollution in many parts of the world and to fight climate change. The world needs to do more to prepare for a green future and electric driving is predicted to be “The Next Big Thing”. Governments all over the world are promoting EVs, there are more participants in the market, and demand is rising.
Here are five key EV terms you should understand before purchasing an electric vehicle.
Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV)
Any sort of electrically powered vehicle, including rickshaws, bicycles, motorbikes, scooters, cars, buses, and trucks, is considered a BEV. Additionally, known as zero-emission vehicles (ZEV), these vehicles never utilize gasoline, diesel, or internal combustion engines; instead, they are solely powered by batteries and charged with a charging connection.
Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV)/ Hybrid Vehicle (HV)
HEVs or HVs are cars that have combustion engines that burn fossil fuels but have small electric motors attached to them. By switching to electric mode at low speeds, the electric motor increases the fuel’s efficiency in terms of the distance traveled per liter of gasoline. These cannot be powered just by electricity. Toyota and Honda are well-known manufacturers of hybrid vehicles. There are no two-wheelers in this category because there isn’t enough room on a two-wheeler to sustain both the engine and the motor.
Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV)
PHEVs are different from HEVs as they use both fossil fuel and electricity, but they do it differently. Like a pure electric car, these have an actual battery pack, an electric motor, a fuel tank, and an internal combustion engine. These vehicles can operate on electricity for shorter trips and can be converted to combustion mode for longer ones. The tank may be filled, and the batteries can be charged by plugging in a charging cord.
Low-Speed Vehicle (LSV)
LSVs are electric cars with a 25 mph maximum speed limit (40 kilometers per hour). Plugging an LSV battery into any outlet allows for simple recharge. These include golf carts, electric rickshaws, and low-range electric scooters.
Battery Pack
The mechanism for storing energy in which cells are put together to create a power pack is called a battery pack. When it comes to smaller and lighter batteries, such as Lithium Ion batteries, they make cars lighter and perform better, but they are more expensive. On the other side, Led-Acid battery vehicles are more expensive, heavier, and have a shorter range. Batteries made of nickel-cadmium, nickel-metal hydride, lithium-ion polymer, zinc-air, and molten salt are some more rechargeable batteries that can be utilized in electric vehicles. However, lithium-ion and Led-Acid batteries are currently more widely used in the EV business.