FAQs

BEV = Battery Electric Vehicle

BEVs are powered solely by a battery, and are 100% electric. They have no gas engine parts. 

PHEV = Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle

These vehicles typically go about 20-55 miles on battery only, and then seamlessly switch over to a gas engine. They generally have a smaller battery than BEVs. They have both a gas tank and a charging port. 

HEV = Hybrid Electric Vehicle

Hybrid electric vehicles are powered by an internal combustion engine and one or more electric motors, which uses energy stored in batteries. However, you can't plug the car in to charge the battery like you can with a PHEV. Rather, the battery charges partly via regenerative breaking. 

 

Electric vehicles have fewer moving parts than gas-powered engines and do not require as much maintenance since they don't need things like oil changes or air-filter replacements. They also have 'regenerative breaking', recovering the energy normally lost to breaking, which saves on brake pad replacements. In general, electric vehicles typically cost half as much to maintain and repair as gas-powered cars. 

ChargEVC has a calculator you can use to estimate how much it would cost in gas each year to power a gas-powered vehicle vs how much it would cost in electricity to power an electric vehicle. You can adjust the calculator based on how many miles you drive each year, the efficiency of the vehicle and the current gasoline and electric rates. HG&E's current residential electric rate is $0.16/kWh (as of Februarty 2024).

Batteries in new electric vehicles typically have warranties that cover up to eight years or 100,000 miles of use. However, they can last as much to 10-15 years or more, depending on driving and charging habits. According to Coltura, some EV batteries have lasted close to 400,000 miles. Expected battery lifetime is 10–15 years under normal operating conditions. While all batteries experience some degredation over time, you may be able to find suggestions on how to prolong the battery life in the manufacturer's manual.  Check with your vehicle’s manufacturer for vehicle and battery warranty information.

BEVs can typically go between 110-300+ miles on a single charge. PHEVs can typically go 15-60 miles on just the battery; their overall range is determined by the fuel tank capacity which varies from model to  model.

Fueleconomy.gov lists the various ranges for electric vehicles so you can compare vehicles more easily. 

All electric vehicles come with a standard Level 1 charger, which plugs into a typical 120-volt outlet. For faster charging, homeowners can install Level 2 chargers which output electricity at a much faster rate. These chargers require 240-volt service which most homes have as it is needed for appliances like dryers and electric ranges. There are also a variety of public charging stations available. 

Some studies have shown that manufacturing electric vehicles creates more carbon emissions than manufacturing gas-powered vehicles, due to the additional energy required to manufacture the EVs battery. However, according to epa.gov, "total GHG emissions associated with manufacturing, charging, and driving an EV are typically lower than the total GHGs associated with a gasoline car. That’s because EVs have zero tailpipe emissions and are typically responsible for significantly fewer GHGs during operation."

HG&E offers its Electric Vehicle Charger Program which provides customers with a financial incentive in exchange for charging their vehicle outside of peak periods. Peak periods are the certain times when demand for electricity is highest. When these peaks occur, HG&E receives additional significant charges for each additional kWh of demand. Incentivizing customers to charge outside of these peak periods allows HG&E to help reduce these additional charges, which helps keep customer electric rates lower. 

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, "It is important that a qualified technician with specialized EV-specific high-voltage training service your electric vehicle. A qualified technician will have the proper personal protective and testing or diagnostic equipment and an adequate understanding necessary for working on or around the high-voltage systems in your EV or HEV. Severe injury or death may result if the technician is unqualified and attempts to perform the work."

According to PluginAmerica.org, "Experts conclude that EVs are just as safe or safer than internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles and are less prone to fires and rollover crashes.". All passenger vehicles sold in the United States are required to meet Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standarsa and the batteries on EVs must go through addiitonal testing. EVs also generally have a lower center of gravity than gas-powered vehicles because of the heavy battery at the base of the vehicle which makes them more stable and less likely to roll over. Also, per PluginAmerica.org, EVs "are about 60 times less likely to catch fire than ICE vehicles."

Questions?

Contact: efficiency@hged.com