KEY HIGHLIGHTS
- As of now, there are five mass-market fully hybrid vehicles available.
- The Grand Vitara with a strong hybrid, when fueled to a full tank, can go up to 1200 km.
- Make the most use of EV mode to achieve great fuel efficiency.
Government of India is persistently advertising electric vehicles despite a half-cooked charging network in India and pushing all automakers to put a full stop to the manufacturing of diesel cars in India soon to make space for EVs, as they produce zero carbon emissions and are called healthy for the environment. However, Indians aren't jumping into this segment swiftly but are finding hybrid cars more practical, as their carbon footprint is less and their fuel efficiency is fantastic.
But despite their jaw-dropping overall range, some buyers do not know how to fully optimize this powertrain and save money. That's why I am here to point out how to extract the best fuel economy with a hybrid car. Before scrolling above, make sure to join the 91Wheels Whatsapp Channel to never miss out on automotive updates.
Also Read: 3 Pros and 3 Cons Of Hybrid Cars
Make The Most Use Of Electric Mode
Popular hybrid cars in India, like the Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara, Toyota Urban Cruiser Hyryder, and Toyota Innova Hycross, come with an EV mode, in which, if pressed, the car totally runs on the electric motor up until a certain km. Plus, these motors don't need to be charged via a connector, as they self-charge through regenerative braking. So, if you are driving for a short run or most of your commute happens in the city, it is advised to only use this EV mode.
As you can save lots of fuel money with just this step, but it's important to keep a light foot on the throttle, as the battery will run for longer. A lot of people, even in cities, drive rashly and don't fully utilize hybrid technology. By driving efficiently, one can easily achieve high fuel efficiency. For example, the Grand Vitara's claimed mileage is 27.97 kmpl, and that is in city driving, and Innova Hycross claimed mileage is 23.24 kmpl.
Consistent Speed
If you maintain your speed, then even a big turbocharged petrol engine will provide decent fuel efficiency. Then think about the hybrid one - if you keep it at a steady pace, extracting excellent fuel efficiency will become a cakewalk. For doing that, it is advised to use cruise control on highways and keep your speed in the bracket of 80 to 90 km/h. If driven in just the city, then also, keeping a light foot will create a lot of impact. As the internal combustion engine only takes control after the RPM reaches a certain number. Before that, only the electric motor is taking full charge.
Eco Mode
Almost every new car upwards of Rs 12 lakh is now coming with drive modes. Hybrids, being on the pricey side, do offer this technological feature, where three modes are offered - Eco, Normal, and Sports. When you start the vehicle, it naturally drives in Normal mode, where there is no limiter set on power delivery, and weight is added to the steering wheel. However, that said, if you put it in Eco mode, the power is suppressed, and the car will drive slowly in order to achieve maximum fuel efficiency.
In the case of automatic transmissions, the gearbox will shift gears quickly. So, this is another great way to save lots of fuel through this system, as this mode will make sure that the vehicle only runs on the electric motor and provides the best efficiency to its capacity.
Engine - Start Stop
A lot of car owners never use this feature, which is intended to save fuel at every stop, and that's because it turns off the engine whenever the car is not in motion, and the sensors handle that. After pressing the clutch or brake pedal in automatic cars, the engine comes back to life. If the car is only navigating through bumper-to-bumper traffic, then the engine start-stop feature doesn't make sense, but in cities where traffic is tolerable, this feature will add to those extra miles. So, depending on your city, hybrid owners or even normal ICE vehicle owners should make the most use of it.
Also Read: Skoda Kylaq Signature: The Most Value-for-Money Variant - Here's Why
Verdict
If you take note of these points, you will save a lot of fuel on hybrid cars, and with a full tank, you can easily run up to 1100 km. Also, with the current infrastructure of EVs in India, choosing hybrids makes more sense, as there is no dependency on the motor and no need to charge it. However, their downside is that they are very expensive and have complex engineering. So, also keep these facts in mind.
