Plug-In Hybrids Are Five Times Filthier Than You Think They Are, Says Study

[Rick73]

12 minutes ago, Sherminator98 said:

 

It is simple-they assumed that people would always plug in their vehicles and use EV mode, but what is actually happening is people aren't charging the vehicles either due to laziness or because they can't. They went with the best case instead of worst case when making estimates, because they forgot to factor in human nature. 

Call me a skeptic but I seriously doubt they “forgot” to factor human nature.  It’s more like it fit their agenda better, hence went with biased assumptions.

[morgan20]

29 minutes ago, Rick73 said:

Call me a skeptic but I seriously doubt they “forgot” to factor human nature.  It’s more like it fit their agenda better, hence went with biased assumptions.

 

Maybe them scientists at T&E didn't "forget" to factor human nature, but the results of the study sure do show that the natural human inclination toward laziness or status quo is a big factor as to why Plug-In Hybrids Are Five Times Filthier Than You Think They Are and why the automotive industry is calling to weaken the regulation for car CO₂ emission standards:

1. Big shots at EU regulatory agencies ain't puttin' in the effort to understand real world behavior of PHEV drivers when calculating emissions numbers
2. PHEV drivers ain't plugging in as often as the big shots at EU regulatory agencies expected, either due to laziness or because they can't
3. Big shots at automakers and suppliers ain't puttin' in the effort to further develop Europe’s growing EV value chain

Edited October 31, 2025 by morgan20

[rmc523]

42 minutes ago, Rick73 said:

 

It’s not that complicated if we focus on basics.  In 2023 average USA electricity generated a reported 0.81 pounds CO2 per kWh.  It’s improving gradually every year but let’s use that for now.

 

When we adjust for typical electricity transmission inefficiency and also vehicle charger inefficiency, we end up with approximately 450 grams of CO2 per kWh of electricity that ends up stored in vehicle battery.

 

Since many BEV or PHEV (in EV mode) SUVs perform in the range of 3 miles per kWh, it follows they generate around 150 grams per mile.  Large pickups as example can be much worse than that.  Europe may have cleaner electricity generation and they generally also drive smaller vehicles, but 35 grams per km (56 grams/mile) seems way too optimistic in the first place.

 

Honestly, it's more that I don't care enough to actually look at/into the numbers.

 

It seems to boil down to the fact that people don't use them as intended and/or governments have policies that force people into mis-using them (i.e. the EV mode in cities, vs. optimal usage).

[akirby]

1 hour ago, Sherminator98 said:

 

It is simple-they assumed that people would always plug in their vehicles and use EV mode, but what is actually happening is people aren't charging the vehicles either due to laziness or because they can't. They went with the best case instead of worst case when making estimates, because they forgot to factor in human nature. 

The data doesn’t support that conclusion.  The data says people are driving less in EV mode and more in ICE mode than expected.  Period.  That could be caused by not charging but could also be because people are simply driving more miles per day than estimated as I already pointed out,

[jpd80]

3 hours ago, akirby said:

The data doesn’t support that conclusion.  The data says people are driving less in EV mode and more in ICE mode than expected.  Period.  That could be caused by not charging but could also be because people are simply driving more miles per day than estimated as I already pointed out,

Good point often overlooked.

 

With lots of zero pollution zones in European cities, people might be charging their PHEVs

but forced to run in charge sustain until they use the battery charge inside these zones

and then return home with depleted battery. Using PHEVs that way could be normal in

Europe and completely different to how say, American would use them..

[Texasota]

6 hours ago, akirby said:

The data says people are driving less in EV mode and more in ICE mode than expected.  Period.  

I think that is correct (at least for my use case). The Escape PHEV provides for a very efficient driving experience when it defaults to hybrid mode (after battery depletion). We almost always get over 40 mpg during highway driving in this state. And I think driving is this mode is where EREVs will not compare well to PHEVs.

Edited October 31, 2025 by Texasota