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Type of Hybrid CarThe types have to do with the choice for drivetrain, which of a vehicle is composed of the components that are responsible for transferring power to the drive wheels of your vehicle. There are in fact no less than three possible setups for the drivetrain: Of these, in the series configuration the electric motor is the only means of providing power to your wheels. The motor receives electric power from either the battery pack or from a generator run by a gasoline engine. Thus, both the engine/generator and regenerative braking recharge the battery pack. The engine of a series hybrid is typically smaller. This is due to it only having to meet average driving power demands. Meanwhile, the batteries are typically more powerful than the one in parallel hybrids to provide peak driving power. This larger battery with the generator set up adds to the cost of the series hybrid, making them often more expensive than parallel hybrids. With a parallel hybrid car, both the engine and the electric motor generate the power for the wheels. Parallel hybrids typically use smaller battery packs and therefore rely mainly on regenerative braking to keep it recharged. When power demands are low, parallel hybrids utilize the drive motor as a generator for supplemental recharging. In this setup, the engine is connected directly to the wheels, eliminating the inefficiency of converting mechanical power to electricity and back. Finally, the combination of series/parallel hybrid drivetrain merges the advantages of the parallel and series set up. By combining the two, the engine is able to both drive the wheels directly and can be disconnected from the wheels so that the electric motor powers the wheels. This is exactly the way in which the popular Toyota Prius works. Analysts have noted that the dual drivetrain operates at near optimum efficiency more often, resulting in higher MPG efficiencies.
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