Plug-in Hybrids Not as Clean as Believed

Plug-in hybrid cars may not be as good for the planet as official figures suggest.

That's according to a new study by a group called Transport & Environment.

Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, or PHEVs, use both electricity and petrol to drive.

They can be charged like electric cars, but also have an engine that's used when the battery runs out.

PHEVs are often thought to be better for the planet than petrol and diesel cars, and official figures say they are.

But this may not be true, the study found.

The study said official estimates say that PHEVs are 75% less polluting than gas cars.

However, the study found that they may only be 19% less polluting.

The researchers looked at real-world data from 800,000 plug-in hybrid cars registered in Europe between 2021 and 2023.

They said that PHEVs pollute "almost as much as" petrol and diesel cars.

They said that official estimates assume PHEVs use their batteries to drive 84% of the time.

But actually, the researchers said, these cars only drive using their batteries 27% of the time. The rest of the time, they're using their engine.

The researchers added that these cars may still use gas when they run in electric mode because the electric motors aren't powerful enough.

This also means PHEVs are costing drivers more money to run than they might expect, the study said — as much as $585 per year more than estimates would suggest.