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Hybrid, Plug-in Hybrid and EV Buyer's Guide: Which one do you want?

If you're shopping for a new vehicle these days, there's a litany of acronyms, buzzwords, and technobabble to further complicate an already difficult decision. But if you're looking at a green powertrain, you have three basic choices to compare: hybrid, plug-in hybrid and "EV" or, electric vehicle. So what are they and which one — if any — is right for you? Research your next new vehicle using Autoblog's Car Finder. Gasoline-Electric Hybrids By now, most people are familiar with the concept of a hybrid car. Thank Toyota's Prius for that. At its most basic, a hybrid vehicle has two powertrains, one gasoline and one electric, which work together for maximum efficiency. At low speeds, the engine can shut off entirely, relying solely on the battery for propulsion. The battery is either charged as you drive by converting kinetic energy into potential energy via a complex regenerative braking system, or directly off of the gas motor. This is a very hands-off, behind-the-scenes system as all the driver has to is put in gas and drive as normal. Hybrids come in all shapes and sizes and, according to the EPA, range in fuel economy from 58 mpg for the Hyundai Ioniq Blue all the way down to 13 mpg for the Ferrari LaFerrari Aperta. Best For: Anyone who want to see their fuel consumption go down without many sacrifices. You can easily find a hybrid sedan, hatchback, crossover, SUV or even a pickup truck (i f you can find one). Best of all, a hybrid requires no special equipment to be installed at home, or added work for the driver. Hybrids do cost more than traditionally-powered competitors, so make sure to compare projected fuel savings with how much extra a hybrid will cost – it may take a surprisingly long time to break even. The EPA provides a handy calculator for this very purpose. Our Favorite Hybrids: 2017 Toyota Prius 2018 Hyundai Ioniq Hybrid 2017 Ford Fusion Hybrid Plug-In Hybrids Sometimes referred to as a PHEV, or plug-in hybrid electric vehicle, this is a baby-step towards full electrification. Armed with a much larger battery pack than a hybrid, PHEVs can go between 12 ( Mercedes-Benz GLE550e) and 97 ( BMW i3 w/Range Extender) miles on electricity alone depending on the model and your driving style. Like a normal hybrid, the driver is largely unaware of which power source is currently in use, even as they switch over — either because the battery is drained, or the driving circumstances require more power.

Junkyard Gem: 1982 Chrysler LeBaron Convertible

Things looked very grim at Chrysler during the late 1970s, as Oil Crisis-shocked car shoppers avoided buying thirsty land yachts and ancient-technology compacts in droves. The Carter administration grudgingly bailed out the company with loan guarantees in 1979 (leaving "small enough to fail" American Motors to seek help from the French government) and Chrysler needed a huge sales hit in a big hurry. Under the leadership of Lee Iacocca (freshly canned by Henry Ford II), Chrysler developed the modern, front-wheel-drive K Cars and the company was saved. The very first K Cars hit the road for the 1981 model year, and I'm always on the lookout for those historic early Ks when I'm searching for interesting bits of automotive history in junkyards. The '81 and '82s have become nearly impossible to find, but this once-plush LeBaron convertible appeared in a Northern California yard last month. While a bafflingly complex family tree of K-derived vehicles grew up in Chrysler showrooms through 1995 (including the hot-selling Caravan/Voyager/Town and Country minivans), the only "true" US-market K-Cars are the Dodge Aries, Dodge 400/600 coupe, Plymouth Reliant and Chrysler LeBaron. 1982 was the first model year for the K LeBaron and this car was built in March of that year, so we're looking at one of the very early successors to the Dodge Diplomat-based LeBarons of the 1970s. Chrysler developed a homegrown 2.2-liter, overhead-cam straight-four engine that proved very successful, and a 94-horsepower version of that engine was the base powerplant for the 1982 LeBaron. This car appears to have just about every option available that year, so of course the original buyer went for the 2.6-liter Mitsubishi Astron straight-four. With hemispherical combustion chambers, the 2.6 could be called a Hemi (a few Ks even got "2.6 HEMI" badging); horsepower came to just 93 in 1982, but the 132 pound-feet of torque beat out the 117 lb-ft of the Chrysler 2.2 that year. Silver-faced gauges and complicated radio controls were all the rage during the Late Malaise Era, and this car has both. Note the Chronometer next to the HVAC controls, a digital design with green vacuum-fluorescent display lifted from the previous-generation rear-wheel-drive LeBaron. The non-cloth bits of the convertible-top mechanism look decent enough, so perhaps some junkyard-shopping LeBaron owner will rescue them.

Google-Chrysler autonomous project will include ride-sharing

Google's new Waymo automobile-technology division might have just gotten "way mo" interesting, if you'll excuse the pun. Google, which this spring said it would work with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles on the development of a self-driving Chrysler minivan prototype, is adding a ride-sharing component to the project, Bloomberg News says, citing people familiar with the process. Representatives with both Fiat Chrysler and Google parent Alphabet Inc. declined to comment to Bloomberg. The ride-sharing service, which would compete with fellow San Francisco Bay Area-based companies such as Uber and Lyft, may debut as soon as the end of next year. Uber continues to move forward with its own self-driving efforts, launching self-driving tests (with engineers behind the wheel) in Pittsburgh in September and announcing this week that it would start tests in San Francisco. Those efforts may be delayed, however, as the state of California requires special permitting for testing out self-driving technology, and while the state has granted those permits to automakers such as General Motors, Tesla and Ford, it hasn't for Uber. Google and Chrysler said earlier this year that it would develop about 100 autonomous-driving Pacifica prototypes, but the ride-sharing service would require more of those vehicles to be built. Google's auto-technology operations, now called Waymo, have been headed by former Hyundai executive John Krafcik since September 2015. The division has reportedly brought in more executive-level personnel to speed things along. Meanwhile, Chrysler is slated to unveil an all-electric prototype version of the Pacifica at Las Vegas's annual CES show next month. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.