Plug-in hybrids are having a moment, and it may be about to get bigger and better.
The latest evidence? The 2025 Mercedes-Benz GLC 350e, a compact luxury SUV that can run on electricity alone for 54 miles, which is farther than the average American drives each day, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.
After that distance, or when the driver calls for more acceleration or speed, the five-seat SUV’s gasoline engine turns on, providing another 380 miles of driving range, per EPA tests.
Plug-in hybrids, or PHEVs, are widely considered a midway step on the way to fully electric vehicles, a security blanket for people who like the idea of kicking the gasoline habit, but are nervous about finding charging stations for long weekend getaways and longer drives.
Auto insiders generally refer to them as “Pee-hevs,” FYI.
For most drivers’ purposes, there’s not much difference between a PHEV and the auto industry’s other abbreviation du jour, an EREV, or extended range electric vehicle. (“Eee-rev” to its friends.) Both use an internal combustion engine to supplement battery range.
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