Hybrid Trends > Petroleum Electric Hybrid Vehicle (PEHV)
A Petroleum Electric Hybrid Vehicle (PEHV) is a vehicle using an on-board rechargeable energy storage system (RESS) and a fueled power source for vehicle propulsion. The different propulsion power systems may have common subsystems or components. The HV provides better fuel economy than a conventional vehicle because the engine is smaller and may be run at speeds providing more efficiency. Other techniques may be used to recover or reduce waste energy (such as regenerative braking and shutting down the combustion engine).
The term hybrid when used in relation with cars also has other uses. Prior to its modern meaning of hybrid propulsion, the word hybrid was used many ways. Notably some have also referred to flexible-fuel vehicles as hybrids because they can use a mixture of different fuels — typically gasoline and ethanol alcohol fuel. We draw a distinction between these so called flexible-fuel or flex-fuel vehicles and do not consider them to be true hybrid vehicles.