Plug-in hybrids get plugged in more than you might think

According to a new study by Toyota Research Institute North America, analysis of anonymized data from over 6,000 Toyota RAV4 Prime and Lexus NX 450h+ vehicles (2021–2024) shows that plug-in hybrid owners do frequently plug in their cars. This finding challenges the common assumption that plug-in hybrid owners rarely charge their vehicles, which would negate the efficiency benefits of the electric motor.

Plug-in hybrid powertrains were developed to be the best of both worlds: a combustion engine and fuel tank that can handle those longer journeys exactly the same as a non-hybrid car, with an electric motor and a battery large enough for most or all of someone’s daily driving range. But only if you plug it in. And it is often taken as a statement of fact that plug-in hybrid owners don’t plug in their plug-in hybrids. Instead, they were seduced into buying a car with far too big a battery, no doubt as a result of generous incentives, the theory goes. And if those drivers aren’t going to plug in and therefore enjoy at least some entirely electric driving, they should have bought a parallel hybrid instead, which often delivers better efficiency than a PHEV with an empty battery, at a significantly lower price. But what if that take is wrong? As it turns out, there’s some more evidence that PHEV drivers do in fact plug in their plug-ins, and the latest data point is from one of the most prolific PHEV pushers: Toyota. In the past, Toyota has declined to provide numbers when asked by journalists about the frequency of PHEV plugging. But a pair of researchers at Toyota Research Institute North America have now crunched some data, and, after looking at anonymized data from more than 6,000 RAV4 Prime and Lexus NX 450h+ between model years 2021–2024 , the results are encouraging.