Power & energy
Hybrid car powertrain
Automotive · Hybrid electric
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How can a car use petrol and electricity at the same time without a normal gearbox?
A hybrid car has a petrol engine, two electric motors and a small battery, all joined by one clever set of gears. Its computer decides, moment by moment, whether to drive on electricity alone, use the engine, or use both together. When you brake, a motor becomes a generator and stores energy in the battery instead of wasting it as heat.
A power-split hybrid joins a petrol engine, two motor-generators and the driven wheels through one planetary gearset, so engine power can reach the wheels mechanically and electrically at the same time. The control system uses this freedom to run the engine only near its most efficient operating points, to drive on electricity alone at low speed, and to recover braking energy into the battery.
Key facts
- Engine (2nd-gen Prius)
- 1.5 L Atkinson-cycle I4, 57 kW at 5,000 rpm
- MG2 traction motor
- 50 kW, 400 N·m peak
- Planetary gearset
- sun 30 teeth, ring 78 teeth, 4 planets (3 drawn)
- Battery
- NiMH, 168 cells, 201.6 V, ≈ 1.3 kWh
- Motor operating voltage
- boosted to ≈ 500 V
- Ring-to-wheel reduction
- ≈ 4.1 : 1
Parts you can explore (12)
- Petrol engine
- Power-split device
- Motor-generator 1 (MG1)
- Motor-generator 2 (MG2)
- Transaxle case
- Counter gear and final drive
- Differential and drive shafts
- Front wheels
- Inverter (power control unit)
- Battery pack
- High-voltage cables
- Energy flow
In the 3D model
Rotate and take apart the model, follow a guided tour of what each part does and why it’s needed, change it with a live slider, and test yourself with a short quiz. Free, no sign-up.
Open Hybrid car powertrain in 3D →
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