So, What are the Benefits of Owning a Hybrid Car?

The biggest advantage of choosing a Toyota hybrid is that it uses electric power in conjunction with a petrol engine. This means it delivers greater fuel-efficiency and produces lower CO₂ emissions than a purely fuel-driven vehicle.

The Toyota Yaris hybrid, for example, returns as much as 85.6mpg and produces emissions as low as 75g/km.

A hybrid car provides a smooth driving experience too, whether travelling at high or low speeds. The battery recharges whenever the vehicle is in motion by utilising kinetic energy. Both engines are turned off whenever the vehicle comes to a standstill, ensuring that no energy whatsoever is wasted.

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Did you know..?

Hybrid technology was being developed as far back as the mid-1970s. The first Toyota hybrid was the Prius, which made its debut in 1997. Since then more than ten million drivers have enjoyed Toyota’s hybrid cars.

When you choose a hybrid car from Johnsons Toyota, you can do so safe in the knowledge that it is a ‘full’ hybrid. This means that the petrol engine and electric motor work together, or operate independently of one another.

A hybrid car isn’t a niche purchase. We stock a wide range of hybrid vehicles to suit all kinds of tastes, from the Yaris supermini to compact crossovers such as the RAV4.

Get your Hybrid Health Check Find Out More

Free Hybrid Health Check

At Johnsons Toyota, our expert technicians understand exactly what makes a Toyota hybrid tick; we’ve had several years of experience, after all.

Whenever we carry out an inspection, we quickly detect any issues and put them right straight away.

Our highly trained crew is happy to pass on the information too, empowering you to help keep your hybrid vehicle running like clockwork.

Our Hybrid Health Check costs just £45 – or comes free as part of the overall maintenance plan that we offer.

HYBRID TECHNOLOGY

New Toyota Hybrid & Electric Range

Call us today on 03301 280 304 to speak with one of our specialists

If you’re a fan of all things Toyota, their hybrid or electric models will be the perfect addition to your family. Not only do these vehicles have the same great styling that can be seen in the rest of the Toyota lineup, they also come with a rejuvenated approach to driving, which means that you can go further for less! Sounds good, right?

The new Toyota bZ4X is the perfect example of this, the first model in Toyota’s new bZ (standing for ‘beyond Zero’) family. The bZ4X is the fore bearer to 15 new battery-electric vehicles in the pipeline to be released by 2025. It's innovative EV powertrain, gives you a jaw-dropping range of up to 280 miles, rapid-charge capability, and battery performance that lasts through the years.

Don’t just take our word for it – click below to learn more about the different hybrid & electric models Toyota offer, and if you’re a fan of what you see, get in touch with a member of our helpful and friendly team at Johnsons Toyota today. They will be able to answer any questions you may have, and also be able to book you in for a test drive, so you can experience this impressive model first-hand.

What are the different types of alternatively fuelled vehicles available?

Electric Vehicles

As the name of this category would suggest, models under this category run off nothing except electricity alone. Sometimes referred to EV or pure electric, they're large battery propels a powerful electric motor. This means the vehicles output no emissions themselves helping keep local positions alone. The ranges of these cars vary by model, but modern electric vehicles have plenty of range for most users. The battery can be charged via a public or home charge-point at a fraction of the cost of filling a fuel tank in a conventional vehicle.

Our electric vehicles:

Toyota bZ4X

Hybrid Vehicles

Hybrid vehicles is the term that normally relates to self-charging hybrid vehicles. They combine two sources of power - the traditional petrol or diesel engine we're used to and an electric motor. The electric motor powers the car when most fuel would normally be consumed by a traditional engine, at the point of acceleration. It can also power the car entirely for short journeys. On longer journeys, or when you need more power the traditional combustion engine kicks in. There's no need to charge the battery as this is charged by the engine and collects power when braking.

Our self-charging hybrid vehicles:

Yaris, Yaris Cross, Corolla, Toyota C-HR, RAV4

Plug-in Hybrid Vehicles

Plug-in Hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) fall in between self-charging hybrid vehicles and all-electric vehicles. They have a larger battery and electric motor than self-charging hybrid cars allowing them to go further and faster on electric only power. To support this larger battery, as well as the self-charging technology, the vehicles can be charged via a home-charging point or a public one. Finally, they also have a traditional combustion engine for when the electric range isn't enough.

Our plug-in hybrid vehicles:

RAV4 Plug-in Hybrid

Mild Hybrid Vehicles

Unsurprisingly, a mild hybrid vehicle is a milder version of a hybrid (self-charging vehicle). They share a lot of similarities in having both a traditional combustion engine and an electric motor and battery that is charged by the engine and braking. However, the motor and battery in these cars is smaller than that in a self-charging hybrid. This means that it can't run on electric power alone, but instead the motor assists the engine during acceleration and the larger battery supports Start Stop and other power consuming features of the car without the support from the engine.

Hybrid Fun Facts

A hybrid car doesn’t need to be plugged in to recharge the battery. This might be true of electric-only vehicles but a hybrid's battery recharges every time the car moves or brakes.

The difference in price between a hybrid and conventional model is marginal, while servicing costs amount to roughly the same for each.

Toyota hybrids are easy to use. Each Toyota hybrid features keyless start, making access and engine ignition easy for the driver. All models are fitted with automatic transmission too, making them very simple to drive. A Toyota hybrid also provides a very smooth motoring experience, and the transition between petrol and electric-only power is barely noticeable.

At Johnsons Toyota, we feature a supermini, two family hatchbacks and a pair of SUVs among our range of hybrid vehicles. There’s a hybrid Toyota to suit every lifestyle.

How Long does the Battery Last?

A Toyota hybrid’s electric motor has been created to last as long as the vehicle itself. Thanks to regenerative energy, the battery recharges whenever the car is in motion, producing reserves of power, while negating the need to pay regular visits to the petrol station.

All of our Toyota vehicles come with a five-year manufacturer warranty, which covers the battery too. By taking advantage of our yearly Hybrid Health Check, this warranty is extended for another 12 months (or 10,000 miles), which means the battery can be covered for up to eleven years.

Charging your Toyota hybrid

While a hybrid car can travel using electric power only, it always has a conventional petrol engine to rely upon.

One of many great things about a owning a hybrid vehicle is that it uses regenerative charging, which tops up power while it’s on the go, and whenever brakes are applied.

Simply put, there is no need to use a domestic power source or charging station with a hybrid vehicle. The same cannot be said of an all-electric car, which does not have a petrol engine to fall back on.

Which is Best: Hybrid or Petrol?

The simple answer is: hybrid – It offers the best of both worlds. An electric-only car must be charged on a regular basis, while fuel-driven vehicles are generally more expensive to run. Typically, at least half of all trips in a hybrid car can be made in electric-only mode. The more you drive in and around a town or city, the less likely you will be to rely on petrol-powered motoring.

Of course, a significant increase in speed, or motorway cruising, will mean that the car’s petrol engine will be called into action.

Are Hybrid Cars Really Environmentally Friendly?

Yes. Whenever a hybrid car is driven in electric-only mode, zero CO₂ emissions are produced. Naturally, the amount of emissions produced will depend on the vehicle that is driven, and the driver’s motoring habits. A smaller hybrid that is predominantly driven in and around a city or town can be powered using the electric battery only. On the other hand, an SUV typically consumes more fuel than a city car. In any case, any hybrid driven on longer motorway journeys will emit CO₂gases.

All things being equal, a hybrid car certainly produces fewer emissions, and it’s something that Toyota is fully committed to improving upon even more. In fact, the Japanese marque’s target is to reduce emissions by 90 percent by 2050.

Tell Me More about Fuel-Efficiency and Mileage…

On average, a hybrid car is much more efficient than a fuel-driven one. That said, there are many variables to consider: the size of the car and where it is typically driven, for example.

A hybrid vehicle mostly used around town will be able to operate almost entirely in electric-only mode, which means that the miles-per-gallon figure will be very favourable.

When travelling by motorway, the conventional petrol engine will be engaged, and the car will act just like a normal fuel-driven car.

A useful comparison: the petrol-fuelled Yaris manages up to 65.7mpg (combined), while its hybrid-powered counterpart returns as much as 85.6mpg.

Is a Hybrid Car Affordable to Run?

There are at least two ways of looking at this. As mentioned already, a hybrid vehicle ensures that fuel savings are made, since a large part of urban driving can be done using just the electric battery. Moreover, Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) rules changed from April 2017, resulting in a hybrid car being taxed £10 less than a conventional vehicle, for which VED is £140 per year.

Motorists in London can benefit further: a hybrid car that produces less than 75g/km of CO₂will likely be exempt from the UK capital’s Congestion Charge.

You might be wondering about the servicing implications of owning a hybrid. Overall, maintaining a hybrid car is no more expensive than servicing a petrol or diesel-fuelled vehicle.

Contact us

If you have any questions about hybrid technology and Toyota’s hybrid cars in general, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with us – we’re always happy to help. If a specific Toyota hybrid interests you, then please contact us today to book your test drive.

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Reg Office: Johnsons Cars Limited Empire Court Redditch United Kingdom B97 4DA

Reg. Company Number: 3716766

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www.johnsonscars.co.uk

Financial Disclosure

Johnsons Cars Limited is an appointed representative of ITC Compliance Limited which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (their registration number is 313486) and which is permitted to advise on and arrange general insurance contracts as an intermediary.

Johnsons Cars Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) (our registration number is 688450. Permitted activities include acting as a credit broker not a lender.

As an FCA regulated credit broker we can introduce you to a selected group of lenders / brokers (see below) who may be able to help you finance your purchase. This group of lenders / brokers provides us with a range of products which may be suitable for your purchase. We will explain the key features of those products to you.

Volkswagen Financial Services (UK) Limited, Evolution Funding Limited, Santander Consumer (UK) plc, Honda Finance Europe PLC, CA Auto Finance UK Ltd, Suzuki Financial Services Limited, Volkswagen Financial Services (UK) Limited, Hyundai Capital UK Limited, Stellantis Financial Services Uk Limited, Toyota Financial Services (UK) PLC, FCE Bank Plc,

We are a credit broker and not a lender. We can introduce you to a limited number of lenders and their finance products, we act as their agent for this introduction. We are not an independent financial advisor; we will provide details of products available. We may advise you on the products, subject to your personal circumstances, though you are not obliged to take our advice or recommendation.

We do not charge you a fee for our services. we will typically receive commission from whichever lender we introduce you to (either a fixed fee or a fixed percentage of the amount you borrow).

Unless we consider it to be inappropriate given your personal circumstances, for certain vehicles e.g. New, our approach is to introduce you to the lender who are usually able to offer the best available package for you, taking into account interest rates, residual valuations (where applicable) and other contributions. If they are unable to make you an offer of finance, or the vehicle is not one that we would normally place with them we will introduce you to other lenders on our panel. The lender we introduce you to and available rates will depend upon a number of factors including: the vehicle, your personal circumstances and the likelihood of a lender to accept an application based on information provided.

Lenders typically pay a commission to us for introducing you to them, calculated by reference to the vehicle model or amount you borrow. Different lenders may pay different commissions for such introductions; some lenders may also provide preferential rates to us for the funding of our vehicle stock and also provide financial support for our training and marketing. But any such amounts they and other lenders pay us will not affect the amounts you pay under your finance agreement, all of which are set by the lender concerned. If you would like to know the amount of any remuneration we have received from the finance provider, please ask us.

All finance applications are subject to status, terms and conditions apply, UK residents only, 18’s or over, Guarantees may be required. View our full finance disclosure.