EV Jargon can be confusing and, as the world of EVs keeps growing, so does the terminology.
So buckle up, and let’s demystify this together!
We’ve listed some of the most commonly used words and terms you might encounter on your EV journey:
AFV
Alternative Fuel Vehicle
Refers to any vehicle powered by fuels that aren’t petrol or diesel
BEV
Battery Electric Vehicle
Refers to pure electric vehicles, that are powered by a rechargeable battery packs with no secondary source of propulsion
CCS
Combined Charging System
A type of rapid charging system that combines two types of connectors into one
CHAdeMO
CHArge de MOve charging system
A type of rapid charging system, not as commonly used as the CCS system
E-REV
Extended-range electric vehicle (or REEV)
E-REVs run on electricity but also have a generator on board to recharge the battery when depleted
FCEV
Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle
FCEVs are hydrogen powered vehicles, they are zero emissions vehicles as they only emit water vapr and warm air
HEV
Hybrid Electric Vehicle
HEVs combine an electric motor with an internal combustion engine, they can travel on electric power for short distances with the engine kicking in when the battery is depleted
ICE
Internal Combustion Engine
ICE vehicles are powered by conventional fuel, such as petrol or diesel
kW
kilowatt
Refers to motor power, and is also used when talking about the output speed of a charger
kWh
kilowatt hour
kWh is used when talking about battery capacity and the amount of energy put into the battery from the charger
MHEV
Mild Hybrid Electric Vehicle
MHEVs are similar to HEVs but their electric motor isn’t powerful enough to power the vehicle, it can only support the engine
OZEV
Office for Zero Emission Vehicles (previously OLEV)
The OZEV team is part of the Department for Transport and the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy, and supports the transition to ZEVs
PHEV
Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle
PHEVs are a type of HEV whose battery pack can be charged by plugging into an external power source
RDE
Real Driving Emissions
RDEs are used by car manufacturers to test on-road emissions under real, normal driving conditions
REEV
Range-Extended Electric Vehicle (or E-REV)
REEVs run on electricity but also have a generator on board to recharge the battery when depleted
RFID Card
Radio Frequency Identity Card
A contactless card that you can use to pay at some public chargepoints
ULEV
Ultra-Low Emission Vehicle
Refers to vehicles that emit less than 75g of CO2/km from the tailpipe
V2G
Vehicle to Grid
Refers to the process of feeding the electricity stored in an EV back into the power grid
VED
Vehicle Excise Duty
Commonly called car tax or road tax, the VED is an annual tax collected by the DVLA. Its amount depends primarly on the vehicle’s CO2 emissions
WLTP
World harmonised Light vehicle Test Procedure
(replaces the old NEDC test)
Refers to a test used to measure a vehicle’s fuel consumption,CO2 emissions and their pollutant emissions
ZEV
Zero Emission Vehicle
ZEVs are vehicles that produce zero exhaust emissions
