“Super Hybrids” Like The Mercedes GLC 350e Are Coming – CleanTechnica

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Bloomberg is out with a report this week that extols the virtues of what it calls “super hybrids” — cars with enough battery-only range to handle most people’s daily driving needs without assistance from the onboard gasoline engine. In fact, it gets downright giddy when talking about the Mercedes GLC 350e, a plug-in hybrid that can travel up to 50 miles on electrons alone, no molecules needed.

The Mercedes GLC 350e offers four zones of climate control and its headlights project icons such as the image of a pedestrian  or a bicyclist on to the roadway to warn drivers of hazards ahead. But the SUV’s most impressive trick, Bloomberg says, is that it can travel from Ossining, New York, to Midtown Manhattan and back again on battery power alone without ever once calling on its turbocharged, four-cylinder gasoline engine for extra power.

“You start covering a customer’s daily driving entirely when you get into technology like this, which changes the game,” said Bart Herring, vice president of sales and product at Mercedes-Benz USA. The GLC 350e provides 50 miles of electric range, which Herring calls the “magic number,” because the majority of US drivers do not drive more than 50 miles a day. Bloomberg enthuses that auto executives have created a “killer app” for the large number of American drivers between EV-curious and EV-skeptical. It calls the car a “super hybrid,” and suggests it and plug-in hybrids from other manufacturers may be the key to unlocking the door to the EV revolution in America.

CleanTechnica readers may be surprised by this news. A decade ago, General Motors had precisely this kind of car, one that could travel up to 60 miles on its battery alone but with a gasoline engine under the hood that only got called upon once the charge in the battery was depleted. It was called the Chevy Volt and it was a pretty sweet ride. Naturally, GM did what GM does best. It invested a ton of money to get the Volt into production, failed to promote it in any meaningful way, then shut it down because sales were below expectations (duh!) and put the technology on the shelf, never to be seen again except on some models sold in China.

Herring said to expect long-range hybrid technology to become available on more models from Mercedes, in part because they are selling so well. In the third quarter of 2024, US consumers bought three times as many Mercedes plug-ins as they did in the same period the previous year. Roughly half of those buyers had never owned a Mercedes before. “You find customers who still aren’t sure about electric and this speaks to them. I have to say, I didn’t quite get it until I drove one for nine months. I barely ever touched gas.”

Hybrids & Super Hybrids

Hybrids like the Toyota Prius typically have tiny batteries of less than 2 kWh. The Mercedes GLC 350e has a real battery — 24 kWh. This is where readers may begin to question the wonderfulness of the Mercedes. The original Nissan LEAF also had a 24 kWh battery and could travel up to 80 miles. Here we are 13 years later and the best that all the engineering talent at Mercedes can muster is 50 miles? The 2015 Volt had an 18.4 kWh battery and managed 53 miles. One of the factors that makes it hard for battery electric cars to be competitive is how large and heavy cars in general have become over the past 20 years.

Boston Consulting Group surveys show that a long-range hybrid appeals to about a third of US car buyers, and it expects a parade of new hybrid models that travel far longer on battery power than most do now. When US EV sales dipped briefly in 2024, plug-in hybrids maintained their momentum. “It’s increasingly evident every automaker has to have hybrids in their portfolio and will have to have them for longer,” explained Nathan Niese, global lead for EVs and Energy Storage at Boston Consulting Group.

Longer range plug-in hybrid models are making gains around the world. In China, it’s common for plug-in hybrids to travel 60 miles on a charge, Bloomberg says. In fact, interest in so called extended range EVs, which can travel 100 miles or more on battery power alone, is surging in China. BYD even has models for sale that can travel more than 1300 miles on a combination of battery and engine power. That should calm anyone’s fears about range anxiety!

Bloomberg describes “super hybrids” as vehicles that promise an almost-emission-free driving experience with a gasoline-powered safety net. But how much does that experience cost? The Mercedes GLC 350e costs about $10,000 more than the non-hybrid version of the same car. Toyota has two plug-in hybrid models for sale in the US — the Prius Prime and the RAV4 Prime. The Prius Prime has a 13.6 kWh battery and a maximum range of 44 miles. It is priced at $32,975. The RAV4 Prime has an 18.1 kWh battery and range of 42 miles. It lists for $43,865.

BloombergNEF expects plug-in sales to peak at 9.2 million in 2030, with nearly four battery electric vehicles purchased for every one hybrid. Yet survey after survey shows many drivers — particularly in the US — are still concerned about electric range, charger availability, and charging speed. So-called mild hybrids, which don’t have to be plugged in, have been popular for years in the US. With their tiny batteries, they often don’t cost much more than gasoline-only models. However, they seldom can drive exclusively on electrons and have only small efficiency gains, primarily through regenerative braking. A standard Toyota RAV4 can drive 41 miles on a gallon of gasoline. The RAV4 Prime can drive the same distance on battery power alone. Which is better? As they old expression goes, “You pays your money and you takes your choice.”

A Gateway To Zero-Emissions Driving

Technology has to be experienced, it can’t be described in words. You don’t sell new cars by talking about them; you sell new cars by getting people behind the wheel and letting them drive them. Our readers know the oil companies have paid for billions of dollars worth of negative publicity about electric vehicles, all of it designed to make people afraid of trying them. To be accurate, legacy automakers have done a poor job of countering that negative information because they are part of the great fossil fuel economy as well. Selling gasoline-powered cars is how they make their living.

During the Obama years, they embraced EVs a little. During Trump 1.0, they went the other way. Under Biden, they fell in love with EVs again. Now, with Trump 2.0 just around the corner, they are cool to EVs again. Plug-in hybrids are a half measure in the campaign to lower emissions from the transportation sector, but a half a loaf may be better than none.

The cars Bloomberg calls “super hybrids” are really the least drivers should expect. But they can serve as a bridge to fully electric driving by introducing people to the instant torque of an electric motor and the wonders of regenerative braking. They also teach people about the convenience of charging at home — 10 seconds to plug in at night and 10 seconds to unplug in the morning. Once these things are experienced and become part of the daily routine, the fear subsides. Maybe that is sufficient reason to welcome these so-called “super hybrids” to the EV community.