How Does an Electric Car Work?

Unlocking the Mysteries of the EV

The technology behind EVs is fascinating, but how does an electric car work? It might be tempting to assume that it’s just like a gas car that uses a different fuel source. The reality is more complicated. The team at Ray Skillman Kia West has the answers.

While some principles are the same across gas, hybrid, and electric vehicles, energy production, storage, and use differ completely. So, what is an electric car, and how does it work? We’ll go through all the basics below.

Electric vs. Gas vs. Hybrid Cars

Let’s start by comparing EVs to gas and hybrid cars to clarify what’s the same and what’s different between electric and gas-powered vehicles.

Gas-powered cars use internal combustion engines to generate power. The engines have pistons that ignite the gasoline, generating mechanical energy. That energy is routed through the drivetrain to the wheels.

Now, how do electric cars work? The beginning of the process is quite different from that of a gas-burning car. Instead of generating power in the vehicle’s engine, an EV draws power through its charger and stores it in a lithium-ion battery pack until it’s used. Drivers then recharge their batteries at home or public charging stations.

Hybrids use a combination of gas engines and electric motors with batteries. Some hybrids use regenerative braking to recharge the battery, while others use the gas engine. Plug-in hybrid EVs can also be charged directly via a home charging station.

How Does an EV Motor Work?

One of the biggest concerns when answering questions about electric cars is how they work. To answer the question, an understanding of the electric motor is essential.

How does an EV motor work? It starts with the battery, which stores power as direct current (DC) electricity. From there, an inverter converts the stored energy to alternating current (AC) power to send it to the car’s AC induction motor.

Induction motors create rotating magnetic fields. The rotation generates energy, which can be sent to the wheels directly. When the driver takes their foot off the gas, the induction motor instead starts functioning as a generator, sending DC power back to the battery.

EVs are much easier to maintain than gas-powered or hybrid vehicles because most feature direct drive systems with fewer components.

How Does Electric Car Charging Work?

To understand how an EV works, you need to know how to answer the question, How do charging stations for electric cars work?

There are three types of electric car chargers. Level 1 chargers are the least powerful. They can be plugged into 120-volt household outlets and charge EVs slowly compared to Level 2 and Level 3 chargers.

Level 2 chargers are substantially faster than Level 1 chargers. However, they require dedicated circuits, which must be installed by a professional electrician. Level 2 chargers can be found in homes and public charging stations and generally recharge vehicles overnight.

Level 3 chargers—also known as DC fast chargers—are only available at certain public charging stations. Level 3 fast chargers can restore a battery’s charge in half an hour or less, making them a much faster option compared to Level 1 or Level 2 chargers.

What You Should Know About EV Batteries

What should drivers know about EV batteries? Many drivers switching to EVs have questions like, How well do electric cars work in cold weather? Unfortunately, there are persistent myths surrounding this question that must be debunked.

The first myth is that EV batteries don’t work in the cold. While it’s true that there’s some reduction in a battery’s ability to store power in extreme cold, EV batteries still operate as usual with a slightly reduced range.

The second myth is that EV batteries are dangerous in hot weather. EV batteries have safeguards built into them to prevent overheating. While batteries discharge slightly faster in hot weather, which can also reduce range, they’re perfectly safe.

Most EV batteries last 10 to 20 years, or 150,000 to 200,000 miles. Drivers can do a few things to ensure their cars’ batteries make it that long:

Avoid extreme temperatures when possible
Avoid overcharging or over-discharging the battery
Get regular car maintenance, including software updates