Saving a life...

The owners of hybrid vehicles can take certain steps to extend the lifespan of their batteries. Here are a couple tips that can help.

Slow Down… 
One of the best ways to extend the lifespan of hybrid vehicles’ batteries is to coast to a stop instead of coming to hard stop. Coasting generates kinetic energy that charges and consequentially extends the battery’s life, so coast to stops as much as is possible. You can also coast when going down big hills, too.

… Slow Up.
Instead of putting the pedal to the metal after coming to a complete stop, it’s much better to slowly accelerate. You see, hybrid vehicles shut down their gas engines when they stop at an intersection. Lightly pressing on the accelerator will keep it in all-electric mode. This both helps to cycle the batteries, and also increases hybrid vehicles’ fuel economy. Though this takes a little bit of getting used to, it’s a must-do for any driver who wants to save at the gas pump and save their battery’s life.

Hybrid vehicles are amazing pieces of technology. Though they do cost a little bit more upfront, owners wind up saving big over the course of their vehicles’ lives. The only trouble is that these cars’ batteries wear out long before the actual vehicle does. Thankfully, learning to come to a slow stop, and to slowly accelerate will help extend these the lifespan of these vehicles’ batteries.