South Africa will get several new hybrid cars in the coming months that can save thousands of motorists on fuel each year.
Although the electric vehicle (EV) market in South Africa is still in its infancy, hybrid electric cars (HEVs) have been around for some time.
The end of 2021 and the first part of 2022 have really seen a boom in demand for these types of cars, thanks in large part to Toyota’s launch of the economical Corolla Cross Hybrid.
The crossover has only been the most popular hybrid in the country to date, but it’s one of the most in-demand cars overall.
Soon after launching, it beat the Volkswagen Polo and Volkswagen Polo Vivo in sales in December 2021, a tremendous feat considering the well-established reputation of the German carmakers’ vehicles in South Africa.
The main selling point of an HEV is that it offers better fuel efficiency than a petrol-only equivalent.
Two basic hybrid types are available — plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEV) and battery hybrid electric vehicles (BHEV).
The latter is a bit of a misnomer, as both feature larger batteries than the one typically used to start a car.
The difference is that PHEV cars have higher-capacity batteries that can be charged from an external source, such as a home or a public EV charging station, providing proper fuel efficiency.
These types of hybrids are very expensive and come with models from luxury brands such as Land Rover, Lexus, Mercedes-Benz and Volvo.
BHEVs have a closed-loop formula with less rugged batteries that run on the car’s engine running on fuel or regenerative braking.
Another thing South African car buyers want to keep in mind when it comes to hybrids is the difference between “soft” and “strong” BHEVs.
A comfortable BHEV adds a small battery to start the vehicle and increase inertia driving efficiency, as well as handle some electronic functions.
A rugged hybrid with a tougher battery that can bring more power to driving and disconnect the gasoline engine to necessarily function as an electric vehicle at lower speeds.
Several brands offering hybrids in South Africa are upgrading their levels with new models next year.
Haval, Nissan, Suzuki and Toyota are all about to launch BHEV to the market that is expected to sell well below the value of luxury brands.
Haval has already unveiled a hybrid edition of its H6 SUV in South Africa, which sells for less than R700,000.
Below are 4 new hybrids that are expected to arrive in South Africa later this year or 2023.
The impressive diversity of features of the petrol edition of the Haval Jolion combined with a very competitive starting value of less than R350,000 has made a winning recipe in South Africa.
In August 2022, the company sold 738 Jolions in South Africa, up from 622 last month. This made it the 16th most popular model overall, beating the Hyundai Venue and dropping only to the Toyota Starlet.
While Haval hasn’t made any official announcements about the local launch of a hybrid Jolion style, a teaser on its South African Twitter page suggests it’s still confirmed.
The Jolion HEV can satisfy the call of those who want to be left waiting their turn on the multi-month waiting list for a Toyota Corolla Cross.
Nissan’s third-generation crossover landed in South Africa in the third quarter of 2022, an e-Power hybrid edition coming early next year.
It boasts an impressive performance, adding an acceleration from 0 to one hundred km / h in 7. 7 seconds.
What makes this hybrid different from the maximum on the market is that it relies more on its electric motor for a greater share of lighter driving, making it more fully electric.
This provides you with the silence of an electric vehicle for most of the journey, while the foot will start the gasoline engine.
Suzuki offers the widest diversity of economy cars in South Africa, with many R250,000 features.
However, it lacks a serious competitor in the high-end, where its Japanese counterpart Toyota and South Korean neighbors Kia and Hyundai offer compelling options.
Suzuki plans to launch its new Grand Vitara in South Africa in the first quarter of 2023. Unfortunately, it looks like this would possibly not come with the rugged hybrid model.
The Grand Vitara is based on the same platform as the Toyota Urban Cruise Hyryder, which is necessarily the Indian Toyota Corolla Cross.
Toyota will bring its long-standing Crown nameplate to South Africa for the first time with the launch of the Crown Crossover in the first quarter of 2023.
It will follow Toyota’s partially electrified fighting style in the country, following the Prius, Corolla Cross, Corolla Sedan and RAV4.
The Crown style presented will feature a parallel hybrid system, the precise specifications of which are unknown lately.
We have the configuration of the edition sold lately in Japan.
Hybrid cars Haval Headline Nissan Suzuki Toyota Toyota Corolla Cross
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