Servicing any PHEV (Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle), self charging hybrid or full electric vehicle isn’t much different to servicing any other car, right? Not exactly.

Despite there being many common components, there’s the added element of high voltage electricity that a tradition car doesn’t have. One stray wire and this electricity could be passing through your car’s chassis.

Our mechanics are trained and certified to the highest possible level which is level 4 in electric & hybrid vehicles. This includes working with high voltage systems, hybrid engines, electrical motors, power inverter systems, energy / fuel management hardware systems, battery regeneration braking systems, electric control propulsion sensing systems and so on.

This isn’t the sort of stuff your traditional garage is trained to work on and it’s important for independent garages (such as us) to provide an alternative to the more expensive main dealer services.

SURELY WITH LESS MOVING PARTS, THERE’S LESS TO GO WRONG?

It’s true that the internal combustion engine (and the associated systems that come with it) have hundreds of moving parts, compared to about half a dozen in an electric motor. This means traditional cars have more parts to suffer wear and tear and therefore need replacing over time. It also means more things to go wrong.

IS IT USUALLY CHEAPER TO MAINTAIN AN ELECTRIC OR HYBRID CAR?

On the whole, the big expense with these cars is the power unit – the battery. This is usually covered by an extended warranty. The components they share with traditional cars tend to last longer. Mileage intervals for oil changes in hybrid cars are usually longer and the lifetime of brake components in both hybrid and electric vehicles tend to be longer due to the reduction in heat because of the regenerative braking system.

A Hybrid or Electric vehicle conventional maintenance items closely resemble those of other models as regards the following:

• Service interval 15,000-30,000kms
• Inspection items: On All vehicles you would inspect the following Safety equipment, brakes, chassis, suspension and tyres, lighting, screen washers and wipers, mechanical power transmission, low-voltage battery and fastenings, heating and air conditioning unit, and scanning of system fault memories etc

On Hybrid or Electric vehicles you would also inspect: The High-voltage battery cooling, inverter and electric motors cooling, high-voltage battery mounting and enclosure, power transmission components’ tightening torques, charging connections and charging cable, and high-voltage cabling and its mounting and the High-voltage battery’s condition.