Acronyms and initialism – the automotive world is full of both, and that can make the car world much more confusing than it really needs to be.
Thankfully, HPI, a part of Solera Holdings, Inc. which is a global leader in risk and asset management data and software solutions for the insurance and automotive industries, has stepped in to help out.
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Right now AFVs are popular, but what are they? Well, they're alternative fuelled vehicles, like electric and hybrid vehicles. Registrations of AFVs went up by 25 percent last year. MHEvs (that's Mid Hybrid Electric Vehicles) are also gaining in popularity, with an unprecedented 949 percent rise in sales.
They are just two new bits or terminology bamboozling car buyers, so to make life a lot easier, here's HPI's definitive list of new car terminology.
AFVs Alternative Fuel Vehicles - vehicles not powered by petrol or diesel internal combustion engines.
BEV Battery Electric Vehicle - vehicle powered solely by a battery charged from an external power source.
BIK Benefit In Kind - non-wage compensation to employees; includes company cars
CAZ Clean Air Zone.
EV Electric Vehicle - the broadest category of vehicle, including all types of electrified vehicles.
HEV Hybrid Electric Vehicle - vehicle combining a conventional internal combustion engine with an electric propulsion system.
ICE Internal Combustion Engine - a conventional petrol or diesel engine.
LEZ - Low Emission Zone.
M1 - vehicles designed and constructed for the carriage of passengers and comprising no more than eight seats in addition to the driver's seat.
MHEV Mild Hybrid Electric Vehicle - a vehicle with an internal combustion engine assisted by an electric generator; mHEVs cannot run on electric power alone.
NEDC New European Drive Cycle - test to assess the emission levels and fuel economy of passenger cars.
NEDC Correlated - WLTP-derived CO2 values translated back to NEDC-equivalent values.
PEV Plug-in Electric Vehicle - includes both PHEV and BEV.
PHEV Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle - an HEV in which the battery may be charged from an external power source.
PiCG Plug-in Car Grant - UK Government-funded plan to subsidise the price of plug-in cars (PHEVs and BEVs).
REX Range Extender - small internal combustion engine used to provide power to a BEV when the battery is exhausted.
ULEZ Ultra-Low Emission Zone - an area within which all vehicles need to meet exhaust emission standards.
WLTP Worldwide Harmonised Light Vehicle Test Procedure - replaced NEDC in the UK from September 2018
"Most car manufacturers are making significant investments in their EV ranges in particular. As a result, the UK will see a rapid expansion in the number of models available and the technology used," said Chris Plumb, senior valuations editor and EV specialist at HPI. "The rise in the number of alternative fuelled vehicles about to hit the market marks a radical step forward. Many manufacturers are planning to electrify their entire product range by the middle of the next decade."
