November 23, 2022 . 6 min read

How Does An Electric Car Work? - Types of Electrice Vehicles and EVs Key Components

One of the best ways to save fossil fuel is using an electric vehicles like electric cars, sports EVs, trucks, etc. The main components that can't be taken off from an electric car are motor, motor controller, and battery. Without these three components your car is not gonna be an electric vehicle. The working of an electric car is completely performed by these above parts of an EV. Wanna know how does an electric car works along with detailed explanation about the EV car parts then jump into this guide.

What is Electric Vehicle?

Electric Vehicle is the best & quick transportation option that runs on battery instead of gasoline tank. It have an electric motor in place of an internal combustion engine. Electric vehicles also called battery electric vehicles (BEVs)—plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), and hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs).

An electric motor, An onboard battery charger, A battery pack, Battery Management System, A power inverter, and Charging port are some of the main parts of an electric vehicle. EVs use the lithium-ion batteries. Electric Vehicle use the electric traction motor. EV cars use both DC and AC, an electric car motor utilizes AC whereas battery uses DC to receive its electricity.

Types of Electric Cars (EV)

Electric car types are mainly four and they are outlined as:

Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV)
Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV)
Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle (PHEV)
Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle (FCEV)

A brief description of each type of electric vehicles can be found at EVCarsHub.com but here we have provided the system architecture of the four types of electric cars in the figure format so that everyone can understand it clearly:

What is the working principle of an electric vehicle? | How Does an EV Works?

An electric car is a vehicle that is fully or partially pushed by electric motors with the help of electrical energy suppiled by the batteries. In this advanced technology era, people are showing massive interest on upgrading their ICE cars to an electric cars. Discussing how an electric car work really is even more important at times. So, let's have a glance at the below pointers.

All key components work together gives the best performance and smooth drive in electric car.
When you press the pedal of the car, controller initiates and suppiles an electrical energy from batteries and inverters.
By using the controller set, battery or inveter transmits a certain amount of electrical energy to the motor.
Electric motor converts that electrical energy into mechanical energy then rotor spin the transmission so the wheel rotates and the movement of the car begins now.

How Electric Cars Work Diagram?

Below diagram shows how plug-in hybrid and battery electric car works and its key components.

How Does an Electric Engine Work? | How Does an EV Motor Work?

Electric engine which includes in EV cars are majorily called Electric Motor which converts electric energy to mechanical energy. The main difference of engine and motor is engine run on combusion whereas motor run on electricity. Electric motor function via the contact between the motor's magnetic field and electric current by wire winding to produce force in the form of torque utilized on the motor's shaft.

Now, let's see the functioning process of electric cars engines. electric cars operates after charging the battery. Fully charges battery powers an electric motor and make the wheels to move. Electric motor helps to turns the wheels faster than traditional fuel based engines. Also, EV motor works smoothly and make your drive feel lighter. Let’s take a look at the below para for deeper understanding of electric engine/motor works.

The working of electric motor in EVs intiate with the car battery that interconnected to the motor. Car battery supplies the electrical energy to the stator. The coils inside the stator are organized on opposite sides of the stator care and function as magnets in a way. Hence, the coils build rotating magnetic fields that drag the conducting rods on the outer of the rotor ahead behind it, when the electrical energy is supplied to teh motor. Thus, it produces the mechanical energy which helps to turn the gears of the car, which, in turn, rotate the wheels.

When the tries start rotating then the power in the battery drops in terms of charging. So, you can drive an electric car for certain time period and later the battery require to be recharged to function properly. Now, you get a query like how does the battery recharge? As we know that the electric car motor represents both motor and an alternator which makes EV so unique.

All this gonna happen when you keep foot on the accelerator. This way the rotor gets pulled along by the rotating magnetic field, needed more torque. If you take off the foot from accelerator, stops rotating magnetic field and the rotor spins faster then it acts as an alternator.

Key Components of Electric Car

Motor: An electric motor is the primary component to work electric car. It transmit the power to the wheels of EV with the help of transmission system. Generally, it converts the supplied electric energy current in to mechanical energy as a main operation. A motor of an electric vehicle consists of two main parts ie., rotor and stator. A rotating part is rotor and a stationary part is a stator which performs efficiently while driving.

Motor Controller: Almost all-electric cars uses brushless DC motor compare to brushed DC and permanent magnet DC moro. Brushless DC motor controller assists to handle numerous propeerties of motor to recieve enough current and voltage applied to motor. When your foot press the accelerating pedal, then connected variable resistor type controller provides signal to the motor controller to regulate speed as needed.

Battery: One more important part of EV is battery that helps to work your electric motor and start moving the wheels. Its funtionc is to store an electrical energy. A lithium ion batteries are mostly used battery type in hybrid and other electric car. You can also find the rechargeable batteries in the latest EVs due to the advanced technologies. Are you curious to learn about different types of batteries along with their features then look at the below table:

FAQs on How Does EV Work?

What happens if your EV car runs out of battery?

If you faced an issue of running out of battery while driving an EV car, then it will stop right away and you need to charge it up by calling a roadside help to drag the car to the nearest charging station.

Can you jumpstart an electric car?

Indeed, yes you can jumpstart an electric car as you do with a gas-powered car. Also, you can see this situation in rare cases because of the advance & great power system in an electric car consist & works.

What are the disadvantages of electric cars?

Every car comes with pros and cons so one should learn those downsides before buying any type of car, EV, or truck. A few cons of electric cars are as follows:

It creates more emissions
So expensive to purchase
EVs are not so friendly for long drives
Can't find enough charging points
They are only as green as their power sources
Require rare metals for their batteries

What is the biggest problem with electric vehicles?

Not just one the owners of EVs have experienced constant problems with many features like display screens, mismatched pain, exterior door lights, failing temperature sensors, and seals and weatherstripping.

Key Points

What's your call on Electric vehicles discuss with us along with your feedback or preferred suggestions via comments and be clear on your future purchase. Find EVs at the best price on sale offer and enjoy the experience. Well, you have achieved knowledge of how electric car works. Need more information on new, used, upcoming electric vehicles (EV) - EVCarsHub.Com is the perfect option for all car lovers.