The five best 'self-charging' hybrid cars to buy in 2025
Part-electric, but fuss-free
With the move to pure-electric cars well and truly underway, making the transition away from a petrol or diesel vehicle to a full zero-emissions machine can be daunting — that’s why many are choosing to go with a hybrid.
These team either a petrol or diesel engine with a strong electric motor but a small battery pack, allowing for a very brief (typically only about a mile, at most) all-electric driving range.
What are ‘mild hybrid’, ‘full hybrid’, ‘plug-in hybrid’ and ‘pure-electric’ cars?
However, they do improve fuel efficiency, particularly around town, and there’s no faff of having to plug them in to top up their battery packs – the engine does this on the move, which is why they’ve been given the somewhat contentious name of “self-charging” hybrids in recent years.
At any rate, with the battery regularly being replenished by the internal combustion engine, you’ll find a good self-charging hybrid will be in full electric mode in start-stop city traffic far more often than you’d expect, which makes them a great halfway-house between a traditional car and an electric vehicle.
So here are five of the best self-charging full hybrids for 2025 and beyond; we’ve chosen a spread of vehicle types and budgets to suit a broad range of needs, too.
Renault Clio E-Tech Hybrid
From £21,695
The supermini scene is much more competitive in the UK in the wake of the demise of the all-conquering Ford Fiesta, and one of the best of this type of vehicle is the fifth-gen Renault Clio.
It’s only sold with two powertrains, one pure petrol and then a fancy E-Tech Hybrid set-up. It uses a 1.6-litre petrol engine and electric motor, along with an F1-inspired gearbox, to deliver more than 140bhp and a circa-nine-second 0-62mph time, but you’ll get almost 60mpg out of it all the time without trying.
Further benefits of the Clio are its sharp exterior styling, plus a really high-quality interior complete with some excellent and eye-catching tech, as well as easy-to-use physical climate controls and lots of passenger space.
Talking of which, there’s also a 301-litre boot at the back of the Renault supermini, which is large for this class of car, making it a solid all-rounder that’s available for little more than £21,000.
MG ZS Hybrid+
From £21,995
MG is known as a value brand (being Chinese-owned, it benefits from economies of scale and state support) and, for not much more money than the Clio hatchback above, you could end up in a family-friendly SUV instead in the shape of the ZS Hybrid+.
It has a 1.5-litre petrol engine and potent 134bhp electric motor to go with it, together serving up a healthy 193bhp. So, it’s perfectly quick enough for most people’s needs, while officially it’ll return 55.4mpg.
Yet the best things about it are that, on the outside, the new ZS looks a lot more modern and European than its predecessor, while inside is a decent cabin that is — as you expect of MG — stuffed with kit for the cash.
Even the base-space £21,995 car comes with a 12.3in touchscreen enabled with nav, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, as well as the MG Pilot suit of advanced driver assist safety systems and a reversing camera. The top-grade Trophy isn’t exactly expensive either, at £24,495, and it adds luxuries such as heated front seats and steering wheel, a 360-degree camera system, leather-style upholstery, and rear privacy glass.
Nissan Qashqai e-Power
From £30,135
The Nissan Qashqai might not be exciting, but it does many things very well and nothing notably badly. Sharpened with new and attractive front-end styling in 2024, the current model makes for a strong choice as a midsized crossover-SUV.
Chief weapon in its armoury is the e-Power model, which is a hybrid unlike any other here. While the Nissan is fitted with both a 1.5-litre three-cylinder petrol engine and a 187bhp electric motor, the combustion unit never drives the SUV’s wheels at all.
Instead, it functions as a “range extender” for the electric propulsion motor, topping up the battery on the move to let the Qashqai e-Power run like a full EV across a wider band of road speeds.
It means you get lots of the benefits of an electric vehicle, without any of the need to plug it in. OK, so economy is about the same as the other, more conventional hybrids on the list here, with the Qashqai turning in around 55mpg officially. But that’s still pretty good for a tall vehicle like this that’s capable of 0-62mph in 7.9 seconds.
Hyundai Kona Hybrid
From £30,685
Hyundai’s striking Kona line-up looks like one half of defunct French house duo Daft Punk left his stage robot mask lying around, and then the Korean company’s designers went and copied it for the look of the car.
Yet underneath this distinctive bodywork is a very capable and assured compact crossover. Brilliantly, Hyundai gives you lots of choice with the Kona – there are both plain petrol and full electric powertrains to choose from – but this Hybrid looks like the best of the bunch.
It gives better fuel economy than the petrol, Hyundai quoting 60.1mpg for the Hybrid, but none of the range worries of the Electric model either. You simply drop petrol into the Kona and off you go.
Sealing the deal are an excellent interior, complete with a high-tech infotainment, and Hyundai’s usual reputation for reliability and aftercare – the Kona Hybrid, like all the manufacturer’s other models, is covered by a chunky five-year, unlimited-mileage warranty.
Lexus RX
From £62,140
Toyota and its luxury spin-off Lexus are arguably market leaders in self-charging hybrids, having been one of the first car companies to use the technology way back in the 1990s with the original Toyota Prius.
But this hybrid gear is now used for luxury purposes as well as frugality, with the Lexus RX prestige SUV coming entirely with hybrid power across its range.
There’s a plug-in model in the middle of the line-up, called the 450h+, but both the RX 300h and RX 500h have no need of plugging in to achieve their likeable blend of efficiency and powertrain refinement.
Not only that, but the latest RX wears a sharp suit and has a splendid interior, complete with an infotainment system that actually works well (this was not always true of Lexus’ systems prior to this model) and bags of standard equipment. It’s not even that expensive for this class of vehicle, kicking off at £62,000 for an entry-level 300h.
Related articles
- After reading about the best self-charging hybrids, you might be interested to read our review of the Hyundai Kona, which comes in petrol, hybrid or electric forms
- Read how Jeremy Clarkson got on with the Honda Civic hybrid
- Interested in car sales? Check out the best-selling cars of 2024
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