Plug-In Hybrids Are a Small Slice of Sales, and Their Engines Still Bring Owners to Service
A plug-in hybrid owner pulls into the service drive and tells the advisor the gas engine keeps turning on, even though the car is supposed to run on electricity. According to the Energy Information Administration, plug-in hybrids made up just 0.7% of new sales from July through September.
Plug-In Hybrid Sales Slipped While Hybrids Kept Climbing
The EIA's numbers for the third quarter of 2026 show 23% of new light-duty vehicles sold in the United States had some form of electric drive. Conventional hybrids gained share and reached 16% of sales. The PHEV (Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicle) went the other way, falling from 1.8% of sales a year earlier to 0.7%.
That small number doesn't take these cars out of the service drive. Plug-in hybrids sold in the last few years are likely still on the road and due for service. With fewer of them coming through the door, a service advisor may go a while between write-ups, and their questions can catch that advisor off guard.
One of the likeliest questions is about the engine. The Department of Energy says a plug-in hybrid typically runs on electric power until the battery is nearly depleted, and then the car switches over to the gas engine on its own. An owner who forgot to plug in, or drove past the electric range, may hear the engine start and think something broke.
Owners Report More Problems, and Some May Be Normal Behavior
J.D. Power's 2026 Vehicle Dependability Study found PHEV owners reported 281 problems per 100 vehicles after three years of ownership, the most of any powertrain in the study. Gas vehicles came in at 198. Some of those reports may be real repairs, and some may be the car doing what it was built to do.
The EIA notes a plug-in hybrid can run the electric motor and the gas engine at the same time. So the engine may come on with charge left in the battery, and the owner may report that as a problem. An E-REV (Extended-Range Electric Vehicle) brings the same question in a different way. Its gas engine can't drive the wheels and only makes electricity for the motors, according to InsideEVs, so the owner may hear an engine in a car that drives like an EV.
There's service work in these cars too. The Department of Energy says plug-in hybrids and hybrids need the same general maintenance as conventional vehicles, because they have gas engines. That likely means oil changes and engine service your service department can earn for years, as long as the owner trusts your service advisors with the car. An owner who gets a clear answer about the engine on the first visit is more likely to come back for the next oil change.
In the Service Lane This Week
Before a plug-in hybrid owner with an engine concern leaves the counter, check the battery's charge level on the dash with them. If the battery was low, the engine was likely doing its job, and the service advisor can explain that before a repair order is written.
This reaches the service advisor first, because the advisor is standing with the owner when the engine question comes up. Digital Dealer makes the point that service advisers don't need technician-level depth, but they do need to explain charging, range and battery questions without improvising.
Normal plug-in hybrid behavior can come back to the store as a complaint, and it's harder to answer when these cars only show up now and then. Through interactive advisory sessions on a regular cadence, Gateway EV Advisor keeps Sales and Service teams current on how each electrified powertrain behaves, so service advisors can tell a normal engine start from a real concern and owners get the same plain answer at every rooftop.
Gateway EV Advisor works to elevate dealership Sales and Service teams' EV knowledge, to communicate professionally with customers to increase EV sales and protect CSI. See how at gatewayevadvisor.com/ev-training-for-dealerships.
Sources
- U.S. Energy Information Administration, Hybrid sales rise while battery electric sales remain lower after tax credit expiration (October 2026) - eia.gov
- U.S. Energy Information Administration, Use of Energy for Transportation: Electric Vehicles (undated live page) - eia.gov
- J.D. Power, Vehicle Software Updates Become More Routine, but Fall Short on Perceived Benefit, JD Power Finds (February 2026) - businesswire.com
- U.S. Department of Energy Alternative Fuels Data Center, How Do Plug-In Hybrid Electric Cars Work? (undated live page) - afdc.energy.gov
- U.S. Department of Energy Alternative Fuels Data Center, Maintenance and Safety of Electric Vehicles (undated live page) - afdc.energy.gov
- InsideEVs, A New Kind Of Hybrid Is Coming. See The 10 Extended-Range EVs Hitting America Soon (September 2026) - insideevs.com
- Digital Dealer, Before the First Repair Order: Build an EV Service-readiness Map (September 2026) - digitaldealer.com