The components in electric cars are vastly different to what we’ve been accustomed to in gas-powered vehicles. For a start, electric cars don’t have an internal combustion engine, and are instead powered by batteries. This has left many to wonder whether electric cars have catalytic converters.
Electric cars do not have catalytic converters, nor do they need them. As electric vehicles don’t produce toxic fumes from an internal combustion engine like gasoline-powered cars, they don’t require a catalytic converter to be installed to prevent harm to both humans and the environment.
Plug-in hybrid and hybrid cars do have catalytic converters, but they are made from different metals, and don’t require the same levels of use as the converters in fuel-powered vehicles. In this article we will go into further detail about why electric vehicles don’t have catalytic converters.
Why Electric Cars Don’t Need Catalytic Converters
Catalytic converters are a vital component of gasoline-powered cars as their job is to filter out toxic fumes generated from the internal combustion engine. The catalytic converter reduces pollutants that could be harmful to both humans and the environment. Electric vehicles don’t require a catalytic converter because they don’t have a conventional internal combustion engine.
Instead, electric vehicles are fitted with large batteries that play the role of the internal combustion engines, without emitting the same toxic fumes of their fuel-powered counterparts. In fact, electric vehicles don’t require any of the components that you would see in a standard exhaust pipe system.
Other Missing Components
Noise-related components such as resonators and mufflers are also unnecessary in electric vehicles as they keep noise pollution to an absolute minimum. Newer electric vehicle models have even been fitted with acoustic systems to stop them from being too quiet and becoming dangerous for visually impaired pedestrians who rely on sound to gauge the direction that cars are coming from.
Hybrid Cars
Plug-in hybrid and standard hybrid cars do have catalytic converters, as they partly require fuel to run, although the converters are not the standard types you would find in gasoline-powered cars. We will discuss this further later in the article.
Do Electric Vehicles Produce Any Emissions?
Compared to gasoline-powered vehicles, all-electric cars produce much less carbon dioxide, emitting around 2800 pounds of CO2 per year, compared to the average 12,500 pounds that gasoline cars emit per year. Electric vehicle power stations generate emissions and require the use of fossil fuels in order to operate. Most of the electricity used to power EVs comes from non-renewable sources.
However, in direct comparison with gasoline-powered cars, there is no competition in which is better for the environment. The lack of tailpipe fumes and toxic gas emissions from electric cars makes them hugely advantageous for the environment, and there is no doubt that the technology used in the batteries will improve in the future and become less reliant on fossil fuels.
Do Teslas Have Catalytic Converters?
Teslas do not have catalytic converters, regardless of the model. Tesla are an all-electric car manufacturer that don’t currently produce any plug-in hybrid models. As with all forms of electric car, Tesla batteries don’t produce toxic fumes that need to be dealt with by catalytic converters.
This lack of need for catalytic converters has a major positive impact on the environment, as every Tesla sold (or other brand of electric vehicle) is a step toward eradicating pollution from greenhouse gases on our roads. Tesla’s lithium-ion batteries are also fully recyclable and can be returned to Tesla at the end of their life, free of charge.
Tesla’s Renewable Supercharger Stations
Tesla announced in 2021 that they would begin their use of renewable power sources to charge Tesla cars through their Superchargers. Unlike most other electric vehicle charging stations, Tesla use solar power and energy storage systems to generate the electricity needed to charge up their cars. This is a huge step forward in the move away from fossil fuels in the automotive industry.
According to Tesla’s mid-market lead for Supercharger stations, Justin Lange, the company had offset 6.6 billion pounds of CO2 in the lead up to the 2021 announcement. Globally, Tesla are still working on disconnecting their Supercharger stations from regional electricity grids and converting them to Tesla’s solar powered network.
KEY POINTS
• Electric cars don’t need catalytic converters
• They don’t have combustion engines to produce any harmful gases
• Teslas, being fully electric, also don’t use catalytic converters
Do Hybrid Cars Need Catalytic Converters?
Hybrid cars do have catalytic converters as they don’t run entirely on battery power like fully electric vehicles. However, the catalytic converters used in hybrid cars are different to the ones found on standard gasoline-powered vehicles, as they feature a higher concentration of precious metals.
The general rule for cars is that if they burn fossil fuels, as hybrid vehicles do, then they will have a catalytic converter to lower their emissions of toxic fumes, and increase the safety of those inside the car and pedestrians outside the car, and to protect the environment too.
Materials such as platinum and palladium are used to make catalytic converters for hybrid cars. These two metals are highly valuable, with palladium being worth more than gold by weight. This makes them a common target for thieves who will steal the catalytic converters and sell them on for profit. Catalytic converters on hybrid cars will usually be worth around $1,800.
When Is The Catalytic Converter Needed On A Hybrid Car?
Catalytic converters on plug-in hybrid cars aren’t necessarily in use every time the car is being driven. They will only come into effect once the battery power that the car is running on has been used up, and the car reverts to being fuel powered. If you never allow the battery power of the car to run down, then the car won’t use its catalytic converter.
Therefore, catalytic converters, and other components of the exhaust pipe, take longer to corrode and break down than they do on gasoline-powered cars. Pure gas/electric hybrid cars work slightly differently, as the electric aspect is not the priority. On these cars, the battery is only used for driving short distances or at low speeds.
This means that the catalytic converters on pure hybrid cars will get considerably more use than they would on plug-in hybrid cars, increasing the wear rate. This is also why plug-in hybrid cars are more efficient and better for the environment than standard hybrid vehicles.
Final Thoughts
Fully electric vehicles don’t have catalytic converters, because they don’t need them. Their lack of internal combustion engines means they don’t emit toxic fumes into the atmosphere, which not only rules out the need for a catalytic converter, but also the need for an entire exhaust system.