If electricity is made from fossil fuels, then why are hybrid cars good for the environment?

Well, you're right. However, hybrids (also called PHEVs) use less fuel. Actually, even less than half! see: // Although a variety of clean vehicle technologies and fuels are being developed, electric vehicles represent one of the most promising technology pathways for cutting oil use and CO2 on a per-kilometer basis. With a moderately clean electric grid, EVs can achieve 50 grams of CO2 per kilometer, well below today’s most efficient cars, which emit between 100 and 150 grams of CO2 per kilometer. Even hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs) achieve only around 90 grams of CO2 per kilometer [1][2]. That last paragraph is taken from the EV City Casebook, by OECD & IEA.These figures were released in 2012. Also, As electricity production gets cleaner (that is, less coal & gas etc) the electricity hybrids will amount to less CO2. Hybrid cars recharge the batteries while you break. Your breaks will last longer due to this. Cool, huh? Also see question

First, not all electricity is made from fossil fuels. There are sustainable solutions like wind, solar, hydro, and some consider nuclear. However, even if all electricity was made through the burning of fossil fuels hybrids and more specifically electrics are more efficient because of efficiency. Internal combustion engines are highly inefficient. At best 30% of the energy in a gallon of gasoline actually propels you and the vehicle forward.  This factor is also heavily dependent on driving style.  In addition, inefficiencies add. Therefore, having millions of 30% efficient engines out on the roads is by default worse than having one large engine that is 30% efficient providing energy for the millions of cars.  Further, that statement makes the assumption that power plants are 30% efficient. This is false, they are much more efficient than 30% (they range anywhere from 33-60%). Finally, electric and plug-in hybrids centralize the fuel use/emissions problem to a couple hundred power plants rather than several million vehicles which is a much easier problem to work on and solve.

Hybrid cars are not directly good for the environment as they still rely on fossil fuels. They are, however, an important first step. The mass-production of hybrid technology has made it feasible to mass-produce the all-electric vehicles we have today at a reasonable cost to the consumer and will continue to reap dividends in the future.   As far as electricity being made from fossil fuels, Chadwick Crowninshield Conway is spot on. Even as inefficient as electrical power production is, it is still more efficient than the internal combustion engine. But more importantly, the reliance on fossil fuels is steadily coming to an end and everyone will have to have an electric car at some point, so the faster we can improve the technology needed to do so the less painful that transition will become.   Unlike fossil fuels, the efficiency of photovoltaic technology has been following Moore's Law and continues to improve exponentially. There are also several breakthroughs in Fusion technology that have the potential to fulfill all our power needs.   Photovoltaics hold the best promise though, as it will only be a few years before you can literally print out your own photovoltaic cells at home, as easy as printing your favorite pictures. At that point everyone will have access to "free" energy and the ability to store it effectively due to the advances in battery technology.   It is not a matter of if you will be using electricity to get around; it is just a matter of how long it will be before you can no longer afford not to use electricity.