In order to improve the smoothness of the electric special vehicle (ESV) under each operational condition, a multi‐algorithm switching hybrid control (MASHC) algorithm is proposed for the permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM) of ESV. For a steady–state operation state, the transfer function structure of the motor control system is optimized, avoiding its output variables from varying with the integral and differential changes of the input quantity to enhance the stability and response speed of the control system. For transient operation states, it is considered to avoid the torque ripple that can be generated due to the increased computational effort of introducing an intelligent algorithm. The fuzzy proportional (FP) control algorithm that can replicate the transient performance of the fuzzy control algorithm is designed to improve the control accuracy of the control system. In addition, a switching function is designed to blend the two algorithms to improve the overall vehicle operation performance. To verify the effectiveness of the control algorithm, a simulation model and an experimental platform are developed. Both simulation and experimental results show that the proposed control algorithm has the advantages of no overshoot and oscillation in output, which can improve the smoothness of the ESV drive system. © 2023 Institute of Electrical Engineer of Japan and Wiley Periodicals LLC.