The design and lifecycle cost model designs a motor vehicle to meet range and performance requirements specified by the modeler, and then calculates the initial retail cost and total lifecycle cost of the designed vehicle. The model can be used to investigate the relationship between the...

Electric-drive vehicles can become and important resource for the California electric utility system, with consequent air pollution, system reliability, and economic benefits. We refer to electric power resources from vehicles as “Vehicle to Grid†power (V2G). The economic value of...

Regulators, policy analysts, automobile manufacturers, environmental groups, and others are debating the merits of policies regarding the development and use of battery-powered electric vehicles (BPEVs). At the crux of this debate is lifecycle cost: the annualized initial vehicle cost, plus...