780854 PROGRESS INELECTRIC ANDHYBRID VEHICLES EugeneA.Rowland, Corporate Research andDevelopment GeneralElectric Company Schenectady, NewYork,U.S.A.COPYRIGHT1978 SOCIETYOFAUTOMOTIVE ENGINEERS, INC. ABSTRACT Research anddevelopment ofelectric andhybrid vehicles intheUnitedStateshasrecently been accelerated bygovernment supportthroughthe Department ofEnergy. Vehiclesystems, improved batteries, andsupporting technology whicharecur rentlyunderdevelopment willoffersignificant improvements inelectric vehicleperformance and operating costby1980.Improved hybridvehicles willalsobedeveloped undertheDepartment of Energyprogram. Futureelectric andhybridvehicles willbeabletosatisfyalargeportionofthe averagefamily'sdrivingrequirements withoperating costscomparable toaconventional automobile. Publicacceptance ofthesealternate vehicles for widespread usewilldependuponthelevelsofper formance, reliability andlifecyclecostwhichare demonstrated. THEPURPOSE OFTHISPAPERistoexaminerecent progress inelectric andhybridvehicle (E&HV) development andtoidentify thoseareaswhereaddi tionalworkisneededtoprovetheviability of E&HV'sasalternate modesofprivatetransportation. There-emergence ofelectrically-powered vehicles intheUnitedStateshasbeenthesubjectofper sistent rumorsandconjecture, fueledbyourrecent national concernaboutrisingpetroleum pricesand uncertain supply. Toseparatefactfromfiction,itisnecessary toexaminetheforcesbehindelectricandhybridvehicle development, theprogress whichisbeingmadeinrelatedtechnologies, and theeconomic andmarketing factorswhichwillulti matelycontroltheacceptance ofthesevehicles. BACKGROUND AfewsmallU.S.manufacturers havebuilt electric roadvehicles insmallquantities overthepastdecade, andamateurbuilders havedemonstrated aninteresting varietyofelectric conversions duringthissameperiod. TheonlyAmericanelectric cardesigned andmanufactured insignificant quan titiesduringrecentyearswastheSebring-Vanguard"Citicar". Approximately 2000Citicars weresold overtheperiodfrom1974to1976,beforethecom panyfailedandproduction wasinterrupted. Those whopurchased theCiticarwereobviously attracted totheconceptofasmalllimited-purpose vehicle whichwasnotdependent onOPECoilsupplies. However,thevehicleitselfwasoftencriticized for lowperformance andalackofconformance withfederalsafetystandards. Arguments overthe viability ofelectric carswerestimulated butnot resolved bytheCiticarexperience. Thesystematic development andimplementationofelectric andhybridvehicles intheUnitedStates wasestablished asanational priority withthe passage, byCongress, oftheElectric andHybrid VehicleResearch, Development andDemonstration Act of1976(Public Law94-413). Responsibility for implementing thislawhasbeenassigned tothe Department ofEnergy,OfficeofTransportation Applications andCommercialization. Amulti-faceted programhasbeenlaunched byDOEtofosterandsup portthedevelopment ofelectric andhybridvehicle systems, toaccelerate thecommercialization of thesevehicles bydemonstrating theireconomic and technical practicability, toencourage smallbusi nessparticipation intheE&HVprojects, andto promoteconsumer acceptance ofE&HV's. MajoractivitiesoftheDOEprogramincludevehiclesystems R&D,advanced technology development, vehicletest andevaluation, andacommercialization effortwhich consists ofvehicledemonstrations, loanguarantees forprospective E&HVmanufacturers andplanning grantsforsmallbusinesses whowishtoproposepro jectstotheDOE.AnR&Dprogramtodevelopim provedbatteries andotherenergystoragedevices forE&HV'sisalsobeingconducted undertheleader shipofDOE'sDivision ofEnergyStorageSystems. Objectives andplansfortheten-year DOE programweresetforthinthefirstannualreport toCongress ontheimplementation ofPublicLaw 94-413(1).Interagency agreements havebeenestab lishedbyDOEwithseveralothergovernment agencies toadminister specific aspectsoftheR&Deffort. Vehicle systems R&Distheresponsibility ofthe JetPropulsion Laboratory, whiletheNASALewis Research Centerisresponsible forpropulsion sys temsresearch a