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12 Build Your Own Electric VehicleElectric Vehicles Save MoneyAll this emotional stuff is nice, but let’s talk out-of-pocket dollars. Ask any electricvehicle conversion owner, and they’ll tell you it transports them where they want to go,is very reliable, and saves them money. Let’s examine separately the operating, purchase,and lifetime ownership costs and summarize the potential savings.Operating CostsElectric vehicles only consume electricity. In between charge-ups, there are no otherconsumables to worry about except an occasional watering of the batteries. Thesefigures are covered in more detail later, but the Ford Ranger electric vehicle pickupconversion of Chapter 10 averages about 0.44 kWh (kilowatt-hours, a measure of energyconsumption) per mile. At $.165 per kWh for electricity in New York (check your electricutility monthly statement for the prevailing rate in your area) that translates to0.44 kWh/mile 3 $.165/kWh 5 .0726 (7.3 cents) per mile(Note: Does not include charging cost and 3.3 cents per mile for batteryreplacement.)Let’s compare these costs with the EV’s gasoline-powered internal combustionengine counterpart in a pickup chassis. The latter consumes gasoline; its ignition,cooling, fueling, and exhaust systems require filters, fluids, and periodic maintenance.The gasoline-powered pickup chassis (equivalent to the previous example) averages 20miles per gallon or 0.05 gallons per mile. At $4.50 per gallon for gas, that translates to0.05 gallons/mile 3 $4.50/gallon 5 .225 (22.5 cents) per mileConsumables and periodic maintenance must still be added. Assuming these cost$41.67 per month (oil change averaged over three months, fuel additives, aligning andbalancing tires), and annual mileage is 12,000 miles per year, this translates to$500/year 4 12,000 miles/year 5 .0416 (4.2 cents) per mileAdding the two figures together, you’re looking at 27 cents per mile operating costfor a gasoline-powered vehicle versus 7.3 cents per mile for its electric vehicleequivalent—almost three times the cost of the electric vehicle. While your average EVconversion—made with off-the-shelf components—might consume about 0.4 kWh permile, General Motor’s Impact electric vehicle is rated at 0.1 kWh per mile (0.07 kWh/km). This drops your electric vehicle operating costs to 0.5 cents per mile! (Note: costper mile varies with driver.)Purchase CostsCommercially manufactured electric vehicles are prohibitively expensive today—if youcan find one at all. Tomorrow’s electric vehicle costs will obviously drop to becomeequal to or less than internal combustion–powered vehicles as more units are made(and manufacturing economies-of-scale come into play) because they have far fewer(and much simpler) parts.But this book advocates the conversion alternative—you convert an existing internalcombustion engine vehicle to an electric vehicle. You remove the internal combustionengine and all systems that go with it, and add an electric motor, controller, and batteries.If you start with a used internal combustion engine vehicle chassis you can save evenmore (with the advantage of having the drive train components already broken in, as