“The potential for grid-connected vehicles to decimate our demand for liquid hydrocarbon fuels should be clear. Freed from the psychological barriers which hinder widespread market acceptance of pure battery electric vehicles, plug-in hybrids with an all-electric capability of just [30] kilometres would slash liquid fuel consumption, since such a high proportion of journeys undertaken are well within this range.”

"Plugged In: The End of the Oil Age” by WWF
(Dr. G. Kendall, 2008)

Engine Costs
The figure shows Libralato engine costs compared with average reciprocating engine costs, plotted against power output. The engine production industry is at a mature stage and therefore production costs are not anticipated to vary significantly in the coming decades. The US EPRI report - Comparing the Benefits and Impacts of Hybrid Electric Vehicle Options, 2001, showed a series of costs for in-line 4 pistons (L-4), V-6 and V-8 engines. The US DOE funded report - Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicle Value Proposition Study, 09, provides an update of average engine costs based on a simple formula of $14.5/ kW. These figures have been cross referenced and are consistent with figures given in the IEA Energy Technology Essentials Report 2007.

The Libralato engine is expected to cost in the region of 30% less than a 4 stroke engine of equivalent power output due to the elimination of major components (e.g. valvetrains, pistons, con-rods, crankshafts, cam shafts etc), reducing the number of moving parts (typically 37) to four and reducing engine mass by about 50%. Because the efficiency gains of the engine are due to its fundamentally new design and its revolutionary new thermodynamic cycle, it is anticipated that reliable engines can be produced with relatively low tech production engineering i.e. naturally aspirated, low pressure injection, low BMEP, low manufacturing tolerances.