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An approach is being pursued for a series hybrid electric vehicle (SHEV). The twin goals of maximizing Fuel Economy (FE) and improving consumer acceptance has led to a SHEV powertrain using energy storage as a means for filtering drive cycle power demands on the engine, rather than an energy source for supplying all-electric mode. The concept is intended to minimize, if not eliminate, the battery in the SHEV without resorting to full range proportional control of the engine and generator. An initial optimization study reported for a mid-size SHEV showed a 4.5 kWh Li-ion battery pack was still required. In a new research, a sports car class SHEV was studied, which inspires this manuscript. The challenge with this vehicle is to reduce the ESS size even more because the available space allocation is only one fourth of the battery size in the mid-size. In this manuscript, a controller is developed that allows a hybridized SHEV to be realized with a light ESS.