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• Generation Y were found to perceive EVs to have better design with less impact on the environment. • For safety , generation Z were found to perceive EVs to be superior. • Technical features of commercially available EVs are no longer a major barrier towards EVs' adoption rate. • One-time financial incentives are more effective compared to discounts on operating costs or parking expenses. • Same amount of money paid to consumers is preferred more than a discount on purchase price. Relative advantage, or the degree to which a new technology is perceived to be better than an existing technology which is being replaced, has a significant impact on individuals' decisions on when, how and to what extent to adopt. An integrated choice and latent variable model is used, in this paper, to explicitly measure the perceived advantages in electric vehicles over the conventional internal combustion engine vehicles. The analysed data is obtained from a stated preference survey including 1076 residents in New South Wales, Australia. According to the results, the latent component of the model disentangles the perceived advantages across three dimensions of vehicle design , impact on the environment , and safety. These latent variables are interacted with price, driving range and body type, respectively, to capture the impact of perception on preference. The developed model is then used to examine the effectiveness of different support schemes on Millennials (Gen Y), the generation before them (Gen X) and after them (Gen Z). The results show higher probability of adopting electric vehicles for Gen Y, compared to Gen X and Z. Gen Y is found to be the least sensitive cohort to purchase price, and Gen X to be the most sensitive cohort to this attribute. People are more sensitive to incentives for the initial price compared to ongoing incentives for operating costs. Also, offering financial incentives to consumers as a rebate on the purchase price is more effective than allocating the same incentive to manufacturers to reduce the purchase price. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Younger male adults in higher income brackets appear to have the highest WTP. • Women are more inclined towards solar panel equipped EVs. • Average WTP for every added driving range by solar panels is $18.13 per km. • Average WTP for the solar panel to match the colour of vehicle is $1,384. • Non-EV owners are more sensitive to fuel saving benefits of solar panel equipped EVs. Cities globally are moving toward electrified public and private transport. Metropolitan areas are now seeking ways to mitigate emission and are heading towards sustainable ways of using clean/green energy sources by integrating and implementing new technology and science innovations into the transport systems. This study explores consumer preferences for installing photovoltaic solar cells on electric vehicles. In this paper, we have applied a double hurdle model to account for the low market penetration of electric cars in Australia and dealt with the high non-purchase choice. Data are obtained from nearly 1,900 individuals from eight major cities in Australia to explore consumer preferences regarding electric vehicles with photovoltaic solar cells option. The proposed model specification accounts for the panel impact generated from multiple tasks for each respondent, and the correlation between the two decisions on electric vehicle purchase and selecting the photovoltaic add-on. Furthermore, the systematic taste heterogeneity towards price variables is considered by introducing interactive sociodemographic terms to the utility functions. This study provides insights into the willingness-to-pay values for different features of electric vehicles and the solar panel add-on. The results show on average consumers are willing to pay a premium of $18.13 on purchase price for every daily additional kilometre in driving range generated by solar panels. The average willingness to pay for the solar panel to match the colour of vehicle is $1,021.09 for women, and $1,803.92 for men. This study informs policymakers and industries about the feasibility of such an emerging technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]