-This paper discusses the selection of an interior permanent magnet synchronous machine and converter for a 100V-200V DC, 100-400 Hz, 150-175 Nm, 30kW-100kW, 1550-4100 rpm electrical vehicle engine alternator. The electrical vehicle engine application requirements are outlined including the engine coupling configuration. Then the characteristics of different machines and their converters are compared through a competitive trade-off study framed by the alternator requirements; direct-drive induction, variable-reluctance, surface permanent magnet synchronous machine, and interior permanent magnet synchronous machine are all considered. The results of the study indicate that the interior permanent magnet synchronous machine is a potentially superior candidate, and so this machine is selected for further investigation. The preliminary findings are described, and the paper concludes with a discussion of current work addressing analytic design.