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I don't know the best place to get lithium batteries. If you google for places selling Thundersky or CALIB batteries, those are the ones people are using for DIY EV conversions. Last I compared, the price is about 2.5X more than lead acid. But, they weigh less than half as much, and should last almost 4 times longer than lead if taken care of. In the end, they end up costing less. They're also happier to give you at higher C ratings. Speaking of taking care of the batteries you'll definitely want a BMS. You can buy one or several people here are working on open source BMS systems for lithium (myself included for my PHEV Prius). So, if you DIY you can save a ton of money.
The best way to avoid high C ratings (and thus high peukert effect losses) is to increase the voltage. Many motors are capable of handling much higher voltage than what they are rated for. I think most of the guys are running forklift motors that are rated for 24-36V and they're running between 72V and 144V through them. I believe only permanent magnet motors shouldn't be run over their voltage rating (and amperage for that matter). For instance my mower motor was a 24V that I was running at 48V. It had absolutely no issues with bumping the voltage up.
For the Wh/mile that the Yugo has posted, its probably "from the wall". That takes into account his charger's efficiency.
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