GM EV1 Page

Written December 7, 2005
This page archives data and media related to the amazing EV1 electric car and its unfortunate and sad termination. By 2005 I would have hoped to have been able to purchase and drive an EV5 (plug-in with a series hybrid configuration only for range extension beyond 150-200 miles). Battery technology has made amazing advances in energy density since the debut of the EV1 in 1996 (lithium-ion for example). Instead, all that is available are more complicated slower parallel hybrids that still consume gasoline and are UNABLE to plug-in!

The leaders in parallel hybrids are the Japanese (Toyota and Honda). Domestic automakers have lost valuable time diverting their R&D efforts into hydrogen fuel cell powered cars which have range, inefficiency (electrolyzing water wastes lots of power compared to charging batteries), and practical issues. Plug-in battery EV development efforts should have been kept alive alongside the hydrogen development efforts, at minimum as a fallback measure. GM was technologically 10-15 years ahead of all auto manufacturers in modern EVs when they debuted the GM EV1 prototype (the Impact) at the 1990 Los Angeles Auto show. As of November 2005 we hear of plant closings and GM employee layoffs. This follows massive summer selling incentives where SUVs and Trucks were being sold at "employee pricing" in an attempt to keep sales volumes moving. For a moment, imagine if we as a country were committed to EVs. There would be an incredible amount of work ramping up design and production of EV drivetrains, battery packs, and vehicles. We wouldn't be laying off people, we would be hiring! As EV vehicles replaced IC (Internal Combustion) vehicles the daily consumption of oil by the US would decline. Air would be cleaner. The US might once again be a leader in new energy development.

At $3 per gallon a 25mpg IC car consumes $24 in gasoline every 200 miles. A plug-in battery electric car would only consume ~$5 in electricity (at 13cents/kwhr) to go 200 miles, and you never have to visit a gas station! The vehicle is "full" every morning. The electrical distribution infrastructure is already in place. People already are in the habit of recharging their cellphones everynight. Charging your plug-in car is no different! 99% of most people's daily driving is less than 150miles which can be accomplished solely with electrons, more efficiently, more conveniently, and with far less pollution. If you didn't have a series hybrid range extender on your EV, and had to stop away from home to charge (say at a Starbuck's Coffee and Charging station), you could fast charge your EV in 10minutes with a PosiCharge. Electric cars can be fast with 0-60mph times within 5 seconds. Electric cars can charge cleanly and efficiently off solar power and can provide peak electrical grid load balancing. Most of all, electric cars would help reduce the massive consumption of oil by the USA which should be a national security priority. We really need to save the oil for important applications like aircraft propulsion which rely on the incredible energy densities of gasolines/kerosenes.

I've been ready to buy my plug-in electric car for several years now. Who will bring them to market? Honda? Mitsubishi? GM? Or will I have to build my own (perform an AC Propulsion conversion of a CRX)? We need to be driving electric!


	GM EV1