General Motors EV1

General Motors EV1

The General Motors EV1 was an <a href="/en/Electric_car" title="Electric car" class="wl">electric car</a> produced and leased by <a href="/en/General_Motors" title="General Motors" class="wl">General Motors</a> from 1996 to 1999.<a href="#cite_note-CarandDriverAug09-6" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 6;">[6]</a> It was the first mass-produced and purpose-designed <a href="/en/Electric_vehicle" title="Electric vehicle" class="wl">electric vehicle</a> of the modern era from a major <a href="/en/Automaker" title="Automaker" class="mw-redirect wl">automaker</a> and the first GM car designed to be an <a href="/en/Electric_vehicle" title="Electric vehicle" class="wl">electric vehicle</a> from the outset.<a href="#cite_note-Tribune-7" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 7;">[7]</a>


<style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1033289096" typeof="mw:Extension/templatestyles mw:Transclusion">.mw-parser-output .hatnote{font-style:italic}.mw-parser-output div.hatnote{padding-left:1.6em;margin-bottom:0.5em}.mw-parser-output .hatnote i{font-style:normal}.mw-parser-output .hatnote+link+.hatnote{margin-top:-0.5em}</style>
<div class="shortdescription nomobile noexcerpt noprint searchaux" style="display:none" about="#mwt16">Motor vehicle</div>
<style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1066479718" typeof="mw:Extension/templatestyles">.mw-parser-output .infobox-subbox{padding:0;border:none;margin:-3px;width:auto;min-width:100%;font-size:100%;clear:none;float:none;background-color:transparent}.mw-parser-output .infobox-3cols-child{margin:auto}.mw-parser-output .infobox .navbar{font-size:100%}body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-header,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-subheader,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-above,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-title,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-image,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-full-data,body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .infobox-below{text-align:center}</style><div class='mobile-collapse'><header class="mobile-collapse-header mobile-collapse-btn">Quick facts: General Motors EV1, Overview, Manufacturer, A... ▼</header> <table class="infobox hproduct mobile-collapse-element"><tbody><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-above fn notheme" style="font-size:125%; background-color:#C0C0C0; padding:0.25em 1em; text-align:center;">General Motors EV1</th></tr><tr><td colspan="2" class="infobox-image"><a href="/en/File:EV1A014_(1)_cropped.jpg" class="mw-file-description image media-thumb" data-hash="File:EV1A014_(1)_cropped.jpg"><img loading="lazy" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c5/EV1A014_%281%29_cropped.jpg/280px-EV1A014_%281%29_cropped.jpg" decoding="async" data-file-width="1173" data-file-height="782" data-file-type="bitmap" height="187" width="280" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c5/EV1A014_%281%29_cropped.jpg/420px-EV1A014_%281%29_cropped.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c5/EV1A014_%281%29_cropped.jpg/560px-EV1A014_%281%29_cropped.jpg 2x" alt="EV1A014_%281%29_cropped.jpg"></a></td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header notheme" style="background-color: #C0C0C0">Overview</th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Manufacturer</th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/General_Motors" title="General Motors" class="wl">General Motors</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Also&nbsp;called</th><td class="infobox-data">GM EV1</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Production</th><td class="infobox-data"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1126788409" typeof="mw:Extension/templatestyles">.mw-parser-output .plainlist ol,.mw-parser-output .plainlist ul{line-height:inherit;list-style:none;margin:0;padding:0}.mw-parser-output .plainlist ol li,.mw-parser-output .plainlist ul li{margin-bottom:0}</style><div class="plainlist"><ul><li>1996–1999</li><li>1997 model year: 660 Gen I units</li><li>1999 model year: 457 Gen II units</li></ul></div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Assembly</th><td class="infobox-data">GM <a href="/en/Lansing_Craft_Center" title="Lansing Craft Center" class="wl">Lansing Craft Center</a>, <a href="/en/Lansing,_Michigan" title="Lansing, Michigan" class="wl">Lansing, Michigan</a>, U.S.</td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header notheme" style="background-color: #C0C0C0">Body and chassis</th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/en/Car_classification" title="Car classification" class="wl">Class</a></th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/Electric_car" title="Electric car" class="wl">Electric</a> <a href="/en/Subcompact_car" title="Subcompact car" class="wl">subcompact</a> <a href="/en/Coupé" title="Coupé" class="mw-redirect wl">coupé</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/en/Car_body_style" title="Car body style" class="wl">Body&nbsp;style</a></th><td class="infobox-data">2-seat, 2-door <a href="/en/Coupé" title="Coupé" class="mw-redirect wl">coupé</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/en/Automobile_layout" title="Automobile layout" class="mw-redirect wl">Layout</a></th><td class="infobox-data"><a href="/en/Front-engine,_front-wheel-drive_layout" title="Front-engine, front-wheel-drive layout" class="wl">Transverse front-motor, front-wheel drive</a></td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header notheme" style="background-color: #C0C0C0">Powertrain</th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/en/Electric_motor" title="Electric motor" class="wl">Electric&nbsp;motor</a></th><td class="infobox-data"><div class="plainlist"><ul><li><a href="/en/Three-phase" title="Three-phase" class="mw-redirect wl">Three-phase</a> <a href="/en/Alternating_current" title="Alternating current" class="wl">alternating current</a></li><li><a href="/en/Induction_motor" title="Induction motor" class="wl">induction motor</a> with</li><li><a href="/en/Insulated-gate_bipolar_transistor" title="Insulated-gate bipolar transistor" class="wl">IGBT</a> <a href="/en/Power_inverter" title="Power inverter" class="wl">power inverter</a></li><li>137&nbsp;bhp (102&nbsp;kW) at 7000&nbsp;rpm</li><li>110&nbsp;lb⋅ft (149&nbsp;N⋅m) at 0–7000&nbsp;rpm</li></ul></div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/en/Transmission_(mechanics)" title="Transmission (mechanics)" class="mw-redirect wl">Transmission</a></th><td class="infobox-data category">Single-speed reduction integrated with motor and differential</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/en/Electric_vehicle_battery" title="Electric vehicle battery" class="wl">Battery</a></th><td class="infobox-data">Early vehicles 16.5–18.7&nbsp;kWh lead–acid, later versions 26.4&nbsp;kWh <a href="/en/Nickel–metal_hydride_battery" title="Nickel–metal hydride battery" class="wl">nickel–metal hydride</a> (NiMH)</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/en/All-electric_range" title="All-electric range" class="wl">Electric&nbsp;range</a></th><td class="infobox-data"><div class="plainlist"><ul><li><a href="/en/Environmental_Protection_Agency" title="Environmental Protection Agency" class="mw-redirect wl">EPA</a>, revised according to 2019 procedure:<a href="#cite_note-leadcurrent-1" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 1;">[1]</a><a href="#cite_note-nimhcurrent-2" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 2;">[2]</a></li><li><a href="/en/Lead–acid_battery" title="Lead–acid battery" class="wl">lead–acid</a>: 89&nbsp;km (55&nbsp;mi)</li><li><a href="/en/Nickel–metal_hydride_battery" title="Nickel–metal hydride battery" class="wl">NiMH</a>: 169&nbsp;km (105&nbsp;mi)</li><li><a href="/en/Environmental_Protection_Agency" title="Environmental Protection Agency" class="mw-redirect wl">EPA</a>, based on original 1999 rating:<a href="#cite_note-leadcurrent-1" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 1;">[1]</a><a href="#cite_note-leadconvert-3" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 3;">[3]</a><a href="#cite_note-nimhcurrent-2" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 2;">[2]</a><a href="#cite_note-nimhconvert-4" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 4;">[4]</a></li><li><a href="/en/Lead–acid_battery" title="Lead–acid battery" class="wl">lead–acid</a>: 126&nbsp;km (78&nbsp;mi)</li><li><a href="/en/Nickel–metal_hydride_battery" title="Nickel–metal hydride battery" class="wl">NiMH</a>: 228&nbsp;km (142&nbsp;mi)</li></ul></div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/en/Charging_station" title="Charging station" class="wl">Plug-in&nbsp;charging</a></th><td class="infobox-data">6.6 kW <a href="/en/Magne_Charge" title="Magne Charge" class="wl">Magne Charge</a> inductive converter</td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header notheme" style="background-color: #C0C0C0">Dimensions</th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/en/Wheelbase" title="Wheelbase" class="wl">Wheelbase</a></th><td class="infobox-data">98.9&nbsp;in (2,510&nbsp;mm)</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Length</th><td class="infobox-data">169.7&nbsp;in (4,310&nbsp;mm)<a href="#cite_note-oldcarbrochures.org-5" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 5;">[5]</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Width</th><td class="infobox-data">69.5&nbsp;in (1,770&nbsp;mm)<a href="#cite_note-oldcarbrochures.org-5" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 5;">[5]</a></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Height</th><td class="infobox-data">50.5&nbsp;in (1,280&nbsp;mm)</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label"><a href="/en/Curb_weight" title="Curb weight" class="mw-redirect wl">Curb&nbsp;weight</a></th><td class="infobox-data"><div class="plainlist"><ul><li>3,086&nbsp;lb (1,400&nbsp;kg)</li><li>with <a href="/en/Lead–acid_battery" title="Lead–acid battery" class="wl">lead–acid batteries</a></li><li>2,908&nbsp;lb (1,319&nbsp;kg)</li><li>with <a href="/en/Nickel–metal_hydride_battery" title="Nickel–metal hydride battery" class="wl">NiMH batteries</a></li></ul></div></td></tr><tr><th colspan="2" class="infobox-header notheme" style="background-color: #C0C0C0">Chronology</th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Predecessor</th><td class="infobox-data">GM Impact (prototype)</td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="infobox-label">Successor</th><td class="infobox-data"><div class="plainlist"><ul><li><a href="/en/Chevrolet_Spark_EV" title="Chevrolet Spark EV" class="mw-redirect wl">Chevrolet Spark EV</a></li><li><a href="/en/Chevrolet_Bolt" title="Chevrolet Bolt" class="wl">Chevrolet Bolt</a></li></ul></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <footer class='mobile-collapse-footer mobile-collapse-btn'>Close ▲</footer></div>

The decision to mass-produce an electric car came after GM received a favorable reception for its 1990 Impact electric concept car, upon which the design of the EV1 drew heavily. Inspired partly by the Impact's perceived potential for success, the <a href="/en/California_Air_Resources_Board" title="California Air Resources Board" class="wl">California Air Resources Board</a> (CARB) subsequently[<a href="/en/Wikipedia:Manual_of_Style/Dates_and_numbers#Chronological_items" title="Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Dates and numbers" class="wl">when?</a>] passed a mandate that made the production and sale of <a href="/en/Zero-emissions_vehicle" title="Zero-emissions vehicle" class="wl">zero-emissions vehicles</a> (ZEV) a requirement for the seven major automakers selling cars in the United States to continue to market their vehicles in <a href="/en/California" title="California" class="wl">California</a>.

The EV1 was made available through limited <a href="/en/Lease" title="Lease" class="wl">lease</a>-only agreements, initially to residents of the cities of <a href="/en/Los_Angeles" title="Los Angeles" class="wl">Los Angeles</a>, California, and <a href="/en/Phoenix,_Arizona" title="Phoenix, Arizona" class="wl">Phoenix</a> and <a href="/en/Tucson" title="Tucson" class="mw-redirect wl">Tucson</a>, <a href="/en/Arizona" title="Arizona" class="wl">Arizona</a>.<a href="#cite_note-8" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 8;">[8]</a> EV1 lessees were officially participants in a "real-world engineering evaluation" and market study into the feasibility of producing and marketing a commuter electric vehicle in select U.S. markets undertaken by GM's Advanced Technology Vehicles group.<a href="#cite_note-GreenCarEV1-9" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 9;">[9]</a><a href="#cite_note-10" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 10;">[10]</a> The cars were not available for purchase, and could be serviced only at designated <a href="/en/Saturn_Corporation" title="Saturn Corporation" class="wl">Saturn</a> dealerships. Within a year of the EV1's release, leasing programs were also launched in <a href="/en/San_Francisco" title="San Francisco" class="wl">San Francisco</a> and <a href="/en/Sacramento" title="Sacramento" class="mw-redirect wl">Sacramento</a>, California, along with a limited program in the state of <a href="/en/Georgia_(U.S._state)" title="Georgia (U.S. state)" class="wl">Georgia</a>.

While customer reaction to the EV1 was positive, GM believed that electric cars occupied an unprofitable niche of the automobile market, and ended up <a href="/en/Car_crusher" title="Car crusher" class="wl">crushing</a> most of the cars, regardless of protesting customers.<a href="#cite_note-SanFranChron-11" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 11;">[11]</a> Furthermore, an alliance of the major automakers litigated the CARB regulation in court, resulting in a slackening of the ZEV stipulation, permitting the companies to produce super-low-emissions vehicles, natural gas vehicles, and hybrid cars in place of pure electrics. The EV1 program was subsequently discontinued in 2002, and all cars on the road were taken back by the company, under the terms of the lease. Lessees were not given the option to purchase their cars from GM, which cited parts, service, and liability regulations.<a href="#cite_note-CarandDriverAug09-6" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 6;">[6]</a> The majority of the EV1s taken back were crushed, with about 40 delivered to museums and educational institutes with their electric <a href="/en/Powertrain" title="Powertrain" class="mw-redirect wl">powertrains</a> deactivated, under the agreement that the cars were not to be reactivated and driven on the road. The only intact EV1 was donated to the <a href="/en/Smithsonian_Institution" title="Smithsonian Institution" class="wl">Smithsonian Institution</a>.<a href="#cite_note-Survivors-12" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 12;">[12]</a> General Motors also allegedly gave models to research institutions with EV1s being found in the wild near universities often in states of disrepair.<a href="#cite_note-Atlanta-13" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 13;">[13]</a>

The EV1's discontinuation remains controversial, with electric car enthusiasts, environmental interest groups and former EV1 lessees accusing GM of self-<a href="/en/Sabotage" title="Sabotage" class="wl">sabotaging</a> its electric car program to avoid potential losses in spare parts sales (sales forced by government regulations), while also blaming the <a href="/en/Oil_industry" title="Oil industry" class="mw-redirect wl">oil industry</a> for conspiring to keep electric cars off the road.<a href="#cite_note-CarandDriverAug09-6" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 6;">[6]</a> During the discontinuation, film director <a href="/en/Francis_Ford_Coppola" title="Francis Ford Coppola" class="wl">Francis Ford Coppola</a> hid his EV1 from General Motors and was ultimately able to keep it.<a href="#cite_note-Atlanta-13" style="counter-reset: mw-Ref 13;">[13]</a> As a result of GM taking the cars back as the leases ended and the subsequent destruction of the majority of EV1s, an intact and working EV1 is one of the rarest cars from the 1990s.

The General Motors EV1 was an electric car produced and leased by General Motors from 1996 to 1999. The decision to mass-produce an electric car came after GM received a favorable reception for its 1990 Impact electric concept car, upon which the design of the EV1 drew heavily. Inspired partly by the Impact's perceived potential for success, the California Air Resources Board subsequently passed a mandate that made the production and sale of zero-emissions vehicles a requirement for the seven major automakers selling cars in the United States to continue to market their vehicles in California. The EV1 was made available through limited lease-only agreements, initially to residents of the cities of Los Angeles, California, and Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona. The cars were not available for purchase, and could be serviced only at designated Saturn dealerships. Within a year of the EV1's release, leasing programs were also launched in San Francisco and Sacramento, California, along with a limited program in the state of Georgia. 