Killing the Electric Car - USA

Sep 2006
Did General Motors deliberately sabotage the marketing of electric cars because they threatened the motor industry? That's the allegation made in a controversial new documentary.
Ten years ago, GM unveiled the EV1 -- the first electric car for the mass market. "The EV1 was really special because it was cool and fast and fun to drive," states former GM marketer Chelsea Sexton. "These cars were so good, they would challenge the status quo of the oil industry." But despite their popularity among owners, GM quickly pulled the plug on its new product. It claims there was simply no mass market. "You could only go 100 miles before you had to recharge it so had to adapt your lifestyle to meet the needs of the vehicle," states spokesman Dave Barthmuss. But other workers believe GM never intended the EV1s to work and were more interested in promoting Hummers. "We got indications along the way that they weren't as sincere as they would have people believe," states Sexton. All the EV1s had been leased, instead of sold, to their owners. When the leases expired, GM refused to renew them and sent the cars to be crushed. But demand for electric cars keeps on growing. Some enthusiasts have converted their own cars to run on electricity and claim they have invented a battery that will last for 500km.
Produced by SBS/Dateline
Distributed by Journeyman Pictures

[@ronalaska2472]

And now Tesla is scaring the hell out of the car industry!

[@TransAtlanticEV]

Didn't have enough parts.....? They owned the batterycompany and then sold it to a the Oil Company Chevron which still has not produced a single battery! Wonder why? Just ask yourself that!

[@robertsommerseth3063]

of course it's bs, people still own ancient cars and while even brand does not even exist anymore for decades, parts are still being custom made, all that car needed is a battery replacement, it doesn't need oil change or any of that nonsense that we have in regular cars, pretty sure suspension was based of a small car and not originally made for EV1, rest is just electrics which also can be replaced with compatible parts, you can simply fix the fridge or any other kitchen appliance with parts from a completely different brand. Electric cars are not rocket science.

[@BSAElectronics2014]

That shill at GM keep using the "safety" boogeyman to sell his defence of refusing to sell the cars to the current leasees.

[@darkgreenambulance]

@@robertsommerseth3063 Absolutely! You`ve hit the nail right on the head!

[@mariocortes777]

I love the quote: "No war has ever been bought for solar electricity"

[@r.i.pyoutube6881]

rideordieguy rideordieguy it’s not hard to notice

[@bip3937]

Maggie shot mr burns

[@LuciusC]

Just wait until we have a silicon shortage lol

[@aycc-nbh7289]

That line makes me think of the miner strikes just prior to and under Margaret Thatcher’s government.

[@airhab]

No but they will one day fight over hydroelectric dams, take my word!

[@aarontu8147]

“These EV1 cars represented a reality, a reality that was working and that can work again and needs to work again, and will work again. These cars are not dead, electric cars are just temporarily unavailable. The dream is still alive.” - Linda Nichols

[@darkgreenambulance]

I`m convinced you are right - after all, in London , there are full sized double decker busses - pure electric, (no diesel generator to recharge batteries) with a range of 180 miles!

[@doctordan1668]

A true visionary

[@Lovejazz01]

The development, sales and success of the Tesla Model 3, after the Nissan Leaf, After the Tesla Model S, after the Chevy Volt, after the BMW i3, is a direct result of GM stopping and crushing the EV1, it is exactly the electric car people have been waiting for as predicted .

[@macioluko9484]

Imagine the improvement in range, acceleration, safety and charging infrastructure in the last 20 years if GM simply allowed the EV1 to continue even at the modest sales (leases) that it did generate in the beginning. Not to mention the job creation that Detroit could use right about now.

[@bouchandre]

+Macio Luko But if that had happened, I don't think Tesla would even exist today. And looking at how quickly they're pushing forward all the EV innovations, I think it's a good thing that the EV1 didn't go through after all.

[@macioluko9484]

What happened is history and nothing will change it. My point is that if GM did the right thing and continued with the EV as Elon Musk thought they would, Elon would not have gotten into the car business at all. Sure, I agree that GM's versions of the EV would not have been as awe inspiring as the Model S or X but if continued, over the last 2 decades we would have thousands of EVs on the roads and Elon would have probably landed on Mars by now. It's the wasted time and unnecessary pollution that bothers me. So glad Tesla is here though!

[@jamisojo]

Who cares. Crappy electric cars are on the way regardless. It is happening more than fast enough. ...but until they make a full sized pickups that run on electricity as good as the current ones, nobody is going to buy electric. We don't need crappier cars. That's not a worthwhile goal.

[@farukcarushi4983]

Tom Johnson "crappy" electric cars? No these cars are great man. So many good things about them, the only negative thing about them is the range per charge, but that will be solved soon. And I think pick up trucks are in the plans too, so welcome aboard bro.

[@markplott4820]

TOM - your so called "Crappy" Electric cars can Travel more than 620 Miles on ONE charge and go 0 - 60 in 1.9 Seconds, 0 - 100 in 4.2 Seconds, and 1/4 Mile in 8.9 Seconds. Top speed is 250+ Mph. Bonus it seats 4 Adults.

[@AlexPittendreigh]

The GM lackey prattling on @6:50 is so full of corporate BS. According to virtually all reports of users that I've seen and heard who actually leased/drove the EV1 wanted to keep it. Apparently many offered to pay GM outright for the cars. Says plenty right there about GM's attitude I think.

[@macioluko9484]

I'm a business owner and if a client would would offer to buy my product and I would do anything other than thank them, smile and ask if there is anything else I could do for them, I would go out of business... Oh wait so did GM in 2008. Some business laws know no boundaries.

[@paulbrowne6087]

I never thought I'd own an electric car but I do now and love it so much. Its so nice not to be addicted to oil any more.

[@MrJimmysko]

"iTS sO NiCe nOt tO bE aDdictEd tO oIl aNymOre" Guess what's used to provide 90-98% of the power to charge your petrol free car dumbass.

[@KpopIsDead69]

instead you're addicted to corrosive toxic lithium batteries that create more toxic fumes and waste during its manufacturing than a gas car does in a year do you boo boo but stop living in delusions

[@trillian1964]

Define bigotry: A representative of a company guilty for not recalling cars with faulty ignition switches, which caused casualties for a decade, talking about safety at a time, when failure of switches was already known.

[@GALTwarrior]

You can't ignore market forces... years later, GM tried again with the Volt... which also failed in selling in sufficient numbers to justify producing it. I think the Volt's problem wasn't range or performance, but simply the price tag. Personally, If GM were to produce a small sports car (in my mind... akin to the Pontiac Fiero) that didn't have a bunch of high end amenities to keep the cost down... I think it would sell well. GM priced the Volt out of the market where most people were unwilling to follow...

[@DarcyTucker161616]

The Chevy Volt originally would use up the battery power before converting to gasoline until you could recharge the batteries. The newer models can go further on electric (50 miles now, up from 36 mi.) before the batteries deplete, and again, the gasoline engine takes over. What buyers want, is the Volt to convert to electric power when you are driving in stop-and-go traffic, basically driving at less than 25 miles per hour and stopping all the time. Then when traffic picks up, the gasoline engine takes over at higher speeds. Typically more gas is used up due to acceleration from stop.

[@jameslong120]

GM leased the cars and then recall the whole lot when the leases were expired. GM spokes person is full of shit.

[@darkgreenambulance]

The chap justifying the scrapping of those electric cars, (new ones!!) said that his firm didn`t think it right to leave these in the hands of people who would not be able to buy spare parts, (as there weren`t enough manufactured!) in order to run these vehicles in a proper, safe manner. What a load of rubbish! Have you ever heard of any other firm doing that. And - what did they think would happen? The whole concept of an electric car is utter simplicity - although I imagine firms would like to make it as complicated as possible to force the buyers into taking the cars in for any correction of faulty, complex "management system" built in for unnecessary sophistication of presentation of, say, an impressive display on a futuristic dashboard - or some-such goody that appeals to certain types of people; we`ve seen that enough times on cars all through the ages - and it`s a shame really especially for those that can`t afford large amounts. When one buys a second hand car today, one has to cope with a very complex motor indeed - a left over from the previous, rich owner who has got the best out of it - but now the fear of the tiniest fault rendering the vehicle unworthy of repair, is always crouching in the corner! Coming back to our brand new scrapped electric car : I think the prospect of making something that would require practically no servicing, almost zero problems with passing M O T tests, using no fuel from the petro chemical industry (making more enemies!!) and damaging sales of the "super cars" was enough to put G.M. off! But as for the above excuse .........!!

[@monadoboy9639]

It's sad it took so long and took someone like Elon musk to make the electric car more of a reality but we still could have had this 20-30 years ago if oil companies weren't so greedy

[@danielblake16]

So true...m

[@bjorn1583]

if tesla can do it then they all can

[@evolt7553]

@The Legend of Texas With that logic, so can all the car companies who are switching to electric cars - Audi, BMW, Porsche, Volkswagen, Ford, Chevrolet, Cadillac, Seat, Renault, Opel, DS, Škoda, Pininfarina, Hyundai, Nissan, BYD or even Kia. And all of the hundreds of EV startups that I can't even name.

[@edstar83]

Tesla revived the electric car.

[@nickjonesCSM]

Just think how far forward we could be now. The Tesla’s 0 to 60 is just over 2 seconds with a range of 360 miles.

[@nickjonesCSM]

The Legend of Texas the problem is most American V8s just aren’t as fast as the Tesla, it can out drag all supercars. The next stage is the all electric 4x4 off-roader, within 5 years one will win the Paris to Dakar rally. V8sand V12s just don’t cut it anymore. Or at least won’t do in the next few years. Think about it, how about owning a hummer that has a 0 to 60 of 2.5 seconds. It will probably be possible in a couple of years.

[@pascalmerschaudio]

after 4 years and tesla has made it "Model 3" Dream car

[@adoreslaurel]

That GM publicist guy is full of crap,if they thought it was not feasible why not just leave the cars in the hands of those who had them.

[@douglasewell]

This man is a liar! That`s why Toyota is now the biggest car company in the world, and GM went bank bankrupt !

[@macioluko9484]

And they have the nerve to fly to Washington DC in private jets requesting bailout money. How about a noose?

[@seththomas9105]

Follow the money. The petroleum industry has ruled the roost in the USA since WWII and anything that has threatened them since that time has quietly "slipped away". Streetcars/interurbans, passenger rail, busses and any mass transit really. Other than New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco and a few other big East Coast areas mass transit was virtually wiped out. Its amazing how fast the change happened, roughly 1945-1960 and it was a done deal for mass transit. Inter-city passenger rail was going down too but there were plenty of trains that were at least breaking even cost wise until 1968. What happened then? The United States post office, out of the clear blue sky, decided to pull the US mail contracts off of the passenger trains and put them on trucks. Trucks that use tires(petroleum) fuel(petroleum) lubricants(petroleum) in much larger amounts than do trains. When the contracts to haul the mail were pulled in 1968 the costs of running passenger trains skyrocketed for the railroads and by May 1971 Amtrak was formed. This of course forced people to drive even if they didn't want to. Fate accomplis.

[@marcryvon]

Seth Thomas You are absolutely right. But add GM as a culprit too. They bribed so many public transit corps to sell their buses and diesel locomotives. There was some inquiries up here in Canada but, of course, everything was deemed ok and honest ! Ha ! Yeah, sure...

[@bradleypool4187]

It's any wonder the GM public relations guy reacons they didn't produce spare parts. They never intended to mass produce the EV, knowing full well that it required next to no maintenance and as such would have eaten into the production of gas guzzlers by people wanting less expensive cars to run. I think we all except by now, that electric cars are easily a viable option and their efficiency is self evident. Even a car that only does 100 km a day would do me. It's a pity it took until Elon Musk to come along before we have a dedicated electric production car available to buy. We could have had it 30 years ago from the other car manufacturers and that would've at least made a dent in how much carbon has been released into the atmosphere by now. Oil rules the world.

[@ztexanz]

when an oil executives mouth moves ....THEY ARE LYING

[@aymanlockhartable]

Elon Musk hold my batteries!

[@TCreatorO]

In 1999, Dodge introduced the Caravan EPIC, a fully electric minivan. The EPIC was powered by 28 12-volt NiMH batteries and was capable of traveling up to 80 miles (130 km) on a single charge. The EPIC was sold as a fleet-only lease vehicle. Production of the EPIC was discontinued in 2001. Only a few hundred of these vehicles were produced and sold. After the leases expired they were returned and crushed. Approximately 10 vans remain in private hands today

[@pram5532]

The dream is still alive!

[@USAon3]

"You don't spend in excess of a billion dollars to set a vehicle up for failure." (unless you have the funding of Big Oil to do exactly that, right Dave?) "For something like that to work you really had to adapt your lifestyle to the needs of the vehicle, versus a vehicle that's going to meet your needs." (Yeah Dave - your current marketing strategy dictates that everyone "needs" a 3/4-ton Silverado to go two blocks for a loaf of bread.) Never. will there be another GM product in my garage.

[@144Donn]

It is great to watch these older videos to see how far we have come! We are at he end of 2018 and here they come: all the manufactures are finally on board or at the very least seeing the light. EV's are getting stronger every day!

[@pacificislander8503]

GO GO TESLA TIME!!!!! big automakers wake up

[@Anthony-nx5yu]

trapneck if you go into the deep KZbin you’ll find out that Tesla is super selfish. Hey you need part for your car and want to replace it yourself.... boo hoo you have to call Tesla and they will only replace it for you. Did you buy a salvaged Tesla and fixed it up yourself? Need more parts... sorry your blacklisted your on your own. Tesla is pretty petty. But being honest... I’d still buy one 😂

[@Resistance_is_Futile01]

Fuck tesla

[@evolt7553]

@@Anthony-nx5yu They do that in order for some numpty to not screw anything up and either damage their car or void their warranty.

[@Anthony-nx5yu]

Evolt yea that’s a great excuse for them to force you to get it repaired through them, instead of diy.

[@evolt7553]

@The Legend of Texas Nah, I'm not going to. I mean, I like electric cars, but fucking them is too much work and I'm pretty sure it would hurt.

[@darkchild256]

thankyou for saying executives and not putting down the entire USA like everyone else does :D

[@johnyon123]

It's a shame that they killed the EV1. GM was afraid that cars like EV1 requires almost no maintenance and will not be profitable like other trouble making cars. Germans are good in making cars that suck your blood after the warranty expires. This is why we all love Asian makes like Honda, Subaru, and Hyundai. These are honest car makers.

[@steveonyoutube3120]

AND NOW Hyundai produces the IONIQ ELECTRIC. A fantastic EV with a very good range of near 150 miles amazing design and techique and a good price as well. If you cannot buy a Tesla buy an IONIQ.

[@bmw803]

And Toyota landed on the number 1 spot for recalls for major parts such as gas pedals, air bags, and most of their cars are made with tinfoil. They feel like a cardboard box. And these days they also have their problems like any other manufacturer. But you're right about GM however. They could have been so far ahead of anyone else. This is what happens when you try to resist change and being protectionist. You get left behind.

[@spazzman90]

Many times it doesn't pay to be too far ahead. The EV1 was ahead of its time, but far from being ready for prime time. Now GM has the Bolt and the timing is right. Making the switch to EVs is not a slam dunk in the US anyways. I hope Tesla can make it to the party since they reserved the venue and set up all the decorations, but things are not looking so good right now.

[@alberoDiSpazio]

+Joe mariconadas the cars are meant to cumple during an accident, they will give up its life for yours.

[@bmw803]

The best ones for that are German cars. They've been designing them like that forever. Autobahn accidents are no joke.

[@sadmancho]

I wish I could go back in time to show these guys a Tesla model X and S.

[@sledge6693]

How are you supposed to simulate interest in something which you only allow customers to LEASE and never own?.

[@fireballxl5768]

Why import oil when you the can use domestic fuels I.e bio fuels and electric,even if you do not believe in climate change it makes economic sense.

[@ducksoup80]

I have a Polaris EV that I go on fishing trips with and have went 30 miles on one charge and still had 35% battery juice of course I take the back roads it's pretty close to a car but it's a UTV I take pretty good care of the batteries it has four-wheel-drive and weighs 1700 pounds and they say can go up to 50 miles on one charge.

[@Nichen]

I love the devotion among all EV-owners. I pray to be an EV owner myself one day. I will join the struggle to make the EV-transportation the given choice. I Was thinking of converting to Electricity next year.

[@mijreed]

Ironic...I think GM will be remember as Xerox is. Produced a product/technology WAAAYYYY ahead of its time but the idiot executives didn't know the gold mine they were sitting on.

[@TheWayoftheSith]

it will go down actually. Electric cars will generate more energy than they use, solar powered. That energy will go back into the energy grid when you plug it in. Putting less pressure on fossil fuel and coal power stations.

[@dandaintac388]

This is totally untrue. How come Tesla is doing so well? They can't keep up with their orders! And their range is much greater than the EV1. This technology is also in its infancy. If they invested anywhere near as much into EV technology as they do just the sales and marketing of SUVs, this technology would take off. But they don't want that. They don't like the risk, and their buddies in the oil industry wouldn't like it either.

[@scorpionkings]

The big oil companies played a HUGE part in making sure that electric cars didn't last....Big oil seen that electric cars had to much potential to take away TRILLIONS of dollars from gas car productivity! IT'S ALL ABOUT MONEY.

[@pokey47]

I get that they may not want to continue the program, but why destroy them? They only leased them, let the people buy them.

[@crwatrainfanNein]

Gm does't make hummers now !!!!!

[@markplott4820]

the Venerable American Hummer is made in China with Cheap Chinese parts.

[@fanirama]

It was the Bummer

[@pinkyzoey]

100K tax credit for a Hummer, 4k for an electric car.

[@FinanceLogic]

i wonder what would help a battery keep the charge. any good ideas?

[@thezone363]

where did this video come from originally anyone know?

[@haroldpierre1726]

Well, that backfired! Now the American big 3 car companies are FAR behind Tesla!

[@Larry]

Same thing happened with Kodak and Polaroid, they invented digital cameras in the 70s, but sat on them as they wouldn't make money from film. ended up bankrupting them both.

[@bernzeppi]

About 13:00 mins... The GM guy is lying!See his mouth dry up... He's telling lies and it's obvious!

[@farukcarushi4983]

Bernie Zelvis plus his left eye did that weird thing

[@PRATAPSINGH-jr7oy]

That's what I also felt.

[@irishguy13]

GM had no problems with selling shitty and unsafe cars like the Vega, the Monza, the Corsica, and even, yes, the Hummer H2 which folded up like a beer can in a front end collision. The range issue has been solved and there is a demand for good Electric Vehicles, and GM knew that it would be. They've made the Volt as poorly as possible, and it still sells. It is not the EV-2 but it could be. The reason it's not is because the Banksters don't want to destroy both their oil industry and the military industrial complex, as well as the political economic (and thus social control) over the entire world.

[@diomidisx]

i have the mercedes w123 240d and i am inderest to change it and do it electric car but i don t khow how much it cost and where i can do it tell me if you know

[@juelzm149]

This is why it was imperative that the government bail GM out, they partially funded and completely endorsed the SUV craze. 100,000 tax break for buying a Hummer?! Wtf? Btw I hope the azzhole PR guy got fired during the restructuring

[@jamisojo]

SUVs are awesome and we want them. GM doesn't need to endorse that. If they don't want to produce them, someone else will.

[@PRATAPSINGH-jr7oy]

Ha ha ha

[@eco_guardian]

If they had kept up with it, they would dominate the industry

[@Puppyjump]

The GM oil shill says the EV1 "only goes 100 miles or so" and then "takes 4 to 8 hours to recharge it". He says this makes the car unsuitable for most people. Well, I drive at most 30 miles in one day, which would allow (8/100)x(30 miles)=2.4 hours for a recharge. Even if I drove 100 miles, I could still afford to wait 8 hours to recharge since I would do it overnight or at work. For those who drive 100+ miles a day, their gas would cost less if the rest of us drove EVs.

[@interstellarbruce6429]

GM killed our past by destroying American street cars, and our now trying to destroy are future. attacking high speed rail, and the electric car. a cheap electric city car that could be mass produced, and given to cities could solve the final mile problem for trains. it would be even better if the car had a self driving system.

[@markplott4820]

GM, interstate battery, oil, and Tires Company all Conspired to kill the Electric Trolly and Street Cats. the made a Fortune in Sales of Motorcoach and Buses.

[@cuntsniffer4545]

Gm sucks but cry me a river

[@nerox2006x]

I was just thinking the same thing. We can go electric for short distances then rent a gas powered car for long distance trips. A electric car that gets 100 to 200 miles on a charge would be perfect for me.

[@justinjoyit13]

I loved how the GM PR man was swallowing hard when he was lying through his teeth about why they crushed the EV1!!

[@ameyagundale]

KZbin is truly a time machine

[@davidviner4932]

I drove to Bracknell today, 108 miles and the hotel didn’t have anywhere to charge a car, just as well I have a diesel

[@MOTOFLIXGARAGE]

The reality is ....GM made Arabs Rich!!

[@lan6947]

Islamic lobbying played a big role in killing the electric car industry - the Muslim world is enjoying its vast money from oil, too much.

[@zelmiracholevova184]

That is the real reason. Elite doesn't care about global warming as far as they et money,money, MONEY. And more money.

[@kevinloving5688]

Rider Geek Yes as a Christian I believe we need to get off of Islamic oil because OPEC is funding the most radical form of Islam the form that says women must be covered head to toe and accompanied by a male relative and just now Saudia women JUST got the right to drive by themselves And this form of Islam wants to overturn governments that are voted in by their people and pass laws decided by these country's legislatures And this form of Islam also kills people who DARE to leave Islam.

[@kevinloving5688]

Lan And as Christians we should be angry that the U.S. has gone into Mr. Jefferson's marketplace of ideas and came in on the side of Islam.

[@shadowdance4666]

Rider Geek I believe automakers got kickbacks too. Not to mention the trillions they will lose once electric vehicles take off because they have very few moving parts which don’t breakdown

[@stevencorrea7982]

i own a chevrolet citation why GM have crushed it recalls up the wazoo

[@Puppyjump]

The RAV4 EV has been very reliable for 10 years. The battery packs still perform as new 100,000 miles later. It's true power plants emit pollution, but an EV is so efficient that mile for mile driven, an EV is responsible for less pollution than if that same vehicle was powered by a gas engine. Far less.

[@tigerbody69]

In the beginning of "horseless carriages" people had a choice of gas, steam, and electric.

[@texastriguy]

The real question is: Why did GM crush the cars? Supposedly they crushed them because they didn't have PARTS? That's the biggest lie I've ever heard. Seriously? People DID NOT CARE. They wanted to buy them anyway and were willing to sign waivers or whatever. They raised money and openly offered it to GM. To claim you couldn't make parts or some BS like that is the most absurd thing ever.

[@markplott4820]

GM wanted to control the Technology. so that's why GM decides to crush them. this ment that NO ONE could Dissassemble or Reverse Engineer what GM did. but, as we have seen, the Japanese car companies are SMARTER and more INNOVATIVE when it comes to its Electric cars.

[@RayBthesecond]

Is it safe to assume now at $4.00 a gallon changes the equation for the future of electric cars?I dont think we have a choice!

[@nickiemcnichols5397]

Thanks for this video. I love the do it yourselfers!

[@PistonAvatarGuy]

I think more people need to be a little more aware of the range of these cars. I ran errands all day a couple of days ago, in two cities, and I didn't even drive 60 miles! 100 miles is more than enough range for most people.

[@zelmiracholevova184]

We the people,want affordable electric cars now!

[@VoodooGMusic]

Tesla, Kia, Hyundai, Nissan. The choice is yours.

[@marcryvon]

@@VoodooGMusic He wrote Affordable.

[@VoodooGMusic]

@@marcryvon To be fair, Tesla isn't really affordable yet. What would you class as affordable though?

[@marcryvon]

@@VoodooGMusic The only one I could consider moneywise is the Renault/Nissan Leaf. But untill this year redesign, it looked abominous. Like a deep water bottom sucker fish. The back, even worse. I could not imagine myself going around in this ugly thing. The new one is better. As I always buy my cars used, 2 or 3 years depreation, I'll have to wait a bit. I'd love to buy a Tesla Model3, but Elon decided to first produce the loaded, luxury version of it. In Canadian dollars, it's way out of my reach. See, the $C exchange rate is around .75US$ for the last2 years. A 25% premium. Yep, OUCH, that hurts ! So now, I donno. I'm retired, the wife too, we don't do much long range travelling now. We each have our own older cars, a 2001 mint Altima, and a tough, unbreakable, rust free but basic 2006 Focus wagon. I love the lil'guy. Used it as a small truck, hauling tools and plywood on top of it. I might buy a ICE after all. Like a loaded Mazda 3 (used of course). I like the format, the looks of it and it's quality reputation. But the Model 3 is damn tempting ! I'll see.

[@VoodooGMusic]

@@marcryvon Have you considered the Hyundai Ioniq Electric? About the same range as the new leaf. Also looks decent, and is currently the most efficient production car on the market. I wouldn't ever buy another ICE vehicle, for various reasons. Maybe EVs aren't quite where ICEs are right now, but in less than 5 years that will be drastically different. All the cars that are now new models, will then be popular used cars, and there will be countless new models that people will want to buy. So either buy an EV now, or wait, but don't buy a new ICE, you might regret it in a few years.

[@terrancel1786]

The EV1 was so sexy it was classic, what a shame what they did.

[@pantyflash]

Like, totally awesome. The folks in DC and Detroit now can't help but listen, because the electric-car movement is gaining too much momentum to be stopped. As for DC & Detroit, we will have electric cars either with their help, or despite their resistance. To all of the folks keeping current on electric-car development & diligently pushing it through: Way to go, babes!

[@tigerbody69]

There are 3 levels of EV battery charging in the standards. 8 hour - over night - 15 Amps from the wall 4 hour - 30-50 Amps from the breaker box 15 minute (to 80%) 100-400 Amps from the "gas station"

[@zapfanzapfan]

Lovely EV-Chelsea :-)

[@user-xx5kk9hx4c]

Peace and love.

[@id0069]

The Gov did not sabotage the law. They cant, they make them. The Zenn never was legal on Canadian roads because it does not meet safety standards(no lights, horn, windshield wipers etc). As of Dec 8, they can be legal in some places if safety equip is installed. They will not likely be allowed on major roads because they are too slow. They should also do a 2-3 year limited test like with ebikes, but I hope they can do it.

[@cag66]

It is relatively easy to make your own now especially with LiFeP04 batteries. Do some research and you will find a huge amount of companies who sell conversion kits to convert fuel powered cars.

[@pjkPA]

No.. unfair trade is what is hurting them the most. Toyota is not paying taxes at it's plants in the south and paying poverty wages.. yes poverty in this country is set at 23K per year... Toyota Honda Nissan Hyundai are paying 24K per year... poverty wages and not paying US taxes.They also import cars with no tariffs while a Chevy Cobalt costs $45,000 in Japan. Our government is no doing its job and now they are saying it's the comopanies fault. If only our government ran half as efficent as GM

[@cag66]

It's conceivable that this was just not a good business proposition for gm. They can just make more money selling fuel vehicles. Why should any company have to make a product which will make them lose money. That is where the government has to step in.

[@boobie284]

Problem is, spanning solar cells all across america, is estimated to run only cars in a state like california(not because its big but because they actually have an investment in alternatives, check out the Honda FCX...) Solar panels need to improve before this can happen...

[@samuelmasar3463]

Well shit, times have changed nearly all companies are going electric there, happy?

[@ameyagundale]

Thank goodness for Tesla to reignite the dream

[@Mario_N64]

But now it's a luxury dream.

[@EllRiver]

​@@Mario_N64 now it'd priced competently to gass cars.

[@czarsolarhydrowind]

They need to get into the market of converting the GM's on the road now to hybrid kits and make it a specialty service this would put them back on the map! lots of parts will create jobs and help the whole country.

[@lerlo]

I believe its similar to the Computer Industry. Processors of a certain architecture can be run at a peak speed. But they release the speeds incrementally to increase sales. I think the auto industry wants to do the same. So its hybrid for now...then slowly to full elects

[@super-sim1665]

Rigging mpg and emmision figures are a common occurance in petrol and diesel cars.

[@lerlo]

Sounds good, but not many countries are open to vehicle modifications apart from the US......

[@psychoactivegod]

If you standardize the battery and make a pump stations which could offer fast changing of batteries, you would have an auto for long range. In other words, you left your and use another. Therefore, if we exclude conflict of interest this could be done very easily. IT is just practical question.

[@sixmagpies]

Now that the people have effectively PAID for GM etc. they should be able to force them to make the cars that they want ... and the cars that future generations may thank them for. It's time to stop the oil based slavery in the US.

[@A_1plata]

If I pay extra can I have the vibration and sound of a V8?

[@marcryvon]

H In the '80s there were many CDs available featuring different brands and models sounds. Pretty sure they still are available. Wth a good sound system, your Prius should sound good !!

[@peterdevreter]

That woman gives me the creeps.

[@capcom4eva]

If GM killed the electric car, how come we now have the GM Chevy Volt with a 50 mi range or the fully electric Nissan Leaf with the same 100 mi. range as the EV1?

[@1timby]

And now you're not paying into the system (taxes) to maintain the infrastructure. What about us folks that have to travel 40 miles one way to work in heavy traffic? Also, we need AC and heat in our vehicles.

[@dragonshadows]

billion for 800 leases? bull. i know that myself and probably every member of my family (even distant family) would positively JUMP on buying the EV1 cars. here they are complaining about 100 miles on a charge, thats GREAT. this car was a positive 9/10. the last nick of the end of that rating, is that it doesn't have what the modern phoenix motors design with the 10 minute charge at gas stations. if they brought that into a a new EV they would make their billions back. no problem.

[@drmodestoesq]

It's hilarious to think of the amount of time we spend stuck in glacial traffic. A lot of people spend two or three hours a day communting. Then when people talk about electric cars one of their first complaints is the amount of time it takes to charge them up. Which is often done a night during low electrical grid usage. In addition, say it takes three hours to fast charge an EV, that could save you a 90 dollar tank of gas. I don't know about you but I do not make 30 dollars an hour.

[@Raffix394]

@1timby For that case go for a future electric car or use a electric car with gasoline range extention like the Chevrolet Volt or the even more efficient Audi A1 E-tron. Heaters use a lot of energy but Audi came up with quite a good idea (don't know if the Iidea is from Audi) but anyway they use a heat pump to produce heat instead of a regular heater.

[@pjkPA]

Just like ten years ago... gas price is going down to $1 a gallon again... but I think people may react different this time. The Chevy VOLT sill looks really good to me. I'm ready for the electric driveline. One moving part. no tranny.

[@tigerbody69]

"Before you can make an electric car REALLY succesfull, you should make it able to refill in a few minutes, just like a gasoline/dieselcar." This is propaganda straight from the oil industry. When you get home - plug it in - then when you leave - unplug -

[@TBman256]

7 people are oil barons

[@id0069]

What I said was that GM didnt create a service biz because they couldnt justify it. Less parts to fail and therefore no service business needed. They can't afford to lose the revenue. I think we agree on that. But there are no payoffs from the oil industry. Business doesn't work like that. They would also have to payoff every auto company in the world. What they do is buy the patent rights to key technology like NiMH batteries which Chevron Oil currently owns. BTW I want an EV2.

[@MrFloppydog66]

8:14 Leaseed 800, according to Wikipedia General Motors made a total of 1,117 units of the car. That makes 317 spare parts. ;-), People can actualy find parts to convert their own cans, without GM parts.

[@carolrocky9803]

Diffrent types of energy and fuel have to be used to address the geoligy and weather. Solar isn't right for every area, Hemp wind, and hydrogen will and should address their needs.

[@MPaulHolmesMPH]

My thriftway has a charging station for electric cars.

[@zerix01]

GM: "No one was buying them" fast forward to today and the Bolt is in high demand but GM is keeping the production low since they are losing money on each sale. They could have had their tech evolved to the point where they would be making money on EV's instead. Before anyone says Tesla was losing money on each car sold, there is a difference. The Bolt actually costs GM more money in parts and labor than what they sell for. Tesla always made money on their cars above the parts and labor cost. However when factoring in cost of business, R&D, and loan repayments they were in the red. Now they have production up enough where they are profitable no matter how you spin it. But GM still sells at a loss.

[@tigerbody69]

Are you saying "you" can't find an electrical outlet anywhere outside the radius of you house? I think you are mistaken.

[@john289]

Just a question though...how does one produce electricity...? nuclear plants, fossil fuel, coal, wind turbines, solar panels...it's all very easy to say "I just plug it in" but where does your juice come from ???

[@anthonybha4510]

Tesla at $1,300 usd. The EV has won

[@emforty2]

Hummers are not selling now why is GM not crushing them because lack of demand ??

[@cuemaker03]

GM could have used the cars around their manufacturing facilities, ect. They did not need to crush these!!!

[@marksartor]

This video is VERY relevant right now! my friend recently bought a ZENNcars electric car (demo model), and she LOVES it! She commutes to her job as a professor at a local university and back, among other trips. GM bringing back the electric car in the VOLT?? Yeah right. What morons! What the hell was going on there? I'd sure like a Federal investigation into that!