FAME '10 Decades Project - 1990's

The General Motors EV1 was an electric car produced and leased by the
General Motors Corporation from 1996 to 1999. It was the first
mass-produced and purpose-designed electric vehicle of the modern era
from a major automaker, and the first GM car designed to be an
electric vehicle from the outset. The decision to mass-produce an
electric car came after GM received a favorable reception for its 1990
Impact electric concept car, The majority of the repossessed EV1s were
crushed, and the rest delivered to museums and educational institutes
with their electricpowertrains deactivated, under the agreement that
the cars were not to be reactivated and driven on the road.The EV1's
discontinuation remains controversial, with electric car enthusiasts,
environmental interest groups and former EV1 lessees accusing GM of
self-sabotagingits electric car program to avoid potential losses in
spare parts sales, while also blaming the oil industry for conspiring
to keep electric cars off the road.

In the aftermath of the program, reactions to the cancellation of the
EV1 continued to be mixed. In GM's view, the EV1 was not a failure,
but the program was doomed when the expected breakthroughs in battery
technology did not take place within the anticipated timeline, citing
the lack of availability of the NiMH-technology battery packs,
developed by Energy Conversion Devices of Michigan, until late in the
production cycle. The batteries improved the EV1's range, but not as
dramatically as expected, and came with their own set of problems; a
less-efficient charging algorithm had to be used (lengthening charge
times), and the batteries heated up more quickly than the lead-acid
packs (requiring use of the air conditioner to cool them down, wasting
power). The automaker also cited the elimination of the CARB
zero-emissions mandate as a factor in the program's cancellation,
though the company was widely accused of lobbying against the mandate
in an act of deliberate self-sabotage. The media perspective was far
less favorable; in 2006, the Wall Street Journal's Detroit Bureau
Chief Joe White said, "The EV1 was a failure, as were other electric
vehicles launched in the 1990s to placate California clean-air
regulators. This opinion as echoed by Time magazine, who in 2008
placed the EV1 on their list of "The 50 Worst Cars of All Time".

many of the fans were pissed and fought to keep there car. People say
that GM cut a deal with the big gas corporations and thats the reason
why they stopped the car others say its because of the battery, either
way GM took it off the market and that crushed the hearts of the loyal
customers.