I so wanted to post this in News but it might have been moved to some obscure nitch. Still, a fun read: A Review Of The GM EV1, Or At Least What I Can Remember After 20 Years Bob Wilson
great read, thanks bob. i do have to disagree with his thoughts on todays plugs. although i'm not familiar with the paddle type, todays are quick and easy. i can't think of any reason to change them. no arcing or outside weather charging problems.
Some things just look better in the rear-view mirror. Interesting article. Those recreational pharmaceuticals sure do leave a lasting impact, don't they?
I was going to respond with a comparison of the two seater EV1, with off board charger, and the five seater Leaf specs, and that lead-acid batteries will quickly die when repeatedly deep discharged, but will go with a question instead. Under what test are they the same range?
The only mistake GM made with the EV1 was crushing them rather than letting them die out in the wild. Bunny huggers really ought to be lining up to kiss GMs butt instead of vilifying them all the time. There's a sense out there that the EV1 was (is) better than it really was (is) and that it terrified the gassers and the petrol kings so much that they had to stifle the new technology quickly before it supplanted the ICE. Of course....anybody who has ever owned a golf cart knows better, but hey.....the decision to crush them kept the EV crowd stoked up for 20 years and probably shaved 5 years off of the on-ramp time required to get today's BEVs into viability. Yes. They were the Bernie Sanders of the car world. Not attractive. Not "quite" real-world viable, but close enough to stoke the fires of the imagination.
The NiMH that went into the EV1 towards the end gave it an impressive range of over 150 miles. It is just that it is a larger pack than the one in the low range Leaf, and would cost around $13k today, without the potential cost drops we are seeing for Li-ion packs.
OMG, it's almost looked like my spaceship prius inside! this car was DOA due to lead batteries. the gen2 came with Ni-MH batteries, but it was too late, GM made the infamous decision to pull the plug and destroy them. IMHO, this was due a backlash from oil companies: On October 10, 2001, Texaco purchased General Motors' share in GM Ovonics, and Chevron completed its acquisition of Texaco six days later. In 2003, Texaco Ovonics Battery Systems was restructured into Cobasys, a 50/50 joint venture between Chevron and Energy Conversion Devices (ECD) Ovonics.[6] In her book, Plug-in Hybrids: The Cars that Will Recharge America, published in February 2007, Sherry Boschert argues that large-format NiMH batteries are commercially viable but that Cobasys refuses to sell or license them to small companies or individuals. Boschert reveals that Cobasys accepts only very large orders for these batteries. When Boschert conducted her research, major auto makers showed little interest in NiMH batteries. Since no other companies were capable of producing large orders, Cobasys was not manufacturing any NiMH batteries for automotive purposes.[7] [...] In 2009 Mercedes had planned to release an ML450 hybrid SUV in the United States, but Chevron, the parent company, pulled funding from Cobasys and the batteries were not delivered.[9] Energy Conversion Devices - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
They were quite a change from the norm in those days. We had one stationed at Edison in Rosemead. CA and I got to drive it. I remember how strange it was to be stopped at a signal light with both windows down and could hear perfectly the next car over their conversation. Kinda spooky if you ask me then. Very peppy on the take off as well. They were quite sophisticated to the G-VANS we worked on which were a one ton Chevy van with electrical motor bolted to the rear differential. Now THAT was primitive indeed. For cabin heat the van had a miniature diesel engine made by some swiss company. Well enough of that..the EV-1 was going to Las Vegas for a car show so I had to load it on the flatbed trailer so a contractor would deliver it. So much for memories.
I know of one at Ohio State University's Engineering Lab building. However, they are contractually barred from putting it on the public streets. I wonder if I asked nicely if they would let me 3D laser scan it.
