THE ELECTRIC CAR FINALLY COMES OF AGE
General Motors markets an automobile that operates independent of gasoline, but with a hefty price tag.
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GM's silent EV1: No emissions, but a booming sticker
price.
When you hear about someone spending $25,000 on a
car, you might dream for a moment of yourself behind the wheel
of, say, a pale yellow convertible, your purebred retriever
hanging his head out the back...
Outside your fantasies, you're
probably too practical to spend that kind of money on any car,
but as long as we're fantasizing, what if you could get your
hands on a car that comes with this guarantee: "You will never
have to go to the gas station again." How much would you be
willing to pay for that?
General Motors promises to be the first
car company to mass-produce an electric vehicle that does indeed
come with this guarantee and does indeed sell for $25,000. The
EV1, or "Impact" (a name perhaps better replaced by one with less
unfortunate connotations?), will be available this fall at Saturn
dealers in four western cities: Los Angeles, San Diego, Phoenix,
and Tucson. Like your pale yellow convertible, it's a two-seater,
but EV1 is equipped with a double-lead battery that runs 70-90
miles per charge. GM says the electric car has power everything
and comes with dual air bags, antilock brakes, a CD player, and
cruise control and functions in all other ways like a regular car
except it makes no noise and has zero emissions.
Lucy Zielinski,
GM's electric vehicle spokesperson, says the EV1 will probably be
most appropriate for households with two cars. People can use it
for commuting and errands rather than road trips since you need
to refuel (plug in) about three times as often as a conventional
vehicle. You can carry a convenience charger in your trunk, "kind
of like a spare tire," Zielinski says, which tops off the
batteries in about eight hours, or accomplish the same at home in
about three hours with a larger 220-volt charger.
EV1 may not be
a convertible, but thankfully it isn't the anemic little wheezer
we were anticipating either. It can go from Omph to 60mph in
eight and a half seconds, a feat rarely matched by most
gas-engined cars, and some test models have even been setting
high-performance records. Recently an electric-powered Italian EV
set a speed record of 188.9 mph, says Michael Coates of Green Car
Media, a California group that defines itself as an "independent
alternative fuel research organization." GM also has plans to
market an electric pickup truck nationwide in 1997 for use in
commercial fleets. The truck, a Chevy S-10, will be most
appropriate for predetermined routes where the truck comes back
to a garage every night.
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