The EV1 makes Time's Top 50 list of . . . Worst cars ever!
All you fans of Who Killed the Electric Car? should avert your eyes or move on the next story now. OK, you've been warned. Time magazine has published another of those staples of the publishing biz, a Top XX whatever of the month/year/decade/all time. This time they generated a list of Top Fifty Worst Cars of all time. It's a pretty comprehensive list and most people with any familiarity with cars (especially crappy ones) will agree with most of the choices.
After all who argue with the presence of the Pontiac Aztek, the AMC Pacer or the Edsel? Many of the cars on the list were truly horrid, while others simply weren't ready for prime-time. The 1981 Cadillac V-8-6-4 was about two decades ahead of the necessary electronic engine controls. The GM EV-1 was mostly the latter with elements of the former.
While the EV-1 was undoubtedly a ground-breaking machine, it's limitations as a car seriously limited it potential market appeal. As two seater only, and a small one at that, the vast majority of Americans would just never be interested in the car in that form. Then there was the small matter of the cost of materials and electronics that went into the car still being way to expensive for a mass market car a decade ago. Much of that cost has been dramatically reduced since then (apart from the battery), and we're getting close to the point when this thing could be viable, as long as they size it so average Americans can fit.
[Source: Time]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Chantal 10:25PM (10/07/2008)
I think that the ev1 was one of the greatest ideas ever , first off pollution and gobal warming is coming into affect so fast and this might not affect us but what about your childern and your grandchildern , do you want them to suffer for our foolish mistakes ? , because i know that i dont. I got the chance to drive on electric car , they are amazing i love to own one.
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sasha 4:27AM (1/21/2009)
i would love to own an ev1. unfortunately the left winged oil czars was the straw that broke the camels back. even now the oil companies still have some say in the car buisness.
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Joseph 1:20AM (9/09/2007)
This is ludacrist!
The EV1 was a magnificent car. It had an all aluminium chassis, was the first true modern electric car, and had outstanding performance with the NiMH version.
It was simply at the wrong time. If the EV1 was built today, I can see it as a niche vehicle, probably selling as well as the Honda Insight did.
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why not the LS2/LS7? 1:48AM (9/09/2007)
How can one simultaneously realize the EV1 had serious problems of practicality due to being a small two seater and also cheer on the Tesla Roadster which is even smaller, less practical and horrendously expensive?
As the Th!nk (Ford) guy said in "Who Killed the Electric Car?", when you got done explaining to people the limitations of an electric car they invariably then expected to get it cheaper than a gas car as compensation for the reduced utility. When you tell them it actually costs more instead, most potential customers turned into non-customers.
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Tony Belding 11:15AM (9/09/2007)
With regard to the EV1 and Tesla Roadster: the Tesla has about twice the range of an EV1 (or more than twice, depending on the EV1's battery set). More importantly, the Tesla Roadster challenges gasoline-powered cars in a particular niche (exotic sports car) and delivers better performance at a lower cost. The EV1 didn't do that. It's not even clear what the EV1's niche was, aside from being electric.
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imkazaam 11:18AM (9/09/2007)
GM is trying to come back from near bankruptcy. They are doing their best to distance themselves from that movie and to make sure their fuel cell idea catches on. This is actually going to help their image for the most part.
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detroit9k 5:53PM (9/09/2007)
You might be wasting your time and brain cells if:
you read Time Magazine.
Sadly, the papblum and cud has a wide audience. EV advocats must believe that we are to never philosophically thrust the car down the throats of mouth breathing Americans. The way to address the conversion is by attacking the infrastructure or be going directly for the pocket book.
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detroit9k 5:58PM (9/09/2007)
Addendum: the model T is on the list. Are you kidding me?
The Time article doesn't even deserve the validation of a post here. I've met people with severe mental disabilities that write better copy than Time publishes. I stopped reading it in the 9th grade, and I suggest all others follow suit.
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why not the LS2/LS7? 10:02PM (9/09/2007)
Tony Belding:
I do see the Tesla is more performance-oriented than the EV1. However, it doesn't deliver "more performance at lower cost".
Yes, you can make comparisons against expensive cars that it outperforms. Or you can compare it against cars like the Dodge SRT-4 (not the new Caliber version) which perform the same or better for $20K.
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mike 12:10PM (9/10/2007)
The EV1 wasn't built at the wrong time, it wasn't too expensive to make or buy, it didn't have too limited a range, etc etc. Did Time care to talk any of the lucky few who actually drove one? The fact is, for anyone who cares to check, that the car was NEVER EVEN OFFERED FOR SALE.
GM (along with the other car companies and oil interests) only produced the car because CA's ZEV mandate made them, and they fought the mandate like crazy the whole time. They had to be forced by CARB to install NiMH batteries in the 1999 version, even though the technology was ready since 1994. These batteries were so good that 300+ Rav4-EV made with them in 2002 are still running in perfect shape and regularly sell on ebay for as much as 20k OVER THEIR ORIGINAL ASKING PRICE.
As soon as the manufacturers defeated CARB they called back their leased cars (aside from said Rav4-EVs) and shredded them, doing all they could to make sure no EVs remained on the road to remind people that a viable alternative to gas guzzling exists. Along with the shredding they staged an intensive PR campaign to make the public believe these cars were a failure.
Do your homework people, don't take things at face value just because some POS magazine prints it or you hear it on TV.
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Owain Ozymandias Buck 7:27AM (9/10/2007)
"EV advocats must believe that we are to never philosophically thrust the car down the throats of mouth breathing Americans. The way to address the conversion is by attacking the infrastructure or be going directly for the pocket book."
Wow. Amazing display of elitist disdain and ecofantasy terroristic threats all in one. This is the reason the most visible of EV proponents are irrelevant. Your attitude causes more harm than good. You keep right on "attacking the infrastructure". I'll stay over here in the world of science and fact with my mouth breathing friends, many of whom you would undoubtedly call redneck, but have PHD's and a deeper sense of ecological responsibility than your type will ever understand.
Face it--right now GM is doing more than any other US car company to make PHEV's doable, and you're still caught up in the THEYKILLEDTHEELECTRICCAR!!! myth.
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Lithous 11:24AM (9/10/2007)
"As soon as the manufacturers defeated CARB they called back their leased cars (aside from said Rav4-EVs) and shredded them,"
S-10 EVs from the GM factory in Louisiana still sell on eBay. You may want to modify that statement which appears that only RAV4s weren't crushed. The S-10 EV had the powertrain of the EV-1.
Who could stand a 0-60 time of 8 minutes or whatever the RAV4 electric does? No, I don't expect 0-60 in 5 seconds, just not 18 or more seconds. That is crap. With traffic in many bid cities, waiting for a car to get up to 45mph in 12 seconds is huge lag. The RAV4 is so slow it makes 3 cars behind it miss the light and therefore burn extra emissions in the air. LMAO.
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steven 11:45AM (9/10/2007)
I really think you could take nearly half of more of the cars on this list and find quite a few people who feel very strongly that the opinions stated in this list are dead wrong. I know 2 people who would use that old phrase "...you'll have to pry the keys to my Pontiac Aztek from my cold dead fingers".
It's so sorry that so many people who read this blog think that anyomne folks who disagree with them are just a$$h-les.
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mike 1:16PM (9/10/2007)
Yes, a few S-10EV and also Ford Ranger EV survived the shredder as well as the Rav4-EV. The high demand for EVs (even with the comparatively limited range that these trucks provide) is also clearly evidenced when they sell on ebay or otherwise. Forgive me for not giving an exhaustive list in the interest of being concise.
The point remains that the EVs created by automakers in the late 90s / early 2000s were never produced with the intent of going into mass production, but were only produced through government mandate. Much like with seat belts and airbags, automakers fought having to serve the public interest by making these cars every step of the way. The only difference is that this time the automakers won.
What experience do you have with the Rav4 EV's performance? A quick check of wikipedia shows that the car was demonstrated to outperform the ICE Rav4 in acceleration tests, as should be expected as electric motors in general provide better low end torque than gasoline engines. If you don't trust wikipedia take the word of people who still drive the cars.
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Lithous 4:30PM (9/10/2007)
"What experience do you have with the Rav4 EV's performance? A quick check of wikipedia shows that the car was demonstrated to outperform the ICE Rav4 in acceleration tests, as should be expected as electric motors in general provide better low end torque than gasoline engines. If you don't trust wikipedia take the word of people who still drive the cars."
I was just going by this site as it seemed great for comparison: http://www.seattleeva.org/wiki/Toyota_RAV4_EV
Please demand they update their page's incorrect (according to you) info.
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Joseph 7:25PM (9/10/2007)
@ mike
"The EV1 wasn't built at the wrong time, it wasn't too expensive to make or buy, it didn't have too limited a range, etc etc. Did Time care to talk any of the lucky few who actually drove one?"
The EV1 was too expensive to buy because they didn't make enough, and they didn't make enough because it was the land of SUVS and cheap gas back then. Therefore, it was because it was too expensive to buy. I love the EV1, but it just wasn't recognized for what it was, and wasn't given its full potential, because it was at the wrong time. And by the way, I have done lots of my own research of the EV1 myself. I read The Car that Could, saw the movie, and have talked to people who have driven the car.
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Ron Fischer 3:57PM (9/11/2007)
Wife and I leased the EV-1 for about 2 years. Loved it, would have bought it. Car was a little limited by range, but as a second car, no problem. Worked just great as a commuter (15 miles each way to work). Next generations, EV-2, etc. would have been cheaper, larger, whatever. By now we'd be using A123 lithium ions in there. Ah well. So tell me again why I should wait 15 or more years for fuel cells or why they can't build the e-Flex in 2,000 unit quantity now just with a bit less than 40 mile range?
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