time magazine 2007 - 50 worst cars of all time -EV1

[flathill]

just found this funny now that Tesla stock is gonna hit 200 on Tuesday

just a few short years ago we were all hippie morons riding/driving pussymobiles


The EV1 was a marvel of engineering, absolutely the best electric vehicle anyone had ever seen. Built by GM to comply with California's zero-emissions-vehicle mandate, the EV1 was quick, fun, and reliable. It held out the promise that soon electric cars — charged from the grid with all sorts of groovy power sources, like wind and solar — could replace the smelly old internal-combustion vehicle. And therein lies the problem: the promise. In fact, battery technology at the time was nowhere near ready to replace the piston-powered engine. The early car's lead-acid bats, and even the later nickel-metal hydride batteries, couldn't supply the range or durability required by the mass market. The car itself was a tiny, super-light two-seater, not exactly what American consumers were looking for. And the EV1 was horrifically expensive to build, which was why GM's execs terminated the program — handing detractors yet another stick to beat them with. GM, the company that had done more to advance EV technology than any other, became the company that "killed the electric car."

 

[neptronix]

Yet most electric cars have less range than the later EV1's, which had a range of 160 miles with the last iteration of NiMH batteries. It did 0-60 in 8 seconds. It charged in 8 hours. I mean, this is right where modern electric cars are, but they don't have that kind of range at all.

One of the worst cars, ever? really? people protested wildly the crushing of them. They would have been content to keep paying that $550/month lease.. lol.

 

[spinningmagnets]

To be fair, California had mandated that if you wanted to sell profitable gasoline cars in Cali, you were going to have to make a tiny percentage of alternative vehicles available there too. And...as long as GM was going to make some alternatives, why not try to use the situation to gain some green cred too?

I would have respected them if they had made it available for the lessees to sign a waiver of liability, and then purchase the EV-1's for half the new price (very common for leasedvehicles). At the time, everybody knew there would be better batteries coming down the road pretty soon.

I wonder what the criteria was that the writer used to claim it was one of the 50 worst. Other than range (not a problem in a 2-car family), I never heard anything bad about them. They start just fine on an unusually cold day, and they don't overheat on a hot and slow-traffic day in a So-Cal traffic jam...The "tank" was full every morning...

 

[gogo]

I wonder what the criteria was that the writer used to claim it was one of the 50 worst.

…Time Magazine… 'nuf said. Pick trending buzzword and …

 

[The fingers]

Worst ever: The 2 stroke Suzuki belching blue smoke into the brown/orange S. Cali air.
Like wearing red shoes with pink Levis, a flouro green shirt and a purple cowboy hat to a MMA event at a rodeo. :lol:

 

[Matt Gruber]

every car has its fans! I once liked the Fiero and a friend was into Corvairs. All these WORST cars have unique features that give them lots of appeal. well, some do. Can't think of anything great about that Yugo Oh wait! it was that low price :lol: Just like the cheap hobby Lipos, cut the price low enough and it will sell!

 

[doctorGONZO]

Yugo! I remember going into a dealership and sitting in one during the year that they were on the market.

I want one, with the original Fiat motor taken out and replaced with a 1950 Dodge straight six and Fluid Drive transmission.

Any color. Im gonna go get a can of house paint and a roller at Home Depot anyway and repaint it. Maybe...British Racing Green. Do they make BRG house paint?

Maybe Sears.