EV1 Charge Across America in an electric car - May 12 - June 2, 1998

On May 12, 1998 I embarked on the adventure of a lifetime…a 3,200 mile trip across America in my futuristic General Motors EV1 electric car. I love long road trips, and dreamed up the idea to prove that electric cars are practical and not just sluggish golf carts which many people assumed. The EV1 was fast…really fast! And had comforts such as air conditioning and power windows and a great sound system. Battery technology wasn’t as evolved then as it is now. The EV1 could drive between 40-70 miles per charge depending on terrain and driving style.

This video is a compilation of TV news stories from my “Charge Across America” May 12-June 2, 1998.

In the 1990’s the EV1 was the only production electric car available to the public. Only 1,000 were produced, and the experimental EV1 was only available for lease, not purchase in California, Arizona, and Oregon. I signed the lease contract for my EV1 on December 5, 1996 and drove it happily until June 25, 2003 when my lease ended and GM took the car back.

Weeks before the trip I meticulously planned every charging stop on my 3,200 mile trip from Los Angeles to the factory where it was built near Detroit. I never once ran out of battery power and the car performed flawlessly. At first General Motors was concerned my trip would fail and bring bad PR to the EV1 program. But as the trip successfully evolved without problems, GM’s initial worries were replaced with enthusiastic support. Their amazing electric car was making front page news as I drove across the country.

In 1998 there were very few internet bloggers, but I was one of them. I chronicled the trip on my website with daily updates and photos from the road. As my trip neared the end, GM invited me to drive the car to a finish line media event at GM headquarters in Detroit. The company graciously offered to ship my EV1 back to Los Angeles and paid for my plane ticket home.

Initial customer interest was strong from early adopters and environmentally conscious folks like me, and the first batch of EV1's from the factory leased quickly. But sales waned and GM was clueless as to how to market a 2 seat electric car that only had 60 miles of driving range on each battery charge. Sadly, a year or so after my trip, GM gave up on electric cars and shut down the EV1 program. When the lease contracts ended, EV1s were taken back from “owners” who loved their cars and desperately wanted to re-lease them. Sadly, most EV1s were sent to the crusher. Because of the historic nature of my Charge Across America trip, GM saved my EV1 and it’s on permanent display at the prestigious Petersen Automotive museum in Los Angeles.

The Oscar-nominated documentary "Who Killed the Electric Car" tells the story of GM's early enthusiasm, then the dark side of the EV1's demise.

The advanced technology developed for the EV1 lives on in virtually every electric car on the road today. GM is back on board with electric cars, and sells the fantastic and successful Volt and Bolt electric cars. I’m glad my crystal ball proved to be correct…electric cars are the future, and the EV1 started the revolution.

The blog of my trip is available on my website: http://www.kingoftheroad.net/charge_acros…/…/chargehome.html

Видео EV1 Charge Across America in an electric car - May 12 - June 2, 1998 канала Kris Trexler