AUTONEWS

Raising a GM EV1 from the dead

Probably the biggest story in the world of old cars over the past couple of weeks has been the surfacing of a GM EV1 electric car for sale from an auto salvage yard. This was the famous electric car produced in small numbers by the automaker in the 1990s, then only made available for lease before being recalled. The vast majority were controversially crushed with a few units being donated to museums and universities in a non-functional state.

Finding an old car isn’t really a Hackaday story in itself, but now it’s landed in [The Questionable Garage]. It’s being subjected to a teardown as a prelude to its restoration, offering a unique opportunity to look at the state of the art in 1990s electric automotive technology.

The special thing about this car is that by a murky chain of events it ended up as an abandoned vehicle. GM’s legal net covers the rest of the surviving cars, but buying this car as an abandoned vehicle gives the owner legal title over it and frees him from their restrictions. The video is long, but well worth a watch as we see pieces of automotive tech never before shown in public. As we understand it the intention is to bring it to life using parts from GM’s contemporary S10 electric pickup truck — itself a rare vehicle — so we learn quite a bit about those machines too.

Along the way they find an EV1 charger hiding among a stock of pickup chargers, take us through the vehicle electronics, and find some galvanic corrosion in the car’s structure due to water ingress. The windscreen has a huge hole, which they cover with a plastic wrap in order to 3D scan so they can create a replacement.

This car will undoubtedly become a star of the automotive show circuit due to its unique status, so there will be plenty of chances to look at it from the outside in future. Seeing it this close up in parts though is as unique an opportunity as the car itself. We’ve certainly seen far more crusty conventional cars restored to the road, but without the challenge of zero parts availability and no donor cars. Keep an eye out as they bring it closer to the road.

The GM EV1 was the first modern mass-produced electric vehicle by a major automaker, General Motors, launched in 1996. It pioneered technologies that are common in today's electric vehicles, but had a short and controversial life.

The EV1 was not sold, but rather offered on a fixed-term leasing basis, primarily in California and Arizona. GM considered the program an engineering and market study under real-world conditions.

Production was halted in 1999, with a total of 1,117 units produced. Between 2003 and 2004, GM recalled all leased cars, not allowing the renewal of contracts or purchase by lessees, who were very passionate about the vehicle. The vast majority of EV1s were destroyed and crushed, despite protests from activists and owners. About 40 units were donated to museums and universities, but most were decommissioned so they could not be driven again.

Legacy and Controversy...The abrupt end of the EV1 program generated great controversy and was the subject of the 2006 documentary "Who Killed the Electric Car?", which explored the possible pressures from the oil industry and GM's own unwillingness to invest in large-scale electrification at the time.

Despite its end, the EV1 is recognized today as a milestone in the history of modern electric vehicles, demonstrating the viability of the technology and inspiring the next generation of electric cars, such as the Chevrolet Volt and the Bolt EV.

by: Jenny List