Unfortunately, that demand never had a chance to coalesce: General Motors canceled the leases on all EV1s and repossessed them, despite pleas from fans to allow their sale.
The first consumer models, hastily renamed the EV1, were leased to the public in 1996.
The lucky few who leased EV1s never wanted to give them up--the cars had great range (75 to 130 miles), cost just pennies a mile to operate, and required no gas, oil or mufflers, and almost no brake changes.
In 1990, General Motors funded the EV1 prototype, a sporty car and an engineering marvel.
According to the newspaper, while GM said selling the leftover EV1s is not an option, as they would require extended warranty and service contracts, those protesting the automaker's decision contended that people were on waiting lists to lease the vehicles.
The Los Angeles Daily News recently reported that a group of demonstrators unsuccessfully attempted to halt General Motors' (GM) recycling of 77 of its remaining EV1 electric vehicles in California last week.
Carspotters in Los Angeles looking for a General Motors
EV1 or a Honda EV Plus on the freeways generally find their quarry emblazoned with the bold graphics of Southern California Edison.
The most telling sign of life for this comeback invention came last December with the appearance of General Motors' long-awaited electric sports car, the
EV1, in Saturn showrooms in southern California and Arizona.