The Electric Stars 148
At the 1990 Los Angeles Auto Show, General Motors
revealed an electric concept car: the Impact. Because of
the name, you could hear comments like, “What’s next,
the Ford Whiplash?” General Motors announced at the
same time how the Impact would become a vehicle for the
mass market. The California Air Resources Board realized
this new generation of electric vehicles could solve the
state’s problem with pollution. The same year, they passed
the Zero-Emission Vehicle mandate. It said that if a car
manufacturer wanted to sell cars in California, some cars
must be free from exhaust. California was a large market,
so the car manufacturers didn’t have any other choice than
to begin selling electric cars.^330
The Impact evolved into the EV1 [Electric Vehicle 1]. It
became the first modern mass produced electric car – 1 117
were manufactured between 1996 and 1999. The EV1 had
two seats, a futuristic shape where the rear wheels were
almost covered, it was developed in California, and was
supposed to be the first in a series of electric vehicles. The
next car in the series would be called EV2, the next EV3,
and so on. “This is going to represent a great step forward
for people in terms of commuting to work, from work, if
you don’t have to go more than 120 miles [190 km] a day,”
the CEO of General Motors explained when he introduced
the car.
Several celebrities enjoyed driving the EV1. The only
sound they could hear from the car was a slight hum and
the quiet clicks from the brakes. Because there was no lag
between pedal and power, the EV1 owner and actor, Mel