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Top Five Discontinued Electric Cars
Electric cars have a unique place in everyone's heart due to its environment friendly nature. It has a prominent place in the car market due to its individualistic character compared to conventional cars. It is an all time favourite of car buyers because of the zero emission feature. Compared to conventional fuel type, an electric motor is more efficient.
Electric cars flourished extensively during 90s. The California Air Resources Board had announced a rule that two percent of all new cars should be zero emission by 1998. Later the 2 percent was raised to 10 percent by 2003. This rule forced or rather inspired the car manufactures to roll out electric cars commercially.
Initially, very small units were produced and then some and nearly all of them were phased out as they did not gain much popularity. Some of the electric cars lost prominence because of the high price tag. There are signs that shows electric cars that was once on the road to extinction, may jolt back to life. Presently, several car manufacturers are working to introduce electric cars to fight global warming and increasing reliance on imported oil.
Electric cars flourished extensively during 90s. The California Air Resources Board had announced a rule that two percent of all new cars should be zero emission by 1998. Later the 2 percent was raised to 10 percent by 2003. This rule forced or rather inspired the car manufactures to roll out electric cars commercially.
Initially, very small units were produced and then some and nearly all of them were phased out as they did not gain much popularity. Some of the electric cars lost prominence because of the high price tag. There are signs that shows electric cars that was once on the road to extinction, may jolt back to life. Presently, several car manufacturers are working to introduce electric cars to fight global warming and increasing reliance on imported oil.
Here are the top 5 discontinued electric cars that once enjoyed a prominent place in the car industry:
RAV4 EV
RAV4 EV was manufactured by Toyota in 1997. The car looked similar to the regular internal combustion engine variant and had all the qualities of a small utility vehicle. The car was fitted with a 95 amp-hour NiMH battery pack that has a capacity of 27 kWh which enabled the electric car to reach a top speed of 160 to 190 km. It was incredible to believe that the RAV4 EV was among the few vehicles with a single speed automatic transmission. The battery of the car gets fully charged in about 5 hours and was supported and monitored by a passive battery balancing system. In 2003, Toyota stopped the production of the RAV4 EV.
EV1
The EV1 was one of the old electric cars which is still known as a epitome of pathbreaking engineering. The car was built by General Motors with an aim to meet the mandatory zero-emission laws in California. The car manufacturer designed a fast, quick, reliable, and zero-emission vehicle that kept the promise of preserving the nature and reducing automotive pollution. The Time Magazine had tagged this electric car as one of the 50 worst cars of all time. But the consumers who owned the car have a different view about the vehicle with a emotional attachment with the machine. The car was first introduced in 1996 with a host of advanced technologies and was initially marketed in Los Angeles, CA, and Phoenix. Later on, an updated version was produced in the year 1999 that was powered by the NiMh battery. Only about 1,000 cars were manufactured and then GM realized that the car was not doing well in the market. Therefore, it was later discontinued in response to the depressing feedback received form the car buyers.
Nissan Altra
The Nissan Altra was manufactured in 1998 and looked much similar to a mid-sized station wagon. The car was designed to offer ample space in terms of leg room, head room, and cargo and was packed with a variety of functional features. Some of the key features in the car were power mirrors and windows, keyless entry, and four-wheel anti-lock brakes. Technologically, Nissan Altra was the first electric car to use a lithium-ion battery that was further supported by a passive battery system. It was also equipped with a permanent magnet synchronous motor that was controlled by a 32-bit computer processor. Though the Nissan Altra was a good electric car, it failed to impress car buyers and was discontinued in 2002.
Chevrolet S-10 Electric
Chevrolet S-10 Electric was introduced by General Motors in 1997. The car was leased in huge number and only about 60 cars were actually sold and appeared in auctions. However, the car was updated in 1998, it failed to reach the expectations of car buyers and was discontinued. It was a battery-electric variant of the Chevrolet's S-10 pickup truck that ran purely on electricity and was mainly sold to utility fleet customers. The power to this discontinued electric car was provided by a lead acid battery pack. The car had no charm in the market though it was appreciated by car buyers.
Honda EV Plus
The Honda EV Plus was the first battery electric vehicle designed and manufactured by Honda in 1999. The car was powered by non-lead acid batteries. Like the EV, this electric car was also designed with an aim to meet the California Air Resources Board requirements for zero-emission vehicles. The car also served as a test bed for the pancake-style motor that was later used in Honda hybrids. It was packed with many features including AC/heat-pump climate control, passive battery balancing, regenerative braking, HID headlights, and electrically heated windshield. The car with the 12 V battery was able to reach a top speed of 160 km. About 340 cars were produced and later even this was discontinued because of unfavourable response from the car buyers.
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