Tomorrow at noon is your best chance to tell GM, and by extension, all the auto companies, that you want to have the choice to buy a non-polluting car. All the car companies said they ended their EV programs because nobody wanted an EV. THEY ARE LYING!
The truth is, GM hardly advertised the EV1, yet they leased every one they made and had long waiting lists for more. Had GM advertized the EV1 like it does the Hummer, they would have sold tens of thousands.
GM has 77 EV1s, in perfect running condition, stored in a parking lot at 1105 W. Riverside Drive in Burbank California. All of these cars are slated to be crushed. We are holding a vigil in front of this facility to stop them from removing these cars.
Tomorrow, Saturday the 26th of February, we will present GM with 77 letters from individuals who wish to buy these cars for the stated residual value of $24,761.60. That's nearly $2 million to GM's bottom line. Our letter states that we are "prepared to release General Motors of all warranty, parts, and roadside service obligations, and release General Motors of all liability associated with the vehicle." The full text of the letter is copied below.
Both the federal government and the state of California contributed thousands of dollars in research and development as well as direct subsidies to GM for each of these cars. This public money was not spent with the intention that these cars would be taken away and crushed with years of service left in them. This is an outrage!
If you agree, then come join us at noon tomorrow to tell GM that you do indeed want the CHOICE TO DRIVE CLEAN!
Here's the letter:
Mr. Richard Wagoner, Jr.
General Motors
300 Renaissance Center
Detroit, MI 48265-3000
February 26, 2005
Dear Mr. Wagoner,
General Motors led the market in electric vehicle technology when it developed the EV1, and the public responded to your product with overwhelming support. Not only did General Motors successfully lease every vehicle it made available in the limited market of California and Arizona, but there was a waiting list of people who were willing to wait an unspecified amount of time to lease an EV1. Rather than greet this enthusiasm by building more cars, you have instead ignored the waiting lists and collected vehicles from loyal EV1 drivers, only to send them to be crushed.
As you are no doubt aware, there are currently 77 vehicles being kept at the General Motors Training facility in Burbank, California. These last few cars are being watched over by a group of EV drivers and supporters from across California who are passionate about having the choice to drive non-polluting vehicles. This is not an issue isolated to electric vehicle enthusiasts; it is an issue concerning people. People who would like to breathe clean air, reduce our dependence on foreign oil, and lessen the output of greenhouse gasses. It is an issue about people who are willing and indeed, have been trying desperately, to purchase a General Motors product in order to accomplish these goals. It is also an issue about people who have donated up to $13,000 in public funding for incentives on each leased EV1. These public funds (and millions more in infrastructure and legislation funding) were certainly provided in anticipation of putting zero-pollution cars on the road for the life of the vehicle, and not with the intention that they be taken back and crushed after a fraction of that time. Appropriately enough, General Motors designated Saturn to market the EV1 nine years ago; I now urge you to follow through on Saturn's motto, and put "people first."
I would like to purchase one of the remaining Gen II NiMH EV1s for the residual value of $24,761.60 that General Motors assigned to a NiMH battery-equipped vehicle, in the original GMAC lease. In association with this offer, I am prepared to release General Motors of all warranty, parts, and roadside service obligations, and release General Motors of all liability associated with the vehicle. I would like simply to have the opportunity to return the EV1 to its rightful place—on the road.
Respectfully,
EV1 Buyer
cc: Mr. Bob Purcell, GMATV
Mr. Ken Stewart, GMATV
Ms. Jill Banaszynski, GMATV