All you fans of Who Killed the Electric Car? should avert your eyes or move on the next story now. OK, you've been warned. Time magazine has published another of those staples of the publishing biz, a Top XX whatever of the month/year/decade/all time. This time they generated a list of Top Fifty Worst Cars of all time. It's a pretty comprehensive list and most people with any familiarity with cars (especially crappy ones) will agree with most of the choices.
After all who argue with the presence of the Pontiac Aztek, the AMC Pacer or the Edsel? Many of the cars on the list were truly horrid, while others simply weren't ready for prime-time. The 1981 Cadillac V-8-6-4 was about two decades ahead of the necessary electronic engine controls. The GM EV-1 was mostly the latter with elements of the former.
While the EV-1 was undoubtedly a ground-breaking machine, it's limitations as a car seriously limited it potential market appeal. As two seater only, and a small one at that, the vast majority of Americans would just never be interested in the car in that form. Then there was the small matter of the cost of materials and electronics that went into the car still being way to expensive for a mass market car a decade ago. Much of that cost has been dramatically reduced since then (apart from the battery), and we're getting close to the point when this thing could be viable, as long as they size it so average Americans can fit.
[Source: Time]
After all who argue with the presence of the Pontiac Aztek, the AMC Pacer or the Edsel? Many of the cars on the list were truly horrid, while others simply weren't ready for prime-time. The 1981 Cadillac V-8-6-4 was about two decades ahead of the necessary electronic engine controls. The GM EV-1 was mostly the latter with elements of the former.
While the EV-1 was undoubtedly a ground-breaking machine, it's limitations as a car seriously limited it potential market appeal. As two seater only, and a small one at that, the vast majority of Americans would just never be interested in the car in that form. Then there was the small matter of the cost of materials and electronics that went into the car still being way to expensive for a mass market car a decade ago. Much of that cost has been dramatically reduced since then (apart from the battery), and we're getting close to the point when this thing could be viable, as long as they size it so average Americans can fit.
[Source: Time]
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