First Deliveries of GM's Electric Vehicle Take Place

December, 1996 - The first General Motors EV1 electric vehicles were delivered to consumers Thursday, December 5, 1996. The EV1 was made available on this day through 24 Saturn retailers serving the greater Los Angeles, San Diego, Phoenix and Tucson areas.

That day also marked the launch of EV1 advertising in the original market areas. An area-specific ad campaign, which included print, television and billboard mediums, built awareness and highlighted the many distinctive features and technological advances of the vehicle.

Some Saturn retail facilities celebrated this historic event with ceremonial first-car deliveries. The first customers completed the final phase of the EV1 consultative leasing process before taking home their EV1. EV1 specialists worked with these customers for a few weeks to prepare them for the final step. Retailers began collecting names of prospective customers after GM's initial marketing announcement in January 1996.