California reaffirms zero-emission vehicle plan
By Charles J. Murray, EE Times
Sep 12, 2000 (10:23 AM)
URL: eetimes.com
PARK RIDGE, Ill. — California held fast in its battle with the world's
biggest auto makers, announcing Friday (Sept. 8) that it will require them
to market electric vehicles in the 2003 model year. The announcement
came after two days of hearings and deliberations by the California Air
Resources Board (CARB), which originally set the mandate in motion a
decade ago.
Auto makers had been anxiously awaiting last week's review of the
requirements. Most have complained that consumers aren't interested in
battery-powered vehicles, and had hoped that CARB would back away
from or soften its original mandate, which requires 4 percent of all
vehicles sold in California to meet zero-emission vehicle status by 2003.
General Motors, Ford, DaimlerChrysler, Honda, Toyota, and Nissan have
all produced electric vehicles (EVs) as part of a demonstration plan in
California, but have collectively sold or leased only 2,300 of them in that
state, well below the roughly 22,000 that will need to be sold annually to
meet the CARB mandate. |
