News Column  GM: Ready to Resuscitate the Electric Car?  June
10, 2009   gm ev1, electric car, hybrid car, gm history, GM
future Photo by Matt Graves,  Many are wondering how GM got to
where it is today--in Chapter 11, restructuring, and dependent
on government efforts to make that transition.  The company,
which has been in business for more than 100 years and
revolutionized the automobile with its invention of the
catalytic converter, is now doing its best to make a comeback.
However, after receiving $50 billion in taxpayer money, some
people aren't sure that GM has an eye on the future, notably due
to its failure to produce a car that excels in energy
efficiency, like the Toyota Prius. In fact, GM's environmental
record has been less than commendable.  Despite that Ford and
Chrysler, the other two of the so-called Big Three, have taken a
similar tack, GM has been subject to particular scrutiny. One
reason for that scrutiny is its traditional role as the largest
of The Big Three. Another was the company's d