by Matt Nelson
These days, electric vehicles are rather commonplace. Of course, many of us wish that wasn’t necessarily the case, but the fact of the matter is, EVs are here to stay. For the last decade or so, electric cars have gone from mostly pathetic little boxy things with tiny driving ranges to fully fledged luxury automobiles. Think of models like the doomed Mercedes-Benz EQS, the Tesla Model S, and the Lucid Air. Those are a far cry from EVs like the Mitsubishi i-MiEV, which was introduced in 2009.
While they’ve only been around en masse for about a decade, interest in electric cars dates back to, nearly, the dawn of the automobile itself. However, said interest really ramped up during the early 1990s. Loads of brands were busy trying to create electric models to bring into the mass market. One such automaker, BMW, was hard at work tinkering with the idea of an EV, and eventually put something together called the E1 concept. It was BMW’s first serious attempt at an electric vehicle, but it never saw the light of day.
Innovation In A Tiny Package
Quick Facts About The BMW E1
- Introduced in 1991
- Weighed less than one ton
- Could be manufactured with either an all-electric or hybrid powertrain
- Revealed at the 1991 International Motor Show in Frankfurt, Germany
- Never slated for production
During the late 1980s, the automotive world was changing rapidly. We’d already seen the steep rise of emissions restrictions, which choked out the classic American muscle car era with its policies just after the 1970 model year. By 1974, all once-mighty American cars like the standard Chevrolet Corvette were barely managing to produce over 200 horsepower in some cases. By the time the mid 1980s rolled around, engines had become smaller, and the turbocharger was making a name for itself as an efficient way to squeeze more power out of a tiny mill.
In 1990, California dealt yet another staggering blow to the US automobile market. That year, the Golden State passed the ZEV, or Zero-Emission Vehicle laws. The edict mandated that a portion of every brand’s production be allocated to zero-emission vehicles. This put many marques in a chokehold, and so the race for an ultra-low emission vehicle was quickly underway. Because of its large US presence, BMW needed to act on this issue, as well.
It was decided, rather quickly, that an electric vehicle would be the best course of action to try and combat California’s ZEV laws. The project, coined “Z11”, was launched sometime in 1990. It was undertaken by BMW’s Technik division, an internal group dedicated to researching and developing new, novel technologies for cars. The Z11 project was quickly renamed “E1”, and it was quickly ready for a formal introduction in 1991.
Three Decades Too Early
That same year, BMW took the finished E1 prototype to the International Motor Show Germany, where the little E1 received mixed reactions from onlookers. Some folks praised its forward-thinking powertrain and digestible looks, while others criticized its appearance, saying it was nothing like a typical BMW. One automotive journalist compared its high-topped appearance to that of a ping-pong ball. There were also concerns regarding its safety, seeing as its body was almost entirely made of plastic.
The concept itself was fully functional, with each and every amenity working as it should. Its interior style was minimalist, with just three dials placed in front of the driver. Space for four fully grown adults was achieved thanks to the E1’s exceptionally low floor, which was owed to its use of a battery pack buried underneath. Despite its bubbly appearance, the E1 managed a drag coefficient of just 0.32, the same as a McLaren F1.
Unfortunately, the original 1991 E1 prototype was destroyed in a severe fire while charging, in which even part of the building it was housed in was damaged. However, instead of throwing in the towel, BMW Technik was keen to continue its research. So, in 1993, BMW released another pair of E1 concepts, although this time, it wasn’t just an EV. While the original 1991 concept was just an electric car, one of the 1993 models was a hybrid.
Sources: BMW, ConceptCarz.com, AutoBlog.com,Below-The-Radar.com, CorvetteMuseum.org
Read the full article on CarBuzz
This article originally appeared on CarBuzz and is republished here with permission.
