WORLDTECHGM’s Experimental EV from 1969
Single source: this development was reported by Hackaday. What WORLDTECH can establish is that the report was made, and by whom. It has not been matched against a second independent organisation and has not been officially confirmed by the organisations involved.
What happened
Electricity is the once and future drivetrain for automobiles, but until the advent of lithium batteries their capabilities were somewhat modest. One EV blip on the automotive timeline is the XP-512E commuter prototype by GM.
The 60s saw a wide variety of interesting experiments in the automobile space, and both GM and AMC were evaluating the possibilities of a return to electric cars for short journeys. GM wasn’t set on a particular drivetrain for their new experimental commuter cars, so the XP 512 became a trio with conventional, hybrid, and electric variants.
Each car was a two seater with a fiberglass body and steel chassis. Some images from the time show the car without the canopy and just the rollbar, giving you a very small convertible (83″/2108 mm long).
Sources & evidence
- Hackaday Reporting source
GM’s Experimental EV from 1969 ↗
https://hackaday.com/2026/09/24/gms-experimental-ev-from-1969/