In 1987, General Motors, 16 GM subsidiaries, and AeroVironment, Inc. designed the GM Sunraycer solar electric car to compete in the first World Solar Challenge in Australia. Using lessons learned from the World Solar Challenge -- how driver activity, power consumption, battery life, and range interact -- GM and AeroVironment collaborated on the development of the Impact battery electric car in the 1990s. The next generation EV1, which was based on the Impact, was the first modern electric car designed for a mass market. Beginning in 1996, General Motors built 1,117 EV1 cars at the Lansing Craft Centre in Lansing, Michigan and leased most of them to consumers in California, Arizona, and Georgia. This plaque, presented to GM electric vehicles staff member Jill Banaszynski, commemorates her role as a marketing manager for the Impact and EV1 programs.
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