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| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Automotive |
| Founded | 1992; 33 years ago (1992) |
| Headquarters | , |
Area served | Global |
| Products | Small vehicles,NEVs,LSVs |
| Parent | Waev |
| Website | www |
Global Electric Motorcars (GEM) is an Americanautomotivemanufacturer specializing inneighborhood electric vehicles (NEVs) since 1998 andlow-speed vehicles (LSVs) since 2001. By October 2015[1] the company had sold over 50,000 GEMBattery electric vehicles worldwide. Originally owned by Chrysler, GEM was acquired byPolaris Inc. in 2011. In January 2022, it became a wholly owned subsidiary ofWaev.[2]
The company was founded in 1992 by a team of ex-General Motors engineers fromLivonia, Michigan, under the name Trans2.[3]
The company was purchased by a group of North Dakota investors and relocated toFargo, North Dakota.[3] Global Electric Motorcars manufactured its first vehicle in April 1998, a 48-volt GEM car designed for two passengers with a top speed of 20 mph (32 km/h).[4] Shortly after, theNational Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) established a new class of motor vehicles, the low-speed vehicle (LSV), also known as the Neighborhood Electric Vehicle (NEV).[5][6] This classification allowed GEM cars to be driven on public roads, provided they met specific safety criteria such as having safety belts, headlamps, windshield wipers, and safety glass.[7]
GEM battery-electric vehicles are street legal in nearly all 50 US states on public roads with speed limits of 35 mph (56 km/h) or less.[7] With a top speed of 25 mph (40 km/h), GEM cars have a range of 30–100 miles (50–160 km) on a single charge depending on the installed battery technology. They are battery-electric, operating on a 72-volt battery system that can be plugged into a standard 3-prong 120-volt outlet for recharging, and they fully recharge in six to eight hours.
Currently, there are six different models of GEM cars available,[7] GEM cars are utilized by local, state, and national government agencies, resorts, master-planned communities, universities, medical and corporate campuses, as well as by sports teams, taxi-shuttle services, and the general public.[4]
As of October 2015[update], the GEM neighborhood electric vehicle is the market leader in North America, with global sales of more than 50,000 units since 1998.[1]
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