AUTOMOBILES

GM Seeks Certification for Electric Car: General Motors Corp. has filed an application with the California Air Resources Board to certify its Impact electric car as a “zero-emission” vehicle as mandated by California standards that take effect in 1998. If the certification is granted, GM will start building 50 Impact two-seater cars this fall based on an original prototype, said Wendy Makowski, a project spokeswoman. The nation’s top auto maker hopes to provide the cars to about 1,000 potential customers for two- to four-week evaluations starting early next year. GM had planned to mass-produce the Impact at a converted assembly plant in Lansing, Mich., by the mid-1990s. Late last year, however, it delayed the program because of its cost.