GM’s Saturn to Expand EV1 Leasing

General Motor Corp.’s Saturn unit said it will start selling the EV1 electric car in the Sacramento area this month, the vehicle’s first expansion beyond its original four markets. Saturn began selling the sleek coupe in Los Angeles and San Diego, as well as two Arizona markets, Phoenix and Tucson, in December 1996. The cars will go on sale in Sacramento on Nov. 21. The EV1 will join the Honda Motor Co. EV Plus, a four-passenger electric vehicle that is already on sale in Sacramento. Consumers can buy the EV1 with a 36-month lease that has a total cost of $33,995, before state and federal financial credits. After a 10% federal tax credit and a $5,000 credit from the state, an EV1 can be leased for $25,595. The EV1 was the first electrically powered car to be offered to retail buyers. So far, 275 have been leased. Although GM has never disclosed how many it expects to sell, slow sales prompted the auto maker to cut the monthly lease rate May 1 from the original $475.