| Global Electric Motorcars (GEM) | |
| Type: | Subsidiary |
| Location City: | Medina, Minnesota |
| Location Country: | United States |
| Area Served: | Global |
| Industry: | Automotive |
| Products: | Small vehicles, NEVs, LSVs |
| Parent: | Chrysler |
Global Electric Motorcars (GEM) is an American manufacturer specializing in neighborhood electric vehicles (NEVs) since 1998 and low-speed vehicles (LSVs) since 2001. By October 2015 the company had sold over 50,000 GEM battery-electric vehicles worldwide. Originally owned by Chrysler, GEM was acquired by Polaris Inc. in 2011. In January 2022, it became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Waev.[1]
The company was founded in 1992 by a team of ex-General Motors engineers from Livonia, Michigan, under the name Trans2.
The company was purchased by a group of North Dakota investors and relocated to Fargo, North Dakota. 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). Shortly after, the National 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).[2] 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.[3]
GEM battery-electric vehicles are street legal in nearly all 50 US states on public roads with speed limits of or less.[3] With a top speed of, GEM cars have a range of 30– 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,[3] 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]
, the GEM neighborhood electric vehicle is the market leader in North America, with global sales of more than 50,000 units since 1998.[5]