Built by one of the world’s largest battery suppliers, the Globe-Union Endura and Maxima demonstrated the possibilities for lead-acid batteries, and their limitations.
In the 1970s, Globe-Union was a leading manufacturer of automotive lead-acid batteries for Ford, Sears Die Hard, Interstate, NAPA, and many others. And at just that moment, there was yet another wave of renewed interest in electric vehicles, driven by high gasoline prices and the USA’s dependence on foreign oil. Enticed by the possibility (however remote) for an absolute explosion in the market for automotive batteries, the company created two prototype electric vehicles to study the matter: the Endura and the Maxima.
For the Endura, Globe-Union called upon noted race car builder Bob McKee of Howmett Turbine and McKee Can-Am fame, who was also an experienced hand at electric vehicles. Knowing full well the weight penalty involved in conventional lead-acid batteries, McKee made extensive use of alumimum and fiberglass in the construction to keep the total weight down to around 3,200 lbs.
A detachable rear body section allowed the Endura to be configured as a four-passenger, three-door hatchback or as a station wagon. Meanwhile, a Globe-Union designed central instrument panel with LED displays and microswitches foreshadowed, sort of, the flat touchscreens that would appear in the auto industry decades later.
To house the long rack of 12-volt lead-acid car batteries, 20 in all, McKee employed a layout he had developed and patented some years earlier on the Exide Sundancer EV: A central longtidunal subframe on rollers permitted the batteries to slide out for service simply by removing the front bumper (photos above and below). The 1300-lb battery array powered a General Electric 120 volt, 20-hp series-wound motor located in the rear and coupled to a special planetary final drive.
Unlike the tiny commuter EVs of its time, the Citicar for example, the Endura was presented as a family-sized vehicle with a 108-in wheelbase that could carry four passengers. At the 1978 introduction, top speed was quoted as 65 mph, while up to 100 miles of range could be achieved at speeds limited to 25-35 mph. An onboard 120-volt charger could top up the batteries in 14 to 16 hours, while the 240-volt garage charger could do it in seven.
The performance stats tell the story. Mainly, the Endura demonstrated the limitations of conventional lead-acid batteries for electric vehicles: excessive weight, short range, long charging times, and limited performance. EVs were not yet ready for the mass consumer market.
In 1980, Globe-Union, by then a part of Johnson Controls, produced a second, less ambitious EV prototype, the Maxima (below). This vehicle was essentially a modified Ford Fairmont station wagon with a cluster of six headlamps spread across the front end. Equipped with the same battery pack and propulsion unit as the Endura, it produced roughly the same results, and Globe-Union didn’t pursue the project any futher, it seems. In 2014 the Endura turned up on eBay where it was purchased by a restorer, while the Maxima is probably still out there somewhere as well.
There’s an unmistakable pattern in all these early attempts at electric propulstion. They all ran into the brick wall imposed by the lead-acid battery. Still it’s interesting to see all the ways they tried to overcome it.
Batteries and charging will be the problem with EV’s for a long time. They will make inroads into ICE sales, but until fast chargers are as numerous as gas stations and take minutes, not hours to charge, and batteries that give better, longer ranges rivaling ICE vehicles, the transition will be slow. Most of the early adopters have already bought in, and a lot of them have gotten rid of their EV’s when they found out that some of them weren’t quite as ready as claimed to be. The companies who are putting all their eggs into the EV basket will be the ones hurt first, while those taking a balanced approach will rise to the top.
Add in that we don’t have the infrastructure in place nationwide for this changeover, & that’s another factor that’s going to affect this. Interestingly, the Japanese manufacturers are taking the more balanced approach, so they’ll keep kicking our butts like they have the past 40+ years.
There’s a reason that after decades of being a loyal Ford & Mopar owner, we have two Subarus in our carport now.
I’m not against the transition to EVs at all, but the way we’re doing it is incredibly rushed, short sighted & ludicrous.
I’ve been driving a Tesla every day since September of 2020. As a very typical driver I have no problems whatsoever. with range or charging times.