Behind the Wheel:

TIME's Michael Lemonick, who last year test drove a similar model built by Ford, reports: "The electric cars drive and feel very much like a regular car. The acceleration is good, and it handles the same. But it's a bit of a stretch to say, as GM claims, that it's quieter than a regular car. At startup and slow speeds, that's certainly true. The electric motor is almost silent. But at normal driving speeds, most of the noise you hear in a car comes from the road and wind, so it sounds pretty much the same."