Two years after buying my $2,000 electric truck from China, here's how it looks now | electrek
Two years after buying my $2,000 electric truck from China, here's how it looks now | electrek
Two years ago I bought an electric mini-truck from China and imported it to the US. Here's how it's held up ever since.
This is why the US now has a 100% tariff on Chinese EV's. American auto makers have no interest in affordable vehicles (Electric or otherwise) and the mere existence of these reliable yet affordable vehicles presents an existential threat to US auto makers thick profit margins. US leaders from any political party care more for share holders than the needs of the common people. That's 100% fact.
I'm surprised there's not at least one US based company making a small, ultra barebones EV thing like this yet. Something that could replace a lot of side-by-sides and ATVs on farms like this thing can, while also being able to get groceries. Surely there's enough off the shelf parts to wrangle something up? Only major custom part would be the frame. If it was under 10k (ideally 5 or 6, I figure), I feel like they would sell like hotcakes.
Something like a Microlina, but even more basic, and maybe a little more utility-vehicle shaped, like a Kei truck.
They're called Utility Transport Vehicles and they're priced in the $15k to $30k range. China subsidizes a lot of the manufacturing of electric vehicles and PV panels and still has a large advantage in labor costs over North American manufacturing of the same. There's no realistic way to complete with those advantages. So the question becomes, should NAFTA members subsidize the same or should the North American population be given the benefit of Chinese subsidies in the form of cheap utility vehicles or do they protect the North American manufacturing industry by keeping high tarrifs in place?
Vehicle safety regulations in place prevent this.
It's why domestic as well as Japanese cars have gotten so oversized and compared to 20 years ago.
It's also why every car on the road looks alike. Automotive design is very restricted by regulation. They start with what they are "allowed" to make and have to work within the standards.
This is at least partially not 100% fact.
You can’t just put a lump of metal with an electric motor on the road. Safety requirements are necessary to not kill people you either hit or when it’s crashed.
Getting approvals costs a lot of money. You can bet this thing has never had a crash test.
That doesn't explain why the Trump administration placed a 25% tariff on Chinese electric vehicles or why the Biden administration raised that to 100%. In order for a Chinese vehicle to meet those standards they have to do it for half the cost to compete with an equivalent American EV that would sell for the same price. Just like all domestic and import vehicles they would have to meet US safety standards but unlike Japan or Europe they have an artifical handicap placed on them to prevent competition. That's the issue here.
That isn't necessarily a problem for people who need vehicles which, as the article stated, are meant to just be used around farms/ranches and replace other equipment.
It’s hard to compete against Chinese labor costs and the Chinese subsidized battery industry. Western automakers have to buy Chinese batteries with a massive markup while these Chinese automakers can buy them below cost because of the subsidies.
Either we choose to let these cheap cars on the market so we electrify quicker but at the cost of destroying the local auto industry or we protect an entire industry but electrify slower. It happened in the solar panel industry. The flood of cheap Chinese solar panels meant that panels became affordable for more people but western solar manufacturers are basically non-existent nowadays. You probably think “Who cares?” But COVID has shown what Chinese dependency can do to our economy if another global disaster strikes. Also the more we depend on China the less likely our politicians are willing to put pressure on them when Xi will eventually initiate his plan to take over Taiwan and the South China Sea.
And scientifically we will fall behind when their is no industry to fund research anymore.
It's hard to compete because our government doesn't want to do what it takes in order to incentivize competition.
The Chinese subsidizes the market? So should the U.S. Oh, but it costs billions per year? Oh no, no, we can't do that... that would make a dent on the tens of billions spend every year on military stuff.
So glad to see the follow up. I remember reading this guy's post when he originally bought it.
Wonder what justification they give for turning back vehicles at the port. Seems like at that point a lawyer might be worth it.