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Cheap Chinese electric cars are coming to the US and Europe

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Re: Cheap Chinese electric cars are coming to the US and Europe

#131

Post by ngngngng »

jamessantiago wrote: post #116
gamegoblin wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

FWIW if the car is >= 25 years old, most of these regulations go away. I have a 1990 Subaru Sambar pickup truck [1] imported from Japan that is street legal and registered in Washington state. It’s probably only a tiny bit safer than a motorcycle because it has seatbelts. Maybe cancelled out by the fact that I don’t wear a helmet while driving it. You can get them for $3K - 5K depending on condition and they are exce…

You just rekindled my long time desire to own one of these. I saw them all over the place in okinawa and I have a die-cast toy car of one somewhere around here. I remember there was someone who put that longhorn decoration you see as a texas cliche on one. They definitely are pretty neat. It would be great for hauling landscaping items from my local nursery without having to get a full sized truck.

I'm with you, I've always admired the teeny utility trucks I see when I travel in China. It never occurred to me I could just import one thats >25 years old.

Re: Cheap Chinese electric cars are coming to the US and Europe

#132

Post by gamegoblin »

jamessantiago wrote: post #116
gamegoblin wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

FWIW if the car is >= 25 years old, most of these regulations go away. I have a 1990 Subaru Sambar pickup truck [1] imported from Japan that is street legal and registered in Washington state. It’s probably only a tiny bit safer than a motorcycle because it has seatbelts. Maybe cancelled out by the fact that I don’t wear a helmet while driving it. You can get them for $3K - 5K depending on condition and they are exce…

You just rekindled my long time desire to own one of these. I saw them all over the place in okinawa and I have a die-cast toy car of one somewhere around here. I remember there was someone who put that longhorn decoration you see as a texas cliche on one. They definitely are pretty neat. It would be great for hauling landscaping items from my local nursery without having to get a full sized truck.

If you aren't towing anything or driving cross-country, they can do just about everything a full-size pickup can do.

The bed size is 6.5 feet long and 4.5 feet wide. That's the same length as the Ford F150 bed, and the same width between the wheel wells. They are rated for 350kg (770 lbs) but you can go up to 450kg if it's well distributed.

I am an amateur carpenter and haul wood around the Seattle area in it all the time. It's absolutely perfect for this use case. It sips gas, too. Gets 30 mpg city 50 highway.

Re: Cheap Chinese electric cars are coming to the US and Europe

#133

Post by cmrdporcupine »

pedrocr wrote: post #88
cmrdporcupine wrote: post #80

If it can have a snow plow mounted on the front and it has a trailer hitch, I'd buy one just for use on my hobby farm. Assuming they make it to Canada. I don't need it to be road legal, either. Just needs to be narrow enough to get down an 8' vineyard row, and be able to push a couple feet of snow.

For those uses just buy a John Deere Gator or a Toro Workman. Best purchase we ever made for our hobby farm. Relatively easy to find cheap used ones and maintenance is really simple to do yourself. We have the Workman. The electric motor climbs anything and is very easy to modulate for use in tight maneuvers. The turning radius is so small it can go anywhere it will physically fit.

They make an electric Gator now? Looked a few years ago and it wasn't really an option. Do they actually have proper industrial or agri tires as an option?

I guess it's just lead acid, tho? Must be heavy and low range. I'd love something like that with a J1772 plug so I can use my existing L2 EVSE

Re: Cheap Chinese electric cars are coming to the US and Europe

#134

Post by gamegoblin »

ngngngng wrote: post #131
jamessantiago wrote: post #116

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You just rekindled my long time desire to own one of these. I saw them all over the place in okinawa and I have a die-cast toy car of one somewhere around here. I remember there was someone who put that longhorn decoration you see as a texas cliche on one. They definitely are pretty neat. It would be great for hauling landscaping items from my local nursery without having to get a full sized truck.

I'm with you, I've always admired the teeny utility trucks I see when I travel in China. It never occurred to me I could just import one thats >25 years old.

Some states won't register kei-trucks, so check with your state first. There are a few importers that keep some on stock.

For example, here is a big one in southern WA: https://www.nwminitrucks.com/inventory/active

And here is where I got mine in Seattle: http://sodo-moto.com/in-stock/?shipment=in-stock&body-style=...

Re: Cheap Chinese electric cars are coming to the US and Europe

#135

Post by tabtab »

The US market is notoriously unforgiving of bad quality cars. Hyundai and Detroit are still trying to repair their damaged reputations from decades ago.

Americans are car connoisseurs similar to how the French are food and drink connoisseurs. Tread carefully.

Re: Cheap Chinese electric cars are coming to the US and Europe

#136

Post by [deleted] »

Gravityloss wrote: post #117
gamegoblin wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

FWIW if the car is >= 25 years old, most of these regulations go away. I have a 1990 Subaru Sambar pickup truck [1] imported from Japan that is street legal and registered in Washington state. It’s probably only a tiny bit safer than a motorcycle because it has seatbelts. Maybe cancelled out by the fact that I don’t wear a helmet while driving it. You can get them for $3K - 5K depending on condition and they are exce…

That's just so cool. I don't know why. It's somehow got this giant "I do what I want" attitude written on it. Muscle cars seem so conservative and formulaic.

[deleted]

Re: Cheap Chinese electric cars are coming to the US and Europe

#137

Post by gamegoblin »

Gravityloss wrote: post #117
gamegoblin wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

FWIW if the car is >= 25 years old, most of these regulations go away. I have a 1990 Subaru Sambar pickup truck [1] imported from Japan that is street legal and registered in Washington state. It’s probably only a tiny bit safer than a motorcycle because it has seatbelts. Maybe cancelled out by the fact that I don’t wear a helmet while driving it. You can get them for $3K - 5K depending on condition and they are exce…

That's just so cool. I don't know why. It's somehow got this giant "I do what I want" attitude written on it. Muscle cars seem so conservative and formulaic.

For whatever reason, the current generation of teenagers seems to think it's really cool. I get compliments and genuine interest from that cohort all the time. I guess it might be because it's kind of a rebellious/counterculture/ironic sort of vehicle to drive in a country dominated by F-150 style trucks.

Re: Cheap Chinese electric cars are coming to the US and Europe

#138

Post by 4ndr3vv »

YetAnotherNick wrote: post #57
thefounder wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They are so f ugly. They should be illegal.

It falls into the uncanny valley on so many axes.

> It falls into the uncanny valley on so many axes.

Sorry, think I'm missing something here... How does the Twizy look like a human?

Re: Cheap Chinese electric cars are coming to the US and Europe

#139

Post by tptacek »

MrRadar wrote: post #101
ngngngng wrote: post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I just don't get it. a John Deere Gator with two seats and 4 wheels, and not much else costs over $7000 new. No windows, No airbags, pathetic top speed, not road legal. A Lada 4x4 costs less than that brand new in Russia. Road legal, standard car top speed. Known as a very reliable car. Why can't I buy a really cheap car in the United States? edit: also the lada 4x4 is possibly the coolest car i've ever seen, in it's…

"Road legal" has a different standard in the US. To sell a car in the US it must have airbags, ABS, electronic stability control, a backup camera (also implying a decently-large full-color display on the dashboard), and it must meet USDOT, NHTSA, and EPA standards (each of which are slightly incompatible with standards from other regions, and intentionally so as a soft trade barrier). I'm guessing that the Lada 4x4 w…

TIL new cars sold in the US require backup cameras. Wow.

Re: Cheap Chinese electric cars are coming to the US and Europe

#140

Post by samplatt »

winrid wrote: post #96
ngngngng wrote: post #89

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't know, I assume it's better than the more expensive open air golf cart that i'm comparing to though. edit: What i'm trying to say is, why is a fully functional car (even with bad crash safety and emissions) cheaper outside the United States than a golf cart is here? The answer seems obvious to me. Making it illegal to import cars has stifled competition and hurt consumers in the US.

Because the quality is much lower. The tractor is meant to be used near capacity for thousands of hours. Lada not so much. Lada is known to rust easily, John Deer is known for quality... Also, you are comparing two different spectrums. Maybe compare against very good farm equipment in Russia?

I'm seeing a lot of "John Deer == Quality" comments in this thread.

My farming background says "John Deer == artificially (and insanely) expensive maintenance". I've always equated JD with just being one of the biggest players, not necessarily a reflection of good quality.

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