businessinsider.com:
This is a bland 4 door sedan, but intentionally so. It's aimed right at heart of the masses. It's the anti-Tesla.
It will cost $45,000 pre-tax breaks, and will get 100 miles per charge. It will take 6 hours to charge, which means in 2 hours it will be good for 40 miles. Says Miles CEO, Kevin Czinger, 100 miles will cover 90% of the drivers needs.
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As long as you folks make it sound so bad, I'll just keep my Prius and liten to the 4x4 and Hummer drivers bitch about their gas $$ ($125.00 on up) while I put my $9.00 fillup.
Those folks probably burn my tankful on their way out of the gas station.
That's a good example of what we can expect out of Barack Motors. Make sure you get the Hussein option package. Makes parking much easier.
This is a PRIVATE venture. Do conservatives read? I guess we got our answer.
"It's also worth noting, that people thought Japanese cars were untrustworthy just a few years back."
It's worth noting that if you're a publicist for the company ... and doesn't the whole article read like a passably translated marketing datasheet straight from China?
$45,000 for 100-mile range (claimed, so in reality ...?) made by workers who can't join a free trade union or express themselves politically? Pass.
"...made by workers who can't join a free trade union or express themselves politically?"
How's that different from any product you buy at Walmart these days? Pass!
A $45K mid-size sedan has to be marketed as a status symbol of some sort. The Accord Hybrid didn't sell, and neither will this.
Toyota had the right idea in giving the Prius a distinctive shape. That makes it a status symbol. The Tesla Roadster is a status symbol. A professional automotive critics said he got more attention driving around town in an Aptera than in any exotic supercar from Lamborghini or Ferrari.
None of the current-generation BEVs and PHEVs are going to pay for themselves in energy cost savings over their expected lifetimes. They are luxury products, and they need to be marketed as such.
People will pay a premium for a car they believe will earn appreciation or admiration from peers or even strangers. A bland electric sedan is like an inside joke that has to be explained to the audience. It's just not very impressive.
Well said. Even so, I hope it succeeds.
Given that most Americans can't park in their garages or don't have one, I guess they're going to need extension cords. And anyway, if you don't even have a job to drive to, you're not going to pay BMW bucks for a Chevy Malibu.
I'll bet most American who buy new cars do have a garage. Don't have to park in it, if you can afford an extension cord. But I agree about your BMW/Malibu point, I don't see this car making it in the US.
"Intentionally bland?" Why would any car manufacturer claim that? The Chinese have a lot to learn about auto design and marketing.
Besides, it's too expensive for the range it offers.
The way I understand the article, the Chinese will manufacture the car for a privately held American company. It's probably the usual Chinese Joint Venture. The Chinese get the venture, the other party usually gets the joint. The manufacturer in this case is most likely going to get paid for the product, no matter how sales go...
You can find their "website" here.
http://www.codaautomotive.com/#/who
The whole thing is about ten times as cheesy as that "new GM" advertisement. As far as PR goes, I would give it an 'A' ... for "amateurish".
Can't buy one without a job!
For the price they are showing here you can get a much better tesla sedan(according to what they are advertising ) that gets closer to 200 miles to a charge for the same amount of money the chinese are selling it for.
If the chinese were able to sell it for under 30 then this would be a game changer.
Correction, the telsla model s get 300 miles to charge with takes 45 minutes and goes 0-60 i n 5.6 seconds. It goes for 49k and does look sweet. After a federal rebate check you can get it for 42k.
Here is the bad news... they can't make it work. They couldn't make the other one work, either.
:-)
You can be the Chinese model will be cheap - cheap price tag and cheap construction. The price will be right - Buffett will make sure of that. Walmart stores will become "dealerships."
The Polosi car seems to be a better buy - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rAqPMJFaEdY&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fiowahawk%2Etypepad%2Ecom%2Fiowahawk%2F2009%2F06%2Fi%2Dtried%2Dto%2Dwarn%2Dyou%2Ehtml&feature=player_embedded
This will be a very hard sell. I wouldn't bet my money on it. If they survive the first five years and come out with a second generation model that looks better and has slightly better performance (as in distance, not speed or acceleration), I would give them a serious try, though.
I was under the impression you thought these electric cars were toys for the rich.
The Tesla for sure is. But if a $42k car is now for the working classes, we should see a lot more used BMW740s on the road. That's what those things go for with 15-35 thousand miles on them.
:-)
I can see some problems.
First of all it has an 80mph top speed. That is not doubt on flat surfaces with no headwind. Put it on a slope and what do you get?
Second, they are planning on selling it on the web. That's fine until you need some warranty work. Then what? Similar concern for spare parts, collision repairs, etc.
Recharging time...Six hours connected to what? Household current or an industrial power source. Charging a Tesla from ordinary house current takes about thirty hours.
What's wrong with having an electric car that you charge nightly? Most people I know charge their cell phones every day or two.
As far as the cosmetics of the car, many people think the Camry is ugly but it's the best-selling sedan in America.
All the people I know run out of battery on their cell phones regularly, too.
:-)
The problem they'll run into with their business model is that in the US, business interests have made it difficult or impossible to buy cars directly from the manufacturer. That's why the car-buying process is such a byzantine mess in the first place, and why the guy on the next block who bought a car just like yours may have paid $1k more or less than you did, because he either went to a different dealer, or just haggles better than you.
At $45k, it's not a good business proposition. After the $7500 credit you can get from the feds, you're left with a $38k (plus tax, title & license!) Kia Spectra, without Hyundai/Kia's recently-proven track record of making decent cheap cars. I paid way, WAY less than that for a 250 hp, AWD station wagon that seats 4 comfortably. While it burns evil old-fashioned gasoline, I'd have to drive over 70,000 miles before the fuel cost (at $4/gallon, by the way) added up to the price difference between the cars. If you compared it to a truly comparable car (something like a Kia Spectra, from the looks of it) it's not likely that the car would ever last long enough to make up the difference in purchase price, and that would be assuming FREE electricity.
This car, at that price, ain't gonna make it until gasoline is $15/gallon.
After finding the company's website and reading it, they claim it's "midsize" so the more appropriate Kia for comparison would be an Optima rather than a Spectra. Still, a fully tricked-out Optima at LIST (and no one pays list for a Kia) would be cheaper to buy and operate for 6-8 years.
This could be a very practical second car for most families.
Yeah, that's what I want. A fugly electric car.
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Posted: 06- 3-09 03:42 PM