The distinction between NEVs and actual cars is more a legal one than a practical one. Basically, there's very little stopping an NEV from going faster than 35M

The distinction between NEVs and actual cars is more a legal one than a practical one. Basically, there's very little stopping an NEV from going faster than 35MPH. This is a legal limit but not a practical limit inherent to the design. You could feasibly build one that can do 40-50MPH and not massively increase the budget. There would be safety concerns and other concerns; but it's not that hard technically. The point here is that most of the cost of these vehicles is the battery, not the electrical engine. There are a lot of cheap electrical vehicles for sale in China. Most of those actually ship with lead acid batteries because they are cheaper. They have unimpressive ranges and performance. And most of those are not street legal at all. But they are dirt cheap. Elektrek has been running a "Awesomely Weird Alibaba Electric Vehicle of the Week" series of articles that highlight some of the more wacky, weird, and wonderful designs people have come up with. Some of the more serious form factors there look like they could be perfectly alright for well under 3000$.