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https://insideevs.com/news/502536/wuling-hongguang-mini-ev-cabrio/ https://insideevs.com/news/502536/wuling-hongguang-mini-ev-c... That's the actual car I thin

https://insideevs.com/news/502536/wuling-hongguang-mini-ev-cabrio/ https://insideevs.com/news/502536/wuling-hongguang-mini-ev-c... That's the actual car I think I want most in the world. It's so cheap and fun, and possibly even practical for me, but I don't think there's any way I could drive it in my city sadly.

glogla 4y ago
Yeah, the "larger cars are safer for people inside the car but more likely to kill people outside the car" red queen race made roads even more terrible. In car like that, you would get ran over by a lifted truck or mama-SUV pretty quickly.
- beebeepka 4y ago
  If things continue this way, our current end game is tanks with machine guns and stuff. I feel safer already.
jfim 4y ago
Haha wow, that's such an adorable car. It's unfortunate that that kind of vehicle won't ever make it to the US though.
- fshbbdssbbgdd 4y ago
  The closest thing was probably the electric Smart car that Mercedes makes: https://carbuzz.com/cars/smart/fortwo-electric-drive-cabrio https://carbuzz.com/cars/smart/fortwo-electric-drive-cabrio They don’t sell them in the US anymore.
  - jfim 4y ago
    Oh wow, I didn't even know they made an electric smart, much less a convertible one. Not sure how good the EV part of that was (the article hints that it was terrible) but the form factor is really nice.
  - happymellon 4y ago
    Is the Honda-e available over there? That's a pretty nice mini electric vehicle.
    - WorldMaker 4y ago
      The Honda-e is not available at all in the US. The top line excuse is that side-view cameras are still not street legal in the US (though regulators are supposed to finally reconvene on that any day now) and the car's profile can't retrofit mirrors. But the current bottom line seems a disinterest from Honda of America in any EV products right now.
    - robin_reala 4y ago
      It’s really not that small in real life.
      - happymellon 4y ago
        I'm in the UK and seen them about. They aren't very large, about the size of a Fiat 500 which is considered quite a compact car. [Edit] I've just looked it up and it is considered a mid-sized super-compact. Within 1/2" of the Fiesta for the wheelbase. Its quite dinky.
        robin_reala 4y ago
        Its wheelbase is 8 inches longer than the Fiat 500, and it’s overall 10" longer. It’s by no means a big car, but it’s quite a bit bigger than a traditional city car.
beebeepka 4y ago
I would actually get a driving license for a car like this. Why wouldn't you be able to drive it in your city. Doesn't look smaller than a smart.
- hotpotamus 4y ago
  In the US you'd have to buy a bunch and put them through destructive crash tests to certify them, and I doubt these would pass - those smart cars actually have expensive high end steel structures built in that make them surprisingly resilient, and I doubt they do that in China. If they had 3 wheels you could skip a lot of that and count it as a motorcycle. Also, anything older than 25 years basically just bypasses the rules which means a lot of 90's Kei cars from Japan are starting to make their way in, but obviously those are combustion powered (still cool though). There is the concept of Neighborhood Electric Vehicle, but I don't believe they are allowed in my state. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neighborhood_Electric_Vehicle https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neighborhood_Electric_Vehicle Who knows, maybe there's a business opportunity to import these things and certify them - I'd be a buyer.
  - lovemenot 4y ago
    Speaking of Kei cars, the first two EVs that fall into the Kei car regulatory category were recently released in Japan. https://www.motor1.com/news/587022/nissan-sakura-electric-kei-car/ https://www.motor1.com/news/587022/nissan-sakura-electric-ke... https://www.mitsubishi-motors.co.jp/lineup/ek_x_ev/special/?intcid2=top_mainbnr_slide1 https://www.mitsubishi-motors.co.jp/lineup/ek_x_ev/special/?...
  - 7speter 4y ago
    The “destructive crash tests” are required so that you have a fighting chance in surviving a crash with a SUV
    - hotpotamus 4y ago
      I understand that, but how would I do in crash with an SUV if I were on a motorcycle and are those street legal?
intrepidhero 4y ago
https://www.arcimoto.com/ https://www.arcimoto.com/ Not nearly as cheap, but street legal in the US and looks like loads of fun.
prmoustache 4y ago
I don't understand why anyone would choose that over a motorbike.
jaclaz 4y ago
I don't think it will ever arrive in the US, but the Citroen AMI is a nice little thing that is having some success in some EU countries: https://www.citroen.co.uk/models/future-models/ami.html https://www.citroen.co.uk/models/future-models/ami.html Though personally (if it will ever be produced in mass) I like this "re-make" of the old Isetta, the microlino: https://microlino-car.com/en/microlino https://microlino-car.com/en/microlino

glogla 4y ago

Yeah, the "larger cars are safer for people inside the car but more likely to kill people outside the car" red queen race made roads even more terrible. In car like that, you would get ran over by a lifted truck or mama-SUV pretty quickly.

beebeepka 4y ago
If things continue this way, our current end game is tanks with machine guns and stuff. I feel safer already.

jfim 4y ago

Haha wow, that's such an adorable car. It's unfortunate that that kind of vehicle won't ever make it to the US though.

fshbbdssbbgdd 4y ago
The closest thing was probably the electric Smart car that Mercedes makes: https://carbuzz.com/cars/smart/fortwo-electric-drive-cabrio https://carbuzz.com/cars/smart/fortwo-electric-drive-cabrio They don’t sell them in the US anymore.
- jfim 4y ago
  Oh wow, I didn't even know they made an electric smart, much less a convertible one. Not sure how good the EV part of that was (the article hints that it was terrible) but the form factor is really nice.
- happymellon 4y ago
  Is the Honda-e available over there? That's a pretty nice mini electric vehicle.
  - WorldMaker 4y ago
    The Honda-e is not available at all in the US. The top line excuse is that side-view cameras are still not street legal in the US (though regulators are supposed to finally reconvene on that any day now) and the car's profile can't retrofit mirrors. But the current bottom line seems a disinterest from Honda of America in any EV products right now.
  - robin_reala 4y ago
    It’s really not that small in real life.
    - happymellon 4y ago
      I'm in the UK and seen them about. They aren't very large, about the size of a Fiat 500 which is considered quite a compact car. [Edit] I've just looked it up and it is considered a mid-sized super-compact. Within 1/2" of the Fiesta for the wheelbase. Its quite dinky.
      - robin_reala 4y ago
        Its wheelbase is 8 inches longer than the Fiat 500, and it’s overall 10" longer. It’s by no means a big car, but it’s quite a bit bigger than a traditional city car.

beebeepka 4y ago

I would actually get a driving license for a car like this. Why wouldn't you be able to drive it in your city. Doesn't look smaller than a smart.

hotpotamus 4y ago
In the US you'd have to buy a bunch and put them through destructive crash tests to certify them, and I doubt these would pass - those smart cars actually have expensive high end steel structures built in that make them surprisingly resilient, and I doubt they do that in China. If they had 3 wheels you could skip a lot of that and count it as a motorcycle. Also, anything older than 25 years basically just bypasses the rules which means a lot of 90's Kei cars from Japan are starting to make their way in, but obviously those are combustion powered (still cool though). There is the concept of Neighborhood Electric Vehicle, but I don't believe they are allowed in my state. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neighborhood_Electric_Vehicle https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neighborhood_Electric_Vehicle Who knows, maybe there's a business opportunity to import these things and certify them - I'd be a buyer.
- lovemenot 4y ago
  Speaking of Kei cars, the first two EVs that fall into the Kei car regulatory category were recently released in Japan. https://www.motor1.com/news/587022/nissan-sakura-electric-kei-car/ https://www.motor1.com/news/587022/nissan-sakura-electric-ke... https://www.mitsubishi-motors.co.jp/lineup/ek_x_ev/special/?intcid2=top_mainbnr_slide1 https://www.mitsubishi-motors.co.jp/lineup/ek_x_ev/special/?...
- 7speter 4y ago
  The “destructive crash tests” are required so that you have a fighting chance in surviving a crash with a SUV
  - hotpotamus 4y ago
    I understand that, but how would I do in crash with an SUV if I were on a motorcycle and are those street legal?

intrepidhero 4y ago

https://www.arcimoto.com/ https://www.arcimoto.com/ Not nearly as cheap, but street legal in the US and looks like loads of fun.

prmoustache 4y ago

I don't understand why anyone would choose that over a motorbike.

jaclaz 4y ago

I don't think it will ever arrive in the US, but the Citroen AMI is a nice little thing that is having some success in some EU countries: https://www.citroen.co.uk/models/future-models/ami.html https://www.citroen.co.uk/models/future-models/ami.html Though personally (if it will ever be produced in mass) I like this "re-make" of the old Isetta, the microlino: https://microlino-car.com/en/microlino https://microlino-car.com/en/microlino