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> If IKEA came out with an electric tuk-tuk for $4K I suspect the Big Three would lose their shit Seems like they already exist (not from IKEA of course), but

> If IKEA came out with an electric tuk-tuk for $4K I suspect the Big Three would lose their shit Seems like they already exist (not from IKEA of course), but that sort of vehicle isn't allowed on the road in the US so I don't think the Big Three are too concerned. https://www.aliexpress.com/w/wholesale-electric-passenger-tuk-tuk.html?catId=0&initiative_id=SB_20230328173116&SearchText=electric+passenger+tuk+tuk&spm=a2g0o.productlist.1000002.0 https://www.aliexpress.com/w/wholesale-electric-passenger-tu...

hotpotamus 4y ago
In the US, a 3 wheeled vehicle can be sold as a motorcycle and then the regulations are quite lax (though I think helmet laws might kick in). Look at a Polaris Slingshot as an example.
- rootusrootus 4y ago
  Aptera has been threatening to produce one for how long now? I don't think most people are actually interested in a three wheel officially-a-motorcycle-but-effectively-a-tiny-car.
  - hotpotamus 4y ago
    I had a co-worker who actually put $1000 down on an Elio years ago, but as far as I know, they've never come close to making one. I'd be fine driving something like an Aptera, but I just looked and it's like $33K, so I'm not really seeing the savings. I'm also keenly aware that I'm not most people.
    - WorldMaker 4y ago
      $33K is still cheaper to any comparable Tesla Model 3 at slightly higher expected range (plus the benefits of solar charging).
      - hotpotamus 4y ago
        It's still more than a Chevy Bolt which looks like a regular sedan and not some retro-futurist science experiment to meld an airplane and automobile that you drive down the road.
        WorldMaker 4y ago
        Aesthetics are always in the eye of the beholder. Personally, as a 2012 Volt owner I certainly wish the Bolt looked like a regular sedan. It's an ugly modern American "cross-over" (they like the weird ugly "EUV" term in marketing) that isn't a proper sedan in any classic sense but also doesn't commit enough to being a proper hatchback or a light truck enough to make sense for why it is so "cross-over" looking. To me it is a very ugly duckling with no true home in car fashion. I like the "dolphin tricycle" look of the Aptera. But I suppose I also like retro-futurism and science experiments and in general cars that look like they would take off for the sky if not caged to the ground.
        hotpotamus 4y ago
        I'd drive an affordable electric car that looks like that, but it's a bit too "look at me" for my taste. A basic box on wheels with doors that moves from A to B is more my thing (I currently drive a Chevy Cruze). See also the Polaris Slingshot; I'm not trying to look like a superhero off on my way to fight crime. As far as what I'd actually like, a Chinese maker already made it but I don't imagine it coming to the US ever - https://insideevs.com/news/614218/wuling-hong-guang-mini-ev-cabrio-goes-sale-china-for-14000usd/ https://insideevs.com/news/614218/wuling-hong-guang-mini-ev-... Or something like a Fiat 500 with a Cabrio top (they made a gas one, but not an electric as far as I know). Still a bit odd looking, but more cute than mean or science-experiment.
        WorldMaker 4y ago
        I've fallen in love with videos of a lot of Chinese sedans. I very seriously think that if import tariffs get worked out and the Chinese EV companies make a serious effort, they have a ripe opportunity to blow up in the US market the way that the Korean sedans did for Gen X and the Japanese sedans did for the Boomers. (That's such a dumb cycle: Americans forget that they love sedans until an importer starts importing them in bulk. The importer themselves forget Americans love sedans and move on to trucks/SUVs like everyone else. Some new importer needs to come along to disrupt the market again.) (Related to that, I also fell in love with the Honda e and knew that to be futile love because Honda of America is a truck company.)
  - myself248 4y ago
    Speak for yourself, I've been in line for an Aptera ever since the solar reboot. I don't drive a ton of miles, but it's over roads where a bike would be literal suicide. A performant runabout with a bit of cargo space is exactly what I want, and if it only needs to be plugged in a few times a year, so much the better. I'm keeping the A-Team van for when I need to move minicomputers and their peripherals, but an Aptera could do like 95% of my driving.
    - brewdad 4y ago
      Give me something more crashworthy like a VW Polo for the US market and I’m there.
    - elihu 4y ago
      Would an Arcimoto FUV work for you? Those are available now. (They don't have solar panels and probably have much worse aerodynamics than Aptera. On the other hand, I think Arcimoto has the right idea with front/rear seating rather than side-by-side.)
      - myself248 4y ago
        .....does it have... doors? I'm gonna say no. I deal with months of snow and slush and a few miles of "70mph" (really 85+mph) highway.
        elihu 4y ago
        I think they have half-doors now. It's kind of a weird thing not to have fully figured out at this point, but I give them credit for actually releasing a product and iterating.
- shubb 4y ago
  For short range urband deliveries in London, in seeing small 4 wheeled electric vehicles that are technically bicycles. This had the advantage that they can use cycle paths, so not need insurance, driving licence, or to any design validation.
- elihu 4y ago
  The Arcimoto FUV is a 3-wheel electric that's available in some states now. I'm not sure if there are some states where helments are required, but generally they aren't. https://www.arcimoto.com/fuv https://www.arcimoto.com/fuv
wlesieutre 4y ago
Here’s a (4-wheeled) US legal microcar, max speed 25 mph and allowed on roads with speed limit up to 35 https://electrek.co/2023/03/22/wink-motors-test-drive-electric-microcar-lsv/ https://electrek.co/2023/03/22/wink-motors-test-drive-electr...
- nebula8804 4y ago
  Wow what a great idea! This car kinda looks like they are using a Chinese partner to do design and/or creating the build process. Seems like this segment could really use a Tesla like competitor. There has got to be more they can do in that $9k budget to deliver the very best micro car. They can't possibly be squeezing out the best that the LFP battery can offer. I guess maybe their potential budget or scale is limiting what they can deliver to the market.
- wizofaus 4y ago
  Maybe legally permitted but I can't imagine wanting to be in something like that on a major thoroughfare full of Hummers and Rams...
  - wlesieutre 4y ago
    Yeah, I would think of it as closer to riding a bike than driving a car in that respect. People do it all the time but you want to be careful about route selection.
    - wizofaus 4y ago
      Well I wouldn't ride a bike on the sorts of roads I had in mind either (and I'm generally comfortable riding on busy roads, but only when there's enough dedicated space for bikes.)
      - wlesieutre 4y ago
        That's what I mean by thinking of it more like a bike. Just because a road is legal to ride on doesn't mean I would want to, you have to take the scenic route sometimes. But at least you're not getting rained on, and you can haul a lot more groceries up a hill than I would want to while biking.
seanmcdirmid 4y ago
The most popular EV car in China is a Hongguan MinI, only $4k or so. Completely road legal in China.
- brohee 4y ago
  Made EU legal it's €13K (https://nikrob.uk/ https://nikrob.uk/).
JKCalhoun 4y ago
There are 12 year old kids driving "golf carts" all over my neighborhood streets.

hotpotamus 4y ago

In the US, a 3 wheeled vehicle can be sold as a motorcycle and then the regulations are quite lax (though I think helmet laws might kick in). Look at a Polaris Slingshot as an example.

rootusrootus 4y ago
Aptera has been threatening to produce one for how long now? I don't think most people are actually interested in a three wheel officially-a-motorcycle-but-effectively-a-tiny-car.
- hotpotamus 4y ago
  I had a co-worker who actually put $1000 down on an Elio years ago, but as far as I know, they've never come close to making one. I'd be fine driving something like an Aptera, but I just looked and it's like $33K, so I'm not really seeing the savings. I'm also keenly aware that I'm not most people.
  - WorldMaker 4y ago
    $33K is still cheaper to any comparable Tesla Model 3 at slightly higher expected range (plus the benefits of solar charging).
    - hotpotamus 4y ago
      It's still more than a Chevy Bolt which looks like a regular sedan and not some retro-futurist science experiment to meld an airplane and automobile that you drive down the road.
      - WorldMaker 4y ago
        Aesthetics are always in the eye of the beholder. Personally, as a 2012 Volt owner I certainly wish the Bolt looked like a regular sedan. It's an ugly modern American "cross-over" (they like the weird ugly "EUV" term in marketing) that isn't a proper sedan in any classic sense but also doesn't commit enough to being a proper hatchback or a light truck enough to make sense for why it is so "cross-over" looking. To me it is a very ugly duckling with no true home in car fashion. I like the "dolphin tricycle" look of the Aptera. But I suppose I also like retro-futurism and science experiments and in general cars that look like they would take off for the sky if not caged to the ground.
        hotpotamus 4y ago
        I'd drive an affordable electric car that looks like that, but it's a bit too "look at me" for my taste. A basic box on wheels with doors that moves from A to B is more my thing (I currently drive a Chevy Cruze). See also the Polaris Slingshot; I'm not trying to look like a superhero off on my way to fight crime. As far as what I'd actually like, a Chinese maker already made it but I don't imagine it coming to the US ever - https://insideevs.com/news/614218/wuling-hong-guang-mini-ev-cabrio-goes-sale-china-for-14000usd/ https://insideevs.com/news/614218/wuling-hong-guang-mini-ev-... Or something like a Fiat 500 with a Cabrio top (they made a gas one, but not an electric as far as I know). Still a bit odd looking, but more cute than mean or science-experiment.
        WorldMaker 4y ago
        I've fallen in love with videos of a lot of Chinese sedans. I very seriously think that if import tariffs get worked out and the Chinese EV companies make a serious effort, they have a ripe opportunity to blow up in the US market the way that the Korean sedans did for Gen X and the Japanese sedans did for the Boomers. (That's such a dumb cycle: Americans forget that they love sedans until an importer starts importing them in bulk. The importer themselves forget Americans love sedans and move on to trucks/SUVs like everyone else. Some new importer needs to come along to disrupt the market again.) (Related to that, I also fell in love with the Honda e and knew that to be futile love because Honda of America is a truck company.)
- myself248 4y ago
  Speak for yourself, I've been in line for an Aptera ever since the solar reboot. I don't drive a ton of miles, but it's over roads where a bike would be literal suicide. A performant runabout with a bit of cargo space is exactly what I want, and if it only needs to be plugged in a few times a year, so much the better. I'm keeping the A-Team van for when I need to move minicomputers and their peripherals, but an Aptera could do like 95% of my driving.
  - brewdad 4y ago
    Give me something more crashworthy like a VW Polo for the US market and I’m there.
  - elihu 4y ago
    Would an Arcimoto FUV work for you? Those are available now. (They don't have solar panels and probably have much worse aerodynamics than Aptera. On the other hand, I think Arcimoto has the right idea with front/rear seating rather than side-by-side.)
    - myself248 4y ago
      .....does it have... doors? I'm gonna say no. I deal with months of snow and slush and a few miles of "70mph" (really 85+mph) highway.
      - elihu 4y ago
        I think they have half-doors now. It's kind of a weird thing not to have fully figured out at this point, but I give them credit for actually releasing a product and iterating.
shubb 4y ago
For short range urband deliveries in London, in seeing small 4 wheeled electric vehicles that are technically bicycles. This had the advantage that they can use cycle paths, so not need insurance, driving licence, or to any design validation.
elihu 4y ago
The Arcimoto FUV is a 3-wheel electric that's available in some states now. I'm not sure if there are some states where helments are required, but generally they aren't. https://www.arcimoto.com/fuv https://www.arcimoto.com/fuv

wlesieutre 4y ago

Here’s a (4-wheeled) US legal microcar, max speed 25 mph and allowed on roads with speed limit up to 35 https://electrek.co/2023/03/22/wink-motors-test-drive-electric-microcar-lsv/ https://electrek.co/2023/03/22/wink-motors-test-drive-electr...

nebula8804 4y ago
Wow what a great idea! This car kinda looks like they are using a Chinese partner to do design and/or creating the build process. Seems like this segment could really use a Tesla like competitor. There has got to be more they can do in that $9k budget to deliver the very best micro car. They can't possibly be squeezing out the best that the LFP battery can offer. I guess maybe their potential budget or scale is limiting what they can deliver to the market.
wizofaus 4y ago
Maybe legally permitted but I can't imagine wanting to be in something like that on a major thoroughfare full of Hummers and Rams...
- wlesieutre 4y ago
  Yeah, I would think of it as closer to riding a bike than driving a car in that respect. People do it all the time but you want to be careful about route selection.
  - wizofaus 4y ago
    Well I wouldn't ride a bike on the sorts of roads I had in mind either (and I'm generally comfortable riding on busy roads, but only when there's enough dedicated space for bikes.)
    - wlesieutre 4y ago
      That's what I mean by thinking of it more like a bike. Just because a road is legal to ride on doesn't mean I would want to, you have to take the scenic route sometimes. But at least you're not getting rained on, and you can haul a lot more groceries up a hill than I would want to while biking.

seanmcdirmid 4y ago

The most popular EV car in China is a Hongguan MinI, only $4k or so. Completely road legal in China.

brohee 4y ago
Made EU legal it's €13K (https://nikrob.uk/ https://nikrob.uk/).

JKCalhoun 4y ago

There are 12 year old kids driving "golf carts" all over my neighborhood streets.