Ready to buy Chinese? EV for $15k
The ZX40 isn't much -- a electric hatchback starting at just under $15,000 with a range of 40 miles and a top speed of 25 mph -- but it's here from China, and it's street legal in the U.S. The battery-powered hatch from Miles Automotive is built by Tianjin-based Qingyuan and represents one of the first Chinese-manufactured vehicles available for sale in the United States. It is available to the general public through Miles Automotive dealerships, but the distributor says that its target market is townships, the military and other fleet-seeking organizations. Also, soon be on the market is the hatch's big brother, the the XS200, will travel up to 200 miles, top out at 80 mph and cost around $28,500.
[Source: Edmunds Inside Line]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
joshua goodwin 10:19AM (8/13/2006)
I'd HATE to have one of those!!! 25 mph!!! Ooh, and it may be cheapish but do you have to buy batteries for it? It must cost a fortune if you do! Or maybe it is rechargable, like other electric cars i've heard of.
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Andrew 10:22AM (8/13/2006)
I hope it succeeds. Then we won't have to endure a lame movie about who "killed" it ;-)
This might fit my needs. I live 8 miles from work, and 90% of my shopping is within 10 miles. Also we are 2 car family - so we could just use the minivan for long trips.
Biggest weakness of this type of EV is . . . me. Let me explain.
I am sometimes absent minded, and don't pay attention to gas gage. I drive till the light comes on then duck into next station I see. If I was 15 miles from home and almost out of juice, I'd be stranded for hours.
You can blame me - but this shows how EV's fail in real world.
Finally, EV makers typically state "best case" or "typical" range, where people really care about worse case (if you get stranded once per year - too much). What is range in Phoenix AZ with an accident causing delays and AC running full blast?
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Jason 10:34AM (8/13/2006)
If this was a bow-tie vehicle, Chevy would have also made a SS version with 18" rims and a top speed of 30 mph.
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zinger 10:44AM (8/13/2006)
Everything these days is made in china, that's why our ouwn economy is in such a fragile state !
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Mike from Scarborough 10:51AM (8/13/2006)
Keep buying products from a commusist country.Don't cry when your wages here have to compete with their's one day in order to compete.
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Stoneman 11:26AM (8/13/2006)
I have to credit the Chinese, for building something that not even they themselves want.
Stoneman
http://www.stonemanautoreview.com
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buckeyeguy 11:40AM (8/13/2006)
In order to make this conversation something other than an excuse to comment on how everything comes from China and that they are taking all of our jobs I'd like to introduce some facts.
Fact #1. Imports from China represent only 10-11% of US imports by value. Yes, everything at Wal-Mart says "Made in China." But the goods at Wal-Mart don't cost much. Our number one trading partners by value are Canada (19-20%) and Mexico (11-12%). What do we buy from Canada? OIL! Don't believe me? Here are the facts:
Top Trading Partners: http://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/statistics/highlights/top/index.html#2006
Crude Oil and Total Petroleum Imports Top 15 Countries: http://www.eia.doe.gov/pub/oil_gas/petroleum/data_publications/company_level_imports/current/import.html
Fact #2. Once China sends us these goods and we send them money you'd be amazed what they do with the cash. They buy treasury bills. Yep, they invest it in America because it's safe storage of value. I can hear the theories now - "so they are buying up our country." That might be the case if it weren't for the fact the most countries do this b/c T-bills are stable AND being in dollar form they can pretty easily buy you guessed it - OIL.
Fact 3 (based on fact 2): If the communists (who I won't argue - we should be cautious of dealing with) ever give us trouble we could refuse to honor their treasury bills. I think it's clear how this gives us some leverage.
Hopefully this information (most of which comes from an MBA class that touched on global economics) is of as most interest to some of you as it was to me.
As for this car: 25MPH – a bike would be faster. I don’t think this is anything to be too concerned about!
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That One Person 11:49AM (8/13/2006)
$15k? I can go out and buy a Focus or a Fit or whatever that can go ten times as far and can go 3.5 times faster. Whate a waste of money...
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Andy 4:03PM (8/13/2006)
#8 - Sure, but you'll be saving on gas, and lessening our dependence on oil..
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Josh 5:07PM (8/13/2006)
They have a funny idea of what will sell to the military. the Buy American Act and the Trade Agreements Act (BAA/TAA) restrict where the military (and most of the government) can buy their products from, usually to major allies like Britain, Germany, Japan, and so on. China is not BAA/TAA compliant, meaning products produced in or by Chinese companies are not elgible for sale to the US military, and most government agencies.
So, what are they thinking? Even Lenovo runs into trouble selling laptops to the government, and they used to be IBM. How can a Chinese company think it will sell vehicles to, of all things, the military?
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jimbo 5:42PM (8/13/2006)
#7 I don't really know how an MBA should read but your reading comprehension skills are more on par with NBA. I don't have an MBA but I CAN read. What I see from those nice charts is the greatest trade imbalance lies between the U.S. and China. I also don't know where all of the other slanted information you are studying is coming from. What I do know is that China is investing it's money in CHINA. I know, I travel there a few times a year. The amount of improvement in the infrastructure over the last few years is nothing less than unbelieveable. I really don't know the reason why China has such a grip on not only our consumers but our government also. I'm sure a big part of it is the propaganda being spoon-fed to highly educated people like you who can't think on your own and need some foriegn professor (who himself can't even speak clear English) to teach you.
#10 Another note. The BAA/TAA is not worth the reams of paper it is printed on. One of the Chinese manufacturers I am forced to deal with, is making seats for Humvees.
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dave 10:40PM (8/13/2006)
can you say "enclosed golf cart?" #7, that is one of the reasons i have never stepped foot in a wal-mart. fact #2, by buying us treasury bills, the chinese are able to artificialy keep their currency rate low, which as all know helps to increase the huge trade imbalance. fact #3, if we ever refuse to honor any countries treasury bill, no other country in this global economy would ever trust us, therby sending us into a depression the likes of which 1929 would look like a plus. don't mean to bad rap the chinese, but they are still a communist country, and i personally think that most of the goods are nothing more than cheap crap that only po white trash that shop at wal-mart would desire. you need to get your money back for that course.
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gbh 1:46AM (8/14/2006)
Hey Josh,
Hate to break this to you, but the military has been buying from the Chinese for years. Look on www.govliquidation.com , for a small fraction of the Chines goods the military continues to buy.
In fact, they buy more and more every year. There's about 20 ways to get around any of these 'paper tiger' restrictions.
From CDC, to NSA, to any Armed Forces branch - the US government spends tons of money on Chinese goods. I'm sure there's about 10 pie charts on GAO/CBO if you were to bother to look.
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Racer 3:36AM (8/14/2006)
Everytime the subject of China comes up, the response is always full of hostility and cries about Communism. What's America coming to, an idealogical state run by right wing radicals? Has anyone writing crap about China here actually been to China? China is running full steam ahead as a capitalist country, and has been for quite some time already! Ever notice the contradiction here? People are crying about Communism, while at the same time complaining that China is selling all these things to us -- through market driven mechanisms. Come on, has America lost its confidence? China is just starting to enter the market here, while Detroit has been building cars for well over a century.
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Nick 9:47AM (8/14/2006)
If you want to buy the first Chinese made cars, go to your Honda dealer and check out the Fit. According to an article on edmunds last week, they can't make enough in Japan to keep up w/American demand, so the factory in Guangzhou will now supply our market, too.
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Zo 9:58AM (8/14/2006)
" top speed of 25 mph"
Maybe its just me, but if highways have a 55mph limit how can a car with a top speed of 25Mph be street legal.
In CT, even a moped has to hit state minimum 40mph in order to be street legal so how is this legal.
Either this is typo or there is something missing
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Joel H. 9:59AM (8/14/2006)
Pheonix with the AC... what do you think the range would be in 15 degree snow storm with the heater going?!? about 1 mile would be my guess. With no IC engine, then to HEAT the vehicle would take a lot of juice too since I would think there would be a lot less ambient heat produced.
I think cold weather is the biggest hurdle to the EV's. There are a lot of lost customers in NYC, Philly, Boston, Chicago, etc...
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N Z K 10:49AM (8/14/2006)
It bears a striking resemblance to a ten-year-old Daihatsu Move.
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