• Jrockwar
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    17
    ·
    7 months ago

    14k for a “car” with a top speed of 16 mph / 25 km/h??

    I guess they’ve managed to unify the drawbacks of cars and e-bikes as well.

      • ahornsirup@sopuli.xyz
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        12
        arrow-down
        1
        ·
        edit-2
        7 months ago

        Because they’re not going to sell a ton of units. Economics of scale work against them. They need to at least break even, and not just on the parts and labour for the unit (which are already higher than they would be on a higher volume product all on their own) but also on the r&d, post-sale support and warranties, administration, etc.

        • Jrockwar
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          6
          ·
          7 months ago

          That’s a great explanation for why it costs that much, but not for why they think it’s a good idea to sell it for that price.

          Other companies first build a prototype and gather investment so that they can build a first 1000 (not 60) units and can reach a price that can be attractive for the market. Or build first a niche, super exclusive product so that the lack of economies of scale doesn’t matter as much.

          In here I just can’t see the value proposition really. For half the price I can buy something like a Renault Twizy or Citroen Ami with similar size, twice the speed, twice the range, and still zero emissions. Plus I don’t have to pedal, and I get a radio. Why would I ever want this?

          • nilloc@discuss.tchncs.de
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            1
            ·
            7 months ago

            Entrepreneurial ego plays a part I think. Unless they already found 60 people that want them for this price.

            Developing an agile enough process and factory to make things like this might be an interesting business model. Probably way Too low profit to attract investors though.