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Mexican government unveils a prototype for a new homegrown, ultra-affordable EV

206 points by speckx

by bruce511

30 subcomments

The Ford CEO is not wrong. Allowing foreign imports into the country at prices far below what US producers are able to make will decimate the local car industry in the US.
There are 4 possible solutions to this problem;
a) convince Americans that it's worth paying more for a locally built product. This is the simplest approach, but there's only so much margin here that the consumer will tolerate. At the moment this gap is too large.
b) Tariff foreign imports to raise their cost. So the US consumer pays more, whether they like it or not.
c) subsidize local production out of the "national interest to support this industry" budget. This has the effect of ramping up demand, hence production, hence production being developed, and eventually getting cheaper.
d) improve US products, and prices, so that they compete in price to the import - or at least fall inside the margins such that a) becomes effective. c) can help bridge the gap here until the US companies have caught up.
In the long run, not all these strategies win. If you go the tariff route, then it's hard to undo it later. Local products fall behind, and the harder it becomes to catch up. Not impossible, but hard.
If Ford wanted tarrifs to help boost EV demand, and so allow Ford to build out infrastructure and lower costs, then fine. But it seems it's more of a short term play to just keep ICE Fords selling in the short term.
This is one of those "the internet is a fad, it'll never catch on" moments. EV's are here to stay. They're going to win. That's pretty obvious to anyone paying attention. If the question is "how to maintain the US car production" then they should be all-in on EV development now. It seems to me though that the current strategy seems to be very short term thinking - trying to just hold back the tide.

by gwbas1c

11 subcomments

> It remains to be seen whether the Olinia One will face similar pushback from the U.S. once it goes on sale.
> can travel up to 125 kilometers (77 miles) on a single charge
The US market generally rejects small-range EVs, except in very niche markets. In order to succeed in the US, it will need roughly 3-4x the range. In order for this to succeed in Mexico, their market will need different driving habits than the typical American.
(I know this as a former 2014 Leaf lessee. Short-range EVs only make sense when they are the only option in my price range, and I really, really want to drive an EV. Maybe the typical Mexican rarely drives far away from home? Or maybe this is for a niche of Mexicans who really, really want an EV and will tolerate a short range?)

by lentil_soup

1 subcomments

I think people are misunderstanding. This is a car for Mexico, nothing to do with the US.
On the website it says it's a car "designed in Mexico for Mexico" https://www.olinia.auto/

by dotcoma

1 subcomments

Here is the company's website:
https://www.olinia.auto/

by initramfs

0 subcomment

"The car’s unvieling comes as some countries around the world continue to push EV adoption with better and more affordable options. The U.S., however, has taken the opposite track."
Lol, so true. I honestly don't mind waiting for an electric car since I hope to get more mileage out of my current one. If it lasts 10 more years, all the better.
The cars available then should be far better (other than new things I might not want- e.g. more automation).

by 725686

0 subcomment

There is no way Olina will make it to market. It is another of the demagogic populist government's projects.

by marinhero

2 subcomments

Hoping this brings EV infrastructure up in the country. A road trip is still quite an ordeal due to the lack of fast chargers in highways and maybe that's why the range on the first version of Olena is low, as it's aimed to provide "ultra mobility" within cities and not outside of it but still, glad to see the MX government invest into renewable technology.

by elgertam

2 subcomments

My first thought when looking at it is that I doubt the vehicle could pass US safety regulations. Maybe I'm wrong.

by thelastgallon

0 subcomment

How foreign competition helps domestic firms: https://capx.co/how-foreign-competition-helps-domestic-firms

by avocadoking

1 subcomments

Hopefully they can also find a good balance between using cheap parts to actually being safe and comfy. The cheap EVs on the market normally lack in one of these. I have not yet found any interior shots online, did any of you?

by rdtsc

1 subcomments

How big is the charging infrastructure in Mexico? Or is this mainly geared for a daily commutes and charging at home?

by 4748488484

1 subcomments

If they ever make more than 50 of these at twice that cost I'll become a monk

0 subcomment

by martinbfine

1 subcomments

Looks like they know nothing about drag coefficient.

by drnick1

0 subcomment

> The car is designed for urban settings and has a top speed of 50 kilometers (31 miles) per hour.
Stopped reading here. For all intents and purposes this is not a real car, it's a golf cart. The title is complete clickbait.

by moffkalast

0 subcomment

The amount of power used to keep a car going at highways speeds is 60% air drag. With how much people value range in EVs, why is it that almost every manufacturer designs theirs as literal boxes on wheels with some lights and doors? Cars in the 1920 almost had better aero and they had no idea what it even was.

by SpicyLemonZest

0 subcomment

This vehicle is what most Americans would call a "golf cart". If it doesn't have safety features and can't be driven on highways, it's not really competing with normal cars, so I'm not quite sure the article's analysis makes sense.

by ck2

1 subcomments

they're going to put six people on those small wheels on that small wheelbase?
on the otherhand the mass produced general frame/battery/motor will be great for mods

by istjohn

0 subcomment

"The car is designed for urban settings and has a top speed of 50 kilometers (31 miles) per hour."

by gogasca

0 subcomment

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by poppafuze

0 subcomment

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by petcat

3 subcomments

31 MPH and needs to be re-charged after only 77 miles.
This thing is not a car. It's usefulness in USA would be like shuttling around a mall parking lot or between airport terminals.
Even the $8,500 pricetag seems crazy for something with very little actual utility.