The Asian car market is putting our country’s market in jeopardy (and not what you are thinking; even Malaysia is investing in developing methanol as a fuel for cars). It looks like the perfect storm has been created now that China has the prime $10k EV in America, which is going to be cruising our roads and making it very difficult for Elon Musk and his Tesla.
There’s no good news for Tesla: what is happening far away and is raising concerns
A new car model from BYD, an Association of Chinese automaker company has recently rolled out an electric car dubbed ‘Seagull’ for $10000 at most. It therefore became the first EV that can be sold in the US market at less than $10k.
The Seagull is a small B+segment class hatchback model, which is not characterized by any specific stylistic features. An all-electric car has kilometres range of 110 on one charge which according to BYD is targeted for city use. However, the interior designing of the car seems quite plain and simple.
Even with the model starting at $10,000, Seagull offers EVs at a lower cost than the base models depicted by other automakers. The Nissan Leaf and Chevrolet Bolt came with rather affordable prices, approximately $27,000, while the most basic Tesla Model 3 costs approximately $43,000.
The new Seagull compact supports BYD’s expansion plans as demand for affordable electric cars grows. With the increasing number of drivers seeking solutions to use their cars instead of gas-powered ones, the cost of $10k restraining the use of Seagull.
Seagull VS Tesla: Why American industry has reasons to be concerned
The current models of Seagull make formidable matches to Tesla’s cheapest models in China in terms of price and covering for similar specifications. In this light, the Seagull has a starting price of $10,000- still relatively pricey compared to models like Tesla’s Model 3, which costs more than $25,000 in China.
And it does this with the standard features like power windows, air-conditioning, the remote keyless entry, a seven-inch touch panel display and a backup camera. Some of safety measures include Anti-lock brakes (ABS), stability, and front air bags.
Consequently, even though Tesla remains ahead on performance and image, BYD’s Seagull offers a stylish and practical option for navigating consumers looking for value-conscious EVs with outstanding technology and attributes. Priced at $45,000, its specification poses a formidable challenge to Tesla’s lower model.
China wants to lead the EV market worldwide (and has developed an interesting idea)
It is worth nothing that China has been the leading country in supplying electric vehicle (EV) in the recent past. It hosts hundreds of Ev startups and experiences high sales of electric vehicles. More specifically, China alone sold over 50% of global EVs in the year 2021 at nearly 3.3 million units sold.
Some aspects that have allowed China to move quickly in EVs are a range of favorable policies like subsidies and mandatory quotas for the production of electric vehicles by manufactueres. There is also high consumer demand being experienced by Chinese automobile manufacturers.
Moreover, China has unbeaten battery manufacturing capability, and it meets nearly 80% of the global customer demand for EV batteries. Today, some of the Chinese battery makers like CATL and BYD have kept low battery costs through achieving economies of scale that enable them to manufacture EV batteries.
As you can see, this $10k EV in America is setting a very complicated panorama for the competitiveness of the brands in our country, with Tesla as the best example. However, you have already seen how the federal government has proposed raising tariffs to 100% with the aim of creating a more protectionist policy in the automotive industry, now that it will be key to sustainable development.
