this post was submitted on 02 May 2024
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cross-posted from: https://lemmy.ml/post/15089465

Americans Are Open To Cheap Chinese Cars. That’s 'Scary' For The Rest Of The Auto Industry

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[–] Fridgeratr@lemmy.dbzer0.com 46 points 8 months ago (3 children)

Maybe make affordable cars here then?? Dumbasses

[–] ShaggySnacks@lemmy.myserv.one 17 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Profit line must always go brrrrr!

[–] I_am_10_squirrels 10 points 8 months ago

I want to know how much the price of a car would come down if I didn't need to visit a salesperson working on commission. I want to go to Costco, test drive it to make sure I like it, and check out.

[–] MeetInPotatoes@lemmy.ml 3 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago)

Oh, apologies my good Lemming but you're mistaken. We make affordable ones here but the auto companies decided they'd make more money if they artificially keep supply low to keep prices high. Car Graveyards

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[–] KingThrillgore@lemmy.ml 41 points 8 months ago (1 children)

The industry should meet the needs of the consumer, not the shareholder.

[–] billgamesh@lemmy.ml 6 points 8 months ago

Capitalism creates monopoly. The consumer's needs can be manufactured. In a society organized around capital shareholder needs are paramount.

[–] SnotFlickerman@lemmy.blahaj.zone 37 points 8 months ago (2 children)

I mean fuck, if only we could get shit like kei trucks.

Some of us have been open to foreign vehicles you can't really get in the US for a long time. Oh well.

[–] cosmic_cowboy@reddthat.com 42 points 8 months ago (3 children)

The massive size of vehicles in the U.S. is ridiculous. I think a lot of people would buy smaller, cheaper cars if they were on the market.

[–] antler@feddit.rocks 13 points 8 months ago

The EPA makes really tight emissions targets for vehicles under a certain size or the auto makers have to pay a fee iirc. Pretty sure they the medium sized stuff out of existance, an unfortunately I'm guessing the same fees would apply to imports too.

[–] toastal@lemmy.ml 7 points 8 months ago

I think folks bought into SUVs since they were bigger & selfishly less likely to take more damage in a crash. As such, with SUV tanks everywhere, being a pedestrian or in a small car on the road on in an SUV’s trajectory can often lead to lethal injury.

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[–] GammaGames 6 points 8 months ago

My absolute favorite vehicle, based on looks alone

[–] vodkasolution@feddit.it 32 points 8 months ago (1 children)

80s: You wouldn't buy a Japanese car!
90s: you wouldn't buy a Korean car!
00s: you wouldn't buy a small Italian car!
....

[–] PraiseTheSoup@lemm.ee 5 points 8 months ago (2 children)

I'd still never buy an Italian car of any size. Not then and not now.

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[–] huquad@lemmy.ml 31 points 8 months ago

Auto industry looking at their overly inflated prices, "well well well, if it isn't the consequences of my actions."

[–] azimir@lemmy.ml 30 points 8 months ago (2 children)

There's all kinds of wacky taxes, regulations, and barriers to prevent the US industry from having to compete with the world. One such example is the Chicken Tax:

https://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/chicken-tax.asp

That one keeps the Toyota Hilux out of the US.

[–] Midnitte 10 points 8 months ago (1 children)
[–] kent_eh@lemmy.ca 11 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (1 children)

The world doesn't need an EV Mustang or $99K F150, it needs an EV Focus or Escort oor Fiesta level car that normal people can afford.

[–] Midnitte 5 points 8 months ago

Which we won't get with Ford deciding instead to focus on hybrids.

Instead, the Blue Oval wants to focus on making more hybrids instead and says it will have hybrid options for all its internal combustion engine-powered vehicles by 2030.

Also, apparently, people quite like the EV Mustang.

But with Mustang Mach-E sales up 77 percent to 9,589 sold, and a 148 percent growth for the E-Transit, Ford is the country's second-bestselling EV brand.

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[–] lmorchard@lemmy.sdf.org 19 points 8 months ago (2 children)

Yeah, I'm a weirdo with a cargo e-bike. Love it, except when it rains or snows.

I'd love a sub-$20k street legal EV that skips the entertainment system and most other features. Just give me a weatherproof cabin with comfortable seats and a modest cargo capacity for groceries and small appliances. I'm only ever going to drive it for at most an hour around town and back. Maybe listen to a podcast from my phone. Stick solar panels on the roof and it'll probably always be topped off for how infrequently I drive. I'll rent something if I take a longer trip.

[–] lemann@lemmy.dbzer0.com 5 points 8 months ago

Yes, this please. Although I don't have a cargo bike, I load up all 3 sides of my pannier and fill a backpack with my cargo 😅

[–] umami_wasbi@lemmy.ml 2 points 8 months ago (1 children)
[–] lmorchard@lemmy.sdf.org 3 points 8 months ago

Yeah, totally. I'd also love to see like a rack of those for rent, every few blocks in my city. That'd be near perfect

[–] Not_mikey@slrpnk.net 14 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (4 children)

Lemmy:

Go UAW, fight for higher wages and better working conditions

Also Lemmy:

I demand the cheapest car possible, I don't care if its built by slave labor in xinjiang. If western companies can't compete with third world labor costs then they're obviously inefficient and don't deserve to exist.

[–] maynarkh@feddit.nl 9 points 8 months ago

My worries are not that they can't compete, it's that they won't even attempt to.

[–] kent_eh@lemmy.ca 9 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago)

Now look at how much the executives are being paid in the US compared to the cost of the vehicles...

It ain't the welders and wrench turners who are adding the most to the cost of vehicles.

[–] meteokr@community.adiquaints.moe 5 points 8 months ago (1 children)

If the price of labor was what determined the price, then why have prices gone up, when labor prices have not?

[–] Not_mikey@slrpnk.net 2 points 8 months ago

Car prices haven't gone up, the average purchase prices of cars has gone up but that's because people are buying more expensive cars, Large trucks, SUVs, luxury sedans, higher trims etc.

If you look at lower end sedans there price hasn't changed much and has even gone down. For example if you look at the Chevy Malibu the current base price is $25,100 , in 2014 the base price was $22,340 or $29,400 adjusted for inflation, in 2004 it was $18,700 or $31,067

Auto workers wages have gone down but they've steadied in recent years in 2004 hourly wage was $21.71 or $36.07 adjusted for inflation, in 2014 it was $21.38 or $28.17 adjusted for inflation now they are around $30.

So since 2004 the price for a car has gone down 24% and auto wages have also gone down 20%. The recent UAW contract wage increases with little to no increase in price shows there is some room for workers to get more out of that $25,000 cost pie, but there would be no room if that pie is shrunk to $10,000 to compete with Chinese manufacturers.

[–] davel@lemmy.ml 3 points 8 months ago

slave labor in xinjiang

Oh no the CIA-backed terrorists got job training, the horror. https://lemmy.ml/comment/8175413

The actual slave labor is in the United States, thanks to the 13th amendment.

[–] umami_wasbi@lemmy.ml 11 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (1 children)

If it pass safety standards without all those smart and data collection bs and being reliable for 7+ years with easy part sourcing I might give it a try.

[–] InternetUser2012@midwest.social 2 points 8 months ago

The data collection thing is a big one for me.

[–] PowerCrazy@lemmy.ml 8 points 8 months ago (7 children)

All cars should cost 500k minimum and roads should stop being built, also cap all auto-industry salaries and annual shareholder payouts to 500k with the rest overflowing to the workers. Within 20years seeing a car in America will be rare, within 50years, we'll have solved climate change.

[–] delirious_owl@discuss.online 4 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Why not cap shareholder payouts to $0 and nationalize one of them?

[–] PowerCrazy@lemmy.ml 3 points 8 months ago (1 children)

That sounds like socialism. I'm proposing a market based solution which as we all know is the only possible way that things can be done.

[–] billgamesh@lemmy.ml 2 points 8 months ago
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[–] Zerush@lemmy.ml 8 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago)

Even Xiaomi has released the SU7, a real Tesla killer and also way cheaper. But not for the US market, but for the EU.

[–] delirious_owl@discuss.online 7 points 8 months ago (1 children)

What's their e-bike situation like? Are there good ones or will they blow my nuts off?

[–] Wahots@pawb.social 2 points 8 months ago

Even some domestic brands like Juiced go on sale for like, $1,200 for a Juiced Ripracer. Aventon appears to make good stuff too, if you want bike shop support. I've had my bike for a month and put 320 miles on it. Fun little bike :)

[–] Zeroxxx@lemmy.id 5 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago) (1 children)

I personally own Ioniq 5 but that is because Hyundai has better after sales support in my country than emerging Chinese OEMs.

Not to mention existing Chinese cars currently do not possess enough battery capacity and efficiency for my taste.

Once they fix that atrocious after sales support, I will reconsider them.

FYI, Wuling Air EV probably has the 2nd biggest sales number here in my country but people who own them complain alot about maintenance and spare part supplies.

[–] bastonia@lemmy.ml 3 points 8 months ago

You have to drive 250km to do your grocery shop then another 150km to drive your kids home? lmao

[–] PanArab@lemmy.ml 4 points 8 months ago (1 children)

EVs are cheaper to fill up than internal combustion engine cars, even in oil rich countries - Changan Eado EV, 9 Saudi Riyal (2.4USD) to drive 460km (287.5miles) - . I want to get an EV eventually, I just want to know how well can they handle +50C temperatures.

[–] MrOzwaldMan@lemmy.ml 3 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Same, but I fear the risk of the car getting hacked giving the hacker the control or an EMP attack causing the electric car to shutdown indefinitely.

[–] MtnPoo 7 points 8 months ago

ICE cars are just as reliant on computers. Have you seen the articles on "your car is spying on you" and BMWs heated seat monthly fee?

Plus, when you consider all the emissions controls required by the government versus the car companies trying to make the cars exciting for the consumer, the whole thing ends up one big giant mess of computer and sensors.

[–] cobra89 3 points 8 months ago (1 children)

Until they're testing and pass NHTSA standards, fuckin nope.

Maybe people will change their minds once they see the aftermath of high speed crashes in these things. Or crashes with a MUCH heavier vehicle. With the weight of EVs these days you NEED a car that's designed around safety.

[–] anachronist@midwest.social 3 points 8 months ago

The biggest con is the industry's war to make Kei trucks illegal in the US.

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