Oh, this is of top ten importance, since you’ll be sitting in it, sometimes for long stretches.
I also want the seat belt to be snug, but not rubbing my shoulder funny, for 200,000 miles.
I have several more.
I was watching a YouTube video from one of the courts (Judge Fleischer) and learned that it is either very difficult or impossible to install ignition interlock devices on EVs as they usually connect to the starter, which EVs don’t have. They can be installed in some models, but not many yet.
This is pretty cool. Driverless electric heavy equipment that has a swappable 400kwh battery. Battery takes 3 minutes to swap. They use it in very cold conditions where it’s hazardous for humans to go.
Electric battery swapping…
The new Model Y has been unveiled. The front is more aggressive and a little more angular, I kind of like it. I like the back end less with that big light all the way across. They claim the suspension is improved, it needed that. The 3 handles quite nicely, I feel like the Y needs a little softer springs and some tweaks to the damping. It’s also supposed to have less road noise, the front seats are now ventilated, and there’s a screen for the rear seats. They kept the turn signal stalk, but some are saying no gear shift lever, you have to do that on the screen. Stupid.
No word on performance. There are rumors that the battery is now 3-4kWh larger, not huge but ~5% more range is always welcome.
https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a63387827/2025-tesla-model-y-juniper-revealed/
Looks like they stole some styling from Lucid.
The new Prius and some of the Chinese cars also have a pretty similar front end for sure.
It seems like all car companies steal design elements from each other over time.
Cute little city car by Hyundai selling for $18K in Japan. Good news is that it’s not made in china, so not subject to the china tariffs if it sells in US.
Hyundai just launched its cheapest EV in Japan, starting at $18,000.
(
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Highly unlikely for Hyundai to bring this to US, even if it already meets US safety standards.
Because…? 
Even if they pass US standards unmodified, perceived market. These are small enough to put in the bed of your F-150. Imma buy two, one for each foot.
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That sounds like it would be great for a city car, as long as it cal haul some groceries. I could see a decent market for that. Most trucks and SUVs are ludicrously oversized for their typical uses, so i think there is plenty of demand for something smaller.
Japan has high vehicle safety standards, so if it’s legal for Japan it shouldn’t require much modification. Definitely a tiny car (151 inches long compared to Kia Soul at 165 inches) but there would be a few cities where it would work - NY, Boston, Philly, SF, Seattle, Portland, Chicago, Denver, maybe Minneapolis. Whether there’s a big enough market just as a city car is hard to say.
Need to left-steer it.
Then there is the decision on how many to ship versus how many they think will sell, and shipping costs money.
Heck, they’re already building them, so it doesn’t need to be a ground-up effort. Change the kilometerage to mileage. etc.
Certainly should see if anyone is interested, at least. Have they done that research?
Should at least be able to order one and then wait a month or so.
Seems that a new model needs to go through a lot in its first year, so those costs need to be amortized over the life of the sales cycle, which means committing to selling a model for several years, and tweaking it slightly each year so people will buy it, etc.
Just thinking about what has to happen, planning-wise and operationally, is intense to me.
This is exactly the kind of EV I’m looking for in my first. I’m not really looking for a $30-55k e-SUV, just a car for everyday use.
Of course there are offerings at various price points, just saying that’s a nice price.
There are only a limited number of new sub $30K EVs, and that depends (perhaps exclusively?) on the $7500 FIT rebate. As the fleet ages, a wider number of used EVs will fill the $10K to $20K range. You may never see a sub $30K new EV without a subsidy in the US (IMO not).
I have had my small battery Leaf (40kWh,160 mi range), which I use as a city car, for just over 3 yrs and 54K miles so far. So far the tires (at 44K or so, about $500) and a new home charger ($350) have been the expenses. I did purchase a compact spare for it, but that’s optional. New Leafs haven’t improved the tech (still have passive battery thermal management) and the price hasn’t dropped to reflect today’s greater competition, so they are less compelling today. I love the form factor (small car) for city car though.
I got a Chevy Equinox EV for a little below $30K ( FWD LT, no options, -FIT rebate, + tax/title). Less efficient than the Leaf (low 3s mi/kWh vs low 4s mi/kWh around town), but 309 mile range.
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It’s about to be my Tucson Hybrid’s first single digit low/negative windchill nights coming up soon. We’ll see if the batteries explode or whatever they’re supposed to do in extreme cold. Although my understanding is at worst I might just have a little less range during winters.
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Perhaps a 20%-30% range decrease at the low end. Shouldn’t explode.
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