Chinese build electric car while US automakers beg for money
Chinese auto-manufacturer BYD (Build Your Own Dreams), which is partially owned by billionare finance guru Warren Buffet, has unveiled its new plug-in hybrid today.
BDY's F3DM model can travel up to 100 kilometers (62 miles) on a single battery charge and it contains a back-up independent gas-powered motor. The big kicker is that its retail price is $22,000 US, making it a lot cheaper than General Motor's plug-in Chevy Volt which will not be on the market for another couple of years and will cost around $40,000 US - and that's with government subsidies.
No wonder General Motors and the other US automakers are begging for a bailout, their competitors are kicking their butts.
Joe Romm at Climate Progress has an in-depth look at the BYD pug-in: World’s first mass-market plug-in hybrid is from … China, for $22,000?
It would seem like a lousy time to get into the car business, especially if you're a little-known company in the developing world. Despite the fervor for electric cars, the BYD electric car is made by BYD Auto, began selling a . The F3DM, their electric model, was unveiled in December, but it hasn't been selling and, as of now, the public isn't eligible to line up personal loans to get one, as it's aimed at fleet applications. However, they do plan to vamp up to mass production, but the cost is still a bit prohibitive – coming out to about $22,000 USD. Still, let us hope that some people line up for installment loans for green vehicles like the BYD electric car.
Chinese are really hardworking people and I admire that fact. US is distributing dollars in all over the world and that's the reason why now they are facing crisis. There own people are not getting jobs and are using cash advance. They should think about their people first.
China knows what it's doing, success for it isn't the end of the road.
These cars will require different