Crash safety standards are the most obvious 'moat' against cheap car imports if you ignore outright protectionism. It would buy time but well, best not to squander it.
> “People don’t realize that China has IP that America needs,” he said. “I
> think we just need to be more humble as a country that they do things really
> well, that we need to learn.”
tromp•6h ago
BYD started a price war in China by selling these cars near or even below cost. Then why do they cost 160% more in Europe?
BYD does pay a 27% tariff on BEVs it sells in the EU, and EU prices are usually inclusive of sales tax of 20% or so and there's the cost of compliance and shipping the cars to EU, but that doesn't explain even half of the difference?!
If they can make more profit from a car sold in the EU, doesn't it make more sense to grab more market share there?
I'm personally quite enamored by the Xpeng MONA M03 (with aerodynamics superior to a Lucid Air Pure), which costs about $18K in China. I hope they can sell them in EU with less than a 100% markup...
Nasrudith•5h ago
The EU market is a lucrative one but one where they need to proceed with caution in due to politics and consumer optics.
general1726•5h ago
I believe this is due to fact that Chinese manufacturers in general are completely ignoring (or trying and failing) aftermarket - spare parts availability, translated manuals, software updates, diagnostic tools. Using a throwaway phone for 150EUR is acceptable to people in general. Idea of using a throwaway car for 25000EUR is not going to fly.
Arnt•3h ago
floxy•1h ago
I wonder how it compares to the Nissan Leaf. The 2025 models are heavily discounted right now in the U.S., where you can get the S Trim (40 kWh battery) for around $19,000, and the SV+ (60 kWh) for ~$24,000.