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submitted 6 months ago by girlfreddy@lemmy.ca to c/news@lemmy.world

A tiny, low-priced electric car called the Seagull has American automakers and politicians trembling.

The car, launched last year by Chinese automaker BYD, sells for around $12,000 in China, but drives well and is put together with craftsmanship that rivals U.S.-made electric vehicles that cost three times as much. A shorter-range version costs under $10,000.

Tariffs on imported Chinese vehicles probably will keep the Seagull away from America’s shores for now, and it likely would sell for more than 12 grand if imported.

But the rapid emergence of low-priced EVs from China could shake up the global auto industry in ways not seen since Japanese makers exploded on the scene during the oil crises of the 1970s. BYD, which stands for “Build Your Dreams,” could be a nightmare for the U.S. auto industry.

“Any car company that’s not paying attention to them as a competitor is going to be lost when they hit their market,” said Sam Fiorani, a vice president at AutoForecast Solutions near Philadelphia. “BYD’s entry into the U.S. market isn’t an if. It’s a when.”

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[-] homesweethomeMrL@lemmy.world 33 points 6 months ago

China: offers affordable EV

US Auto: NOoooooooooooooo!!

[-] mox@lemmy.sdf.org 6 points 6 months ago

I won't defend the US auto industry, but there are issues in play here that might not be obvious. For example:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dumping_(pricing_policy)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surveillance

[-] AA5B@lemmy.world 12 points 6 months ago

Those are just excuses:

  • Dumping: US auto industry is enjoying significant protectionism right now, with the excuse of combatting dumping. They have a grace period to catch up, but instead they’re backing off, retreating into their shells. We’re spending hundreds of billions of dollars to give them a chance to compete fairly and they’re throwing it away. I’ll have sympathy if they at least try.
  • Surveillance: US auto industry and especially EVs are horrible with surveillance right now. You not only have no privacy, they commonly have cameras inside and can control your vehicle remotely. Those Chinese surveillance devices aren’t doing anything different from anyone else: they’re all violating our privacy and we have no protection. It’s not that I’m not afraid of Chinese surveillance devices but that I’m also afraid of US corporate surveillance devices. Let a have some actual privacy protections we can apply equally and fairly to all of them
[-] mox@lemmy.sdf.org -2 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago)

Those are just excuses

They might be used as excuses by a complacent industry, but they are not just excuses. They are also valid reasons for concern, and would still be so even if not used as talking points for Detroit lobbyists.

US auto industry is enjoying significant protectionism right now

Regardless of that, China's government has spent more than a few years subsidizing products and services in order to make their exports dirt cheap abroad, eventually making other nations dependent on them. (See also: the Belt and Road Initiative.) This fits the same pattern, and would still be a problem even if US auto industry protectionism didn't exist.

US auto industry and especially EVs are horrible with surveillance right now.

Agreed, but once again, that doesn't invalidate the problem that I mentioned. A foreign adversary having deep, real-time access to the nation's infrastructure, traffic patterns, sensitive information revealed through conversations and cameras, etc. is a larger problem than the personal privacy issues that already exist domestically.

Chinese surveillance devices aren’t doing anything different from anyone else: they’re all violating our privacy and we have no protection.

The difference lies in where the collected information goes. That might not matter to some people on a personal level, but on a national scale, handing all that info to an adversary nation is cause for concern.

[-] AA5B@lemmy.world 8 points 6 months ago

As opposed to them buying it from data brokers? There’s a difference in responsiveness and I’m sure data brokers make a pretense of anonymizing that will need a bit of adjustment, but I’m not convinced it’s as different as everyone is afraid of

[-] mox@lemmy.sdf.org 2 points 6 months ago

As opposed to them buying it from data brokers?

That would also be a cause for concern. Both should be addressed.

[-] Quexotic@infosec.pub 5 points 6 months ago

Those are probably both totally relevant points but it's not going to matter because everyone's suffering so much from inflation that they'll go ahead and take the bait and buy it anyway. Even those that are aware of the intentional nature of the dumping and aware of the risks of surveillance won't be able to responsibly buy a car that cost $60,000 when they can get one for 12k.

[-] mox@lemmy.sdf.org 3 points 6 months ago

everyone’s suffering so much from inflation that they’ll go ahead

That, along with a bloated auto industry and terribly underdeveloped public transit. Here's hoping this turn of events will lead to real progress in fixing these problems.

[-] Quexotic@infosec.pub 2 points 6 months ago

If so, it'll be because enough people discover that the problem is the system itself.

[-] homesweethomeMrL@lemmy.world 2 points 6 months ago

I see your reasonable, logical arguments, and raise another Affordable EV.

this post was submitted on 13 May 2024
263 points (87.0% liked)

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