I’m not in this industry at all and have no particular expertise, but I can read the room.
My hunch is that you’d be making bank by manufacturing an electric vehicle which:
- does not track users’ driving and location
- no subscription or software lock crap
- has physical buttons for ALL main everyday controls
- cut out all the bullshit that many people just don’t want and even if they are forced to accept begrudgingly don’t want to pay premium for
- are actually consumer-orientated and affordable
- have an approachable design that has not been drawn by a diarrhoetic hippo
- bonus points if you use or make open-source the software for development by third parties to make your product better over time.
To my awareness, this particular combo does not currently exist in the market, and this is a segment of the market that should be relatively easy to corner for a maker this size and integration with other makers.
I for one want an electric vehicle that does above, and I won’t buy one that does not comply with points 1-3 at a minimum.
You’d probably need to go with a kit car to get points 1-4. Maybe something like the Tabby EVO? You’d probably have to do more DIY than that though if you want point 5 as a four seater base will net you nearly €25k.
I also wish someone would fill this niche with affordable complete cars. I’m guessing capital costs are the barrier from someone hopping in?
I’m guessing capital costs are the barrier from someone hopping in?
I suppose you’re right with what you said, including above. The money wants to be made by margin and not by sheer scale and volume. It’s too hard. Money MONEY MONEY by ABBA plays in the background. Hence an open source car will die in the cradle/concept stage.
I’m at a point in life where I seriously contemplate to give up on actually owning a car. City life with solid public transport starts to look more promising as the years go by. Everything around me is build for car dependency, and while I enjoy driving, I don’t enjoy sitting in traffic, which is getting worse every year. Just one more lane will fix it, bro.
Dacia?
