[janalsncm]

> China, where new EVs can go for about $10,000 or less

This is the part that hit me. In America we have no idea how much we are overpaying for things. There are plenty of reasons, sure, but at the end of the day things are wildly expensive with little to no acknowledgment from the government.

[magicalhippo]

Things can be very cheap indeed if you can use forced labor[1], don't have to consider the impact on the environment[2] and such.

[1]: https://www.hrw.org/news/2024/07/02/hrw-urges-european-commi...

[2]: https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3232456/your-made-chin...

[tomohelix]

I mean, the US already has forced labor (i.e. prison labor).

And for what it worth, China is leading the way in green energy transition. They are pushing it much faster and adopting it way better than anything the US has historically tried. Remember they only have a few decades into their own industrial revolution compared to the West's hundreds of years and they had already exceeded most if not all other countries in terms of progress.

The US doesn't even have a functional high speed rail system yet. Meanwhile, China built its own national rail network in less than 2 decades.

[magicalhippo]

Almost like you can get amazing things done in a short time if you get everyone pulling in the same direction, willingly or not...

But I agree, the massive amounts of cheap solar panels and EVs has and will continue to make a significant impact. It sucks that they're built on such lousy foundations though...

[reaperman]

The government is doing what it can to keep things expensive to insulate domestic industry from global changes. This is entirely on purpose. 266% tax on chinese steel, 25% tariff on pickup trucks, 30-50% tariffs on washing machines, 100% tariffs on electric vehicles, 50% tariffs on solar panels, etc.

This isn’t even getting into the regulatory capture which prevents foreign products from being used/sold in USA.

[adam_arthur]

The government is more interested in protecting autoworker jobs in the US than lowering the cost to a broader set of consumers, unfortunately.

If we allowed Chinese autos into the country free of tariffs, prices would almost certainly decline materially in real terms over the next few years.

[bb88]

Many Chinese goods are great. But if it's an end run around regulation, it is not in the US's best interest. Ralph Nader already fought this fight and won back in the 1960's with the Chevrolet Corvair. The Ford Pinto had the gas tank between the rear axle and the rear bumper, creating a death trap on rear collisions.

These are a few issues of goods from China being an issue in the past:

A) Toys with lead paint being recalled.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S02697...

B) Dog Food linked to China killing pets.

https://truthaboutpetfood.com/how-many-pets-have-ingredients....

[gamblor956]

Chinese EVs also don't contain most of the safety features that you'll find standard in Western cars.

Nor will a sub-$10k Chinese car compare to the build quality of even a $20k American car.

As with Temu, there's a reason Chinese EVs are super cheap.

[bryanlarsen]

The BYD Seagull, which is what most people are referring to when talking about $10,000 Chinese cars, has European homologation. IOW, it meets European safety specs for freeway use.

It's the $5000 Chinese cars that are missing the safety features.