Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
 |
Electric Vehicle Prices Will Drop To $2,890
EVs will get much cheaper, declares Shigenobu Nagamori, chairman and CEO of the world's largest motor maker Nidec."The price of a car will drop to as low as 300,000 yen ($2,890), resulting in a spike in demand for cars," said Nagamori.
Not quite ready to plunk down $50,000 for a Tesla Model Y? How about the Wuling Mini EV for only $4,000!
(Wuling Hongguang Mini EV review and test drive)
The market disruption is already happening, Nagamori said. He pointed to China's $4,300 electric vehicle released in July, which quickly became the country's best-selling EV, surpassing the Tesla Model 3. The car is distributed under the Wuling brand.Products similar to the Wuling will emerge in India, Africa and South America and expand the entire market for new cars, Nagamori said. The arrival of such inexpensive cars will drive the global car market to grow to 300 million units in the future, from the current 80-90 million units, he said.
"You will be a loser if you run away from price competition," Nagamori warned.
(Via NikkeiAsia)
Elon Musk, take note.
There's no reason to drive around in a huge multi-ton vehicle if you're just getting a few groceries. I recall a passage from The Mote in God's Eye, a remarkable 1974 novel by Niven and Pournelle that may give you a look into the future of tiny EVs:
There were three ground cars, limousines, two for passengers and one for luggage, and the human seats took up two-thirds of the room in each. Bury nodded reflectively Moties didn’t mind being crowded together. As soon as they took their seats the drivers, who were Browns, whipped the cars away. The vehicles ran soundlessly, with a smooth feeling of power, and there was no jolt at all. The motors were in the hubs of the tall balloon tires, much like those of cars on ‘Empire worlds.Tall, ugly buildings loomed above them to shoulder out the sky. The black streets were wide but very crowded and the Moties drove like maniacs. Tiny vehicles passed each other in intricate curved paths with centimeters of clearance. The traffic was not quite silent. There was a steady low hum that might have been all the hundreds of motors sounding together, and sometimes a stream of high-pitched gibberish that might have been cursing.
Of course, the ultimate in small personal vehicles is the auto-car from The Revolt of the Pedestrians, a wry 1928 story by Dr. David H. Keller.
(The Autocar from The Revolt of the Pedestrians)
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 2/3/2021)
Follow this kind of news @Technovelgy.| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |
Would
you like to contribute a story tip?
It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add
it here.
Comment/Join discussion ( 0 )
Related News Stories - (" Vehicle ")
'Robovan' Name Already Taken - Elon, Try These
There are alternative names that are probably in the public domain by now.
Tele-Driving Offers Jobs For Tele-Drivers, Not AIs
''...some bored drone pusher in a remote driving centre...' - Charles Stross, 2007.
GM Scraps Cruise Origin Robotaxi With No Steering Wheel
'Ames tinkered around with something on the instrument board when he got in; and in a few moments we were off.' - Miles Breuer, 1930.
GoSun EV Solar Charger Drapes Onto Your Car
'...six square yards of sunpower screens.' - Robert Heinlein, 1940
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
Current News
Miss Alabama Beauty Contest Offers Different Standards
'...they moved with the ease of dandelion puffs.'
Has Musk Given Up On Full Self Driving (FSD)?
'...some bored drone pusher in a remote driving centre...'
Prufrock-3 'The Monster' Ready To Launch
Just go for it.
Drones In Vast Airborne Grids
'These pods were programmed to hang in space in a hexagonal grid pattern...'
Starship Special Edition For Lunar Shuttle
Love those special edition spaceships.
Capturing Asteroids With Nets
'...the meteor caught and halted just as a small boy catches a swift ball in his cap.'
Project Hyperion - Generation Ship Designers Needed!
'We have decided that it shall be but one ship... it must contain everything needed to take us through the generations.'
AI Welfare Position At Anthropic Filled By Human
'You’re the robopsychologist of the plant, so you’re to study the robot itself...'
Marslink Proposed By SpaceX
'It was the heart of the Solar System's communication line...'
Simple Way To Defeat AI Face Recognition
'... designed to foil facial recognition systems.'
Wood-Panelled LignoSat Launched
'The Consul remembered his first glimpse of the kilometer-long treeship...'
Laser-Beam Welding In Orbital Factories
'His contract with Space Industries required him to work summers in their orbital factory.'
'Iceberg House' Of Travis Kelce Reflects Science Fiction Of Past Century
'The basement was huge... carved deep into the rock that folded up to underlie the ridge...'
Mechazilla Arms Catch A Falling Starship, But Check Out SF Landing-ARMS
'...the rocket’s landing-arms automatically unfolded.'
A System To Defeat AI Face Recognition
'...points and patches of light... sliding all over their faces in a programmed manner that had been designed to foil facial recognition systems.'
Robot Hand Separate From Robot
'The crawling, exploring object was V-Stephen's surgeon-hand...'
