
Canada's Answer to Tesla Is a $15,500 Electric Three-Wheeler - pseudolus
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-02-12/tesla-s-latest-competitor-is-a-15-500-electric-three-wheeler
======
Zanni
I don't see how this can be an "answer to Tesla" when it has less than half
the range, terrible acceleration and seats fewer people than a _motorcycle_.
If price is your driver, get a used Leaf. The article doesn't mention crash
reports, but I wouldn't feel safe in this, sharing the road with full-size
cars, trucks and SUVs.

I understand the appeal of a small, cheap EV. You could design a people-
friendly city around these, with narrow roads and less space devoted to
parking. But that's what they said about the Segway.

~~~
AzzieElbab
I am in Toronto, looking outside I do not know how this thing could get me
from point A to point B this very morning

~~~
mcny
I was thinking the same thing. There is a reason the big bad SUVs and trucks
sell well. You'd think the people who are in Canada's government would know
that it snows in Canada and a three wheeler isn't a good idea.

------
vgoh1
So far no one has seen the utility of this vehicle. There are millions of
families that have multiple vehicles, and where both partners work. When
taking a trip as a family, they might want a minivan or SUV. When they
commute, one might drop the kids off, but the other will be driving alone. If
the commute is not a very long one, this vehicle is perfect.

There are at least a few million households with this configuration in North
America, so they have plenty of potential market. I can think of a few more
use cases, but this (which is also MY situation) is possibly the largest.

I'm going to play a bit of wait-and-see, but if this vehicle turns out to come
to fruition and isn't plagued with reliability issues, I am strongly
considering purchasing one. Right now, we have a newer minivan, two
motorcycles, and I usually drive my car to work, which is older, and is often
breaking down. I live in Upstate New York, so there are a couple dozen days
each year where it's dry and warm enough at 6AM to ride my motorcycle to work.

So what am I left with? I don't want to deal with repairing an older vehicle,
and I am happy with the utility of our minivan, and fun factor of our
motorcycles, so I just want something with the lowest hassle and cost of
ownership. This vehicle is pretty close to the cheapest new car that you can
get, but will save me most of my $120/mo that I spend on gas. Plus, it has to
be easy to park at that size.

I think that if they can pull off a good design, at a good price, and get all
of the other things right (I know, a tall order), they will have a market at
least large enough to keep that factory going.

~~~
acct1771
Will you be spending that $120+ in increased insurance cost for the same
reasons Tesla are more expensive to fix than most cars (economies of scale,
limited OEM parts)?

~~~
mercutio2
Collision insurance (which is what covers damage to your own vehicle if you
are at fault) is the main thing that’s dependent on the repair costs of your
own vehicle, and it’s not required in many states (in no-fault states, it is,
but most states are not no-fault).

This vehicle is inexpensive enough many people don’t need to pay for collision
insurance.

------
siruncledrew
It reminds me of a fancier Reliant Robin:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQh56geU0X8](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQh56geU0X8)

~~~
rhinoceraptor
Hopefully it will be a bit more stable when turning if the battery is in the
floor, no more rolling like in the Top Gear episode :)

------
jrs95
Good luck driving this thing in the snow. I suppose having only 3 wheels may
benefit it in terms of its low weight, but still....if an inch of snow
cripples my Fiesta, I bet you'll have to buy snow tires for this at least.

------
mercutio2
When I was in Vancouver a few years ago, I stayed at an AirBnB right next to
the company’s show room.

Unfortunately at the time, I was told the vehicles weren’t street legal in the
US, yet, and they didn’t have enough staff/spare vehicles to give me a test
ride within three days.

It looked really, really cool on the inside and the outside, and I would’ve
happily bought one on the spot if these two issues hadn’t gotten in the way.

------
tikumo
Very pricy, the Renault Twizzy is only 9000 euro's..

------
Meph504
Reminds me of the Elio motors, the concept is solid, but people tend to under
estimate the massive wall of entry into the automotive world.

I've wanted a single passenger commuter for a long time, but I don't see any
advantage at that price point.

Elio, is circling the drain, but for more info see
[https://www.eliomotors.com/](https://www.eliomotors.com/)

~~~
baybal2
> Elio, is circling the drain

As god knows how many other <4 wheel new mobility concepts.

Two gyroscope stabilised motorcycle startups went nowhere, unable to solve the
desaturation at high speed issue.

Monotracers cost CHF100k, and are handmade luxury toys.

WV LX1 also costs a fortune, while providing pathetic performance

------
tjomk
I don't understand the idea of all those three-wheelers? A startup [1] in my
country also launched a similar vehicle. I'd rather buy a motorbike if I want
to drive alone, or get a used leaf as someone pointed our here, if price is of
concern. But a three-wheeler?

[1] [https://www.mynobe.com/](https://www.mynobe.com/)

~~~
NeedMoreTea
It was common to allow a three wheeler on a motorcycle licence. The UK used to
have a weight and engine limit and gave us Del Boy's Reliant Regal[1] and the
Robin. One or two places, possibly including the US, _required_ a motorcycle
licence meaning you couldn't use a three wheeler on a car licence.

More a relic of licencing history stemming all the way back to Morgan 3
wheelers and similar from the 20s and 30s[2]. Morgan actually recently re-
introduced the classic 3 wheeler. You still find licence, tax, and insurance
advantages to 3 wheelers despite them bearing little resemblance to the
vehicles that led to the category.

That said, the Smart car was a huge hit in Europe for size, parking and
convenience so I don't see why a 3 wheeler couldn't still work.

[1]
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Trotters.jpg](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Trotters.jpg)

[2]
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morgan_3-Wheeler](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morgan_3-Wheeler)

------
SketchySeaBeast
Why is it Canada's answer and not General Motors? Canada isn't building this
ridiculous thing.

------
ForHackernews
I like the idea of this thing! I suspect it won't be that popular because the
only market is for people who can afford a second vehicle just for commuting.

------
diebeforei485
There's a company in Oregon doing something similar.

[https://www.arcimoto.com](https://www.arcimoto.com)

------
tonyedgecombe
My guess is these sort of vehicles will start to make sense if you live in or
near a zero emissions zone.

