£3,500 EV lovechild of Fiat Panda and Skoda Yeti doubles Tesla sales in China

Move over, Tesla.

A cheap model has hit China’s car market and it outsold the EV giant by 2-1 in January.

In fact, it’s now the second-best-selling electric model in the world.

At just £3,200, the Hong Guang Mini EV by China’s biggest car manufacturer, SAIC Motor, is proving a big hit.

Even though its battery and range don’t really compare with a Tesla’s…

Even though its top speed is just 62mph…

 And even though it looks quite funny.

Click here to see just how funny

Marketed as “the people’s commuting tool”, the Hong Guang Mini EV was created through a joint venture between SAIC Motor and US manufacturer General Motors (GM).

Chinese drivers can upgrade from the most basic model and get air conditioning to boot for just over £3,500.

And clearly, price comes before beauty in this case, since the model looks like the squished-up love child of a Fiat Panda and a Skoda Yeti.

Not the most attractive of cars.

But when the price is so alluring, what does it matter?

While I was reading about this new EV, I noticed that China has adopted a unique incentive to get more drivers to make the switch to electric vehicles.

The Government guarantees a free, special green-coloured licence plate, which isn’t subject to inter-city licence rationing systems, to anyone who buys electric.

Could the UK adopt a similar approach to encourage wider and quicker EV uptake ahead of the 2030 new petrol/diesel ban?

Drop a comment and let us know what you think!