A $20k American-made electric pickup with no paint, no stereo, no screen

For comparison, this is a $16k car in China:

https://carnewschina.com/2025/03/25/byd-sealion-05-ev-launhe...

It’s like if you could buy an old Nokia for $200, or a new Android smartphone for $160. The old Nokia certainly has nostalgic qualities and some concrete practical benefits like all-week battery life, but overall it’s not a great deal.

And this is why you have >100% tariffs on Chinese cars — American manufacturers know they can’t compete.

Those cars are priced for the budgets of domestic Chinese consumers. BYD exports to Europe are priced similarly to car models sold there. For the same reason, this Slate truck is very unlikely to cost just $20k when it reaches the mass production stage.

There’s a 27% tariff on BYD cars in Europe, designed to bring the price more in line with European manufacturers.