Chinese electric Smart Clone coming to the US market?
It's being reported that a Chinese company is planning to bring a line of battery powered electric vehicles to the US market. Interestingly, the top model in the range bears a striking resemblance to a first generation Smart ForTwo. The new venture is going by the name FlyBo-EV and has three vehicles in the lineup. All three are being classed as neighborhood electric vehicles, meaning they only have to meet minimal crash requirements and are generally limited to 25mph in most locations.
At this time it's unclear if the Smart clone is the same one that appeared last fall and ignited the ire of DaimlerChrysler. The company involved in that program was Shandong Huoyun Electromobile Co. and it's unknown if they are involved in this effort. The front end styling is slightly different from the previous vehicle which may be an effort to placate DaimlerChrylser. If and when this machine shows up on US shores we'll be sure to try and track one down for evaluation.
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[Source: China Car Times, thanks to Ash for the tip]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
moogy 4:16PM (3/23/2007)
25 mph is not that great... if it could get 75 mph it could be considered in the same league as a car.
I wonder what is the millage per charge.??
This is bad for the image of the EV.
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Johnb 7:29AM (3/25/2007)
The max speed of this car is 45 mph (72 km/h) and the max rage is 70 miles (112 KM)
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calguy 11:26AM (3/26/2007)
Ugg. There are enough good car designers in the world that copycats like this brutally bore me. Make it look cool, make it with recycled plastics, eco friendly uphlostery.. give it drivability... or don't give it to us. This looks like a total also-ran.
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ME 1:35PM (3/26/2007)
The co. had 3 models on Ebay in the 'other vehicles' category. (items #170093710596 and #170093689825.
The Smart rip off has since disappeared but 2 other 'FLYBO-EV" models are still listed, complete with pictures of them being driven around in a Chinese warehouse and a picture of the Smart clone as it has "evolved".
They have a website and are looking for distributors (but only those with "Cash In-Hand").
Interesting eh?
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