Quote:
Originally Posted by glennQNYC
I agree with your post. But hybrids/EVs only sell well when they are easily identifiable. A hybrid/EV version of a 3 Series wouldn't be recognizable enough for the vast majority of EV shoppers. Apparently these shoppers value the 'look how green I am' aspect of these cars too much for just a trunk badge to win them over.
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Hence the, um, 'unique' look of the i3.
Look at the big picture, folks -- i.e., the global picture. The reason most e-cars are hatchbacks is because the U.S. is not the primary market for them; it's Europe and Asia, where hatchbacks are far more popular and make sense from multiple other standpoints, from population density and cost of ownership to use-ability/utility and taxation/insurance.
The reason Teslas aren't hatchbacks (save the Model X, which has a hatch but is a crossover) is partially the inverse: it's been aimed primarily at the U.S. market. The other part is that Tesla worked form the top down -- make an expensive, luxurious, high-performance e-car, then work downward to the masses -- as opposed to the other way around, which is how most other e-cars and unique hybrids (i.e., the Prius) were developed. Two different business models, two different pending and potential results, both short-term and long-term.
Save for the Tesla, no e-car on the planet was developed mainly for the North American market. So throw "American" design and platform tastes out the window. The i3 may look like arse to many of us, but it won design awards in markets where it actually matters.