Funky Cat heads south
Discussion
Not that I'm planning on buying one, but it was the first the EV I saw close-up so I remember it.
Anyway, I was browsing Autotrader and see that some have lost half their value after only a year and 2,000 miles. Why would owners be checking out so soon without their shirts?
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-search?advertisin...
Anyway, I was browsing Autotrader and see that some have lost half their value after only a year and 2,000 miles. Why would owners be checking out so soon without their shirts?
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-search?advertisin...
Weren't they available at lease for about £200 pm?
Anyway, the Chinese market version, which is slightly more basic and smaller battery, is the equivalent of about £12k... There are import tariffs set on the cars which massively inflates the price to buy them here. I think all that's happened is that the used market buyer has placed a realistic valuation on the car, not the trumped up and heavily inflated RRP.
The thing is, all said and done, it is a very cheap car by it's nature. It was designed to be dirt cheap. The second hand market attributes value by desirability, and cars designed to be dirt cheap are only so desirable to a used car buyer looking to get bang for their buck.
I would imagine the very cheap lease deals were a manufacturer subsidised effort to gain the brand a foothold in the UK, they effectively lost a lot of money per car for the sake of getting them on the roads of the UK initially. This sort of thing is happening all the time at the moment, which is why I would advise people to take advantage of very good lease deals on new cars, don't buy them - the RRP is nonsense and unachievable unless they get lucky and a simpleton pays it!
Anyway, the Chinese market version, which is slightly more basic and smaller battery, is the equivalent of about £12k... There are import tariffs set on the cars which massively inflates the price to buy them here. I think all that's happened is that the used market buyer has placed a realistic valuation on the car, not the trumped up and heavily inflated RRP.
The thing is, all said and done, it is a very cheap car by it's nature. It was designed to be dirt cheap. The second hand market attributes value by desirability, and cars designed to be dirt cheap are only so desirable to a used car buyer looking to get bang for their buck.
I would imagine the very cheap lease deals were a manufacturer subsidised effort to gain the brand a foothold in the UK, they effectively lost a lot of money per car for the sake of getting them on the roads of the UK initially. This sort of thing is happening all the time at the moment, which is why I would advise people to take advantage of very good lease deals on new cars, don't buy them - the RRP is nonsense and unachievable unless they get lucky and a simpleton pays it!
I don’t know how much the public notices these things, or if it makes any difference on the ground, but GWM shut their European HQ a few mths ago and made 100+ staff redundant.
If you look at the GWM dealer map there are areas of the UK with pretty sparse dealer coverage - although that’s not unique amongst the newer EV brands.
I haven’t checked, but is insurance normal for them? We generally use LV, and I know they won’t quote on Honda e:Ny1, for example, so maybe Funky Cat is the same.
If you look at the GWM dealer map there are areas of the UK with pretty sparse dealer coverage - although that’s not unique amongst the newer EV brands.
I haven’t checked, but is insurance normal for them? We generally use LV, and I know they won’t quote on Honda e:Ny1, for example, so maybe Funky Cat is the same.
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