Another Smart car copy

12989 Views 5 Replies 4 Participants Last post by daewoo-chevrolet, Aug 26, 2009

KiwiGuy

Discussion Starter · Jul 15, 2009 (Edited by Moderator)

The Chinese really do have immitation manufacturing down to a tee. This Smart car copy is remarkable in its mimmicking capability. I don't know who the manufacturer but I definately know it is not a Shanghuan Noble or some other cheap knock off.
If anyone has more info (which will be harder to find than a needle in a haystack), please post.

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richermartyn

· #2 · Aug 24, 2009

It is a excellent copy of TATA nano.
Wow, it is great to see this. People in the world can do anything when they making copy.

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dragin

· #3 · Aug 25, 2009

KiwiGuy said:
The Chinese really do have immitation manufacturing down to a tee. This Smart car copy is remarkable in its mimmicking capability. I don't know who the manufacturer but I definately know it is not a Shanghuan Noble or some other cheap knock off.
If anyone has more info (which will be harder to find than a needle in a haystack), please post.

That looks like the all electric model made by CMEC of Suzhou. It's got a range of about 62 miles and a top speed of 34 mph. CMEC has tried importing it into Hungary and England with a price tag of just over 5,000 U.S. dollars.
I don't know..is that an expensive knock off?
Tandem Motor of Shanghai also makes one like it.

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KiwiGuy

Discussion Starter · #4 · Aug 25, 2009

DAMN! You are good. I don't know about the price but we'll use whatever the Noble tried to sell for as a base.
Was it something like $6000 U.S? I can't remember.

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dragin

· #5 · Aug 25, 2009

Wasn't Shuanghuan trying to sell the Noble in Italy for around 9,000 Euros? Its fate was in the hand of the courts last I heard.
KiwiGuy I too am curious to know the facts about the progress of Chinese who have tried getting these Smart lookalikes into Europe.

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daewoo-chevrolet

· #6 · Aug 26, 2009 (Edited by Moderator)

This is the Huoyun Electromobile. I posted already a thread about this car at the Dutch AutoWeek.nl Forums back in 2006.

Dimensions: 2510x1515x1530 mm
Wheelbase: 1800 mm
Engine output: 6.5 kW/9 hp
Maximum speed: 55km/h

Article:

Now Smart falls to copycats

Spot the difference! The two city cars pictured right look virtually identical, but things aren't what they seem

30th October 2006 The blue one is Smart's urban favourite, the ForTwo, and the other is the Shandong HuoYun Electromobile - an electric two-seater that shamelessly plagiarises its German counterpart.

Unlike the European model, the Far-Eastern motor is available only with battery power. Developing about 10bhp, it has a range of 75 miles and can achieve a top speed of 30mph.

While the exterior is barely distinguishable from the ForTwo, there are some subtle differences. At the front, the newcomer's lights are more like those of the original Smart City Coupé rather than the double-teardrop style of the ForTwo. However, it's on the inside where most Smart fans will quickly see that the HuoYun isn't from the DaimlerChrysler stable.

It's clear the Chinese maker has tried to mimic the curvy panels of the Smart, but there's no integrated stereo unit, stylish instrument pods or neatly designed dashboard.

What's more, the Electromobile's seats appear to be slightly larger and positioned higher, possibly because the car's battery pack has been mounted underneath. And instead of the genuine Smart's cloth-trimmed dashboard, the HuoYun's cabin is decked out with lots of grey plastic.

Although no prices have yet been announced, the HuoYun is likely to cost around £2,000 - a fraction of the current Smart ForTwo's £6,775.