I’m delighted by how much attention my purchase of the Cheapest Electric Car in the World, the Changli Freeman, has received, especially in its home market of China, something I wasn’t really expecting at all. That sort of attention in China has led to remarkable videos like this one, where a Chinese YouTuber (or more likely, a journalist of some sort?) goes to the Changli factory and actually mentions me, and talks to the person who helped me buy the Changli in the first place! What an incredible world we live in, right?
I’m also excited to finally see the Changli factory in a bit more detail. Prior to seeing this, I just assumed my Changli was kissed together by magical electric elves who melt raw ingots of steel in their hands, but that appears to not be the case.
The factory is a bit tidier and more orderly than I assumed based on the dusty footprint that came with the car on its back seat, so I’m impressed. I’m also impressed with the variety of other vehicles shown in the video, vehicles that Changli produces in far greater numbers than the one I got.
Here, just watch the video:
There’s a lot of fantastic stuff in there, not the least of which is that hilarious Muzak version of the Star Wars “Imperial March” theme music in the background.
The factory seems to be composed of many individual work stations instead of one massive line, which makes sense considering the sheer number and variety of vehicles they make, from scooters to three-wheel auto-rickshaws to little trucks to utility vehicles and more.
I was especially pleased to see this scene here:
I was pleased because that woman on the right there is Amy, the nice lady who helped me navigate the complex business of ordering a car directly from a Chinese factory and having it shipped to America in the first place.
So, it’s nice to finally put a face to the white “A” in a gray circle.
I would have liked to have seen even more detailed factory shots, and ideally to watch a whole car being built from scratch, but I guess that’ll have to wait until all this pandemic stuff finally settles and I can somehow get over to China to see for myself.
There’s plenty more Changli content coming, I promise, so stay tuned!