Well ok technically they're 'light quadricycles' limited to 28mph, but even so...
www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/20454629
Good idea? Will they sell 2000 next year?
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Be lucky to sell 20, let alone 2000. Who would pay ten grand for one to use just for a year, and if anyone did the road rage they'd have to suffer as they trundled round in a glorified milk float would soon have them back on two wheels or the bus.
Non-starter IMHO.
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I wonder if (well-off) adults might buy them as town cars? One would assume they're cheap to run, with low tax.
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>> One would assume they're cheap to run,
>>
But it would be cheaper to actually run, not much slower and a lot less embarrassing.
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And you think getting stuck behind a caravan is bad!
Axiam were producing lightweight cars which could be driven by full motorcycle licence holders due to their weight. DVLA changed some categories/entitlements and that ruled them out at the stroke of a pen.
May well see a few stuck on the back of mobile homes.
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One of my grandchildren has just turned 16. Two are already past that, but they live in London so cars for them aren't a real option just yet.
I have to confess that my heart sinks a bit at the prospect of conveying a correct level of caution to this innocent girl. They don't listen, and when they do they often get it wrong. But people should learn to drive as early as possible, so that they can do it competently when and if required.
Oh Gaaaahd...
Last edited by: Armel Coussine on Fri 23 Nov 12 at 21:28
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>> >> One would assume they're cheap to run,
>> >>
>> But it would be cheaper to actually run, not much slower and a lot less
>> embarrassing.
:) Actually I don't think it looks too bad - I can see it having some appeal to reasonably well paid young things in the city, and catching on. Or disappear without trace. One or the other.
Last edited by: Focusless on Fri 23 Nov 12 at 21:32
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>> :) Actually I don't think it looks too bad - I can see it having
>> some appeal to reasonably well paid young things in the city, and catching on. Or
>> disappear without trace. One or the other.
>>
I'm not talking about it's looks, but the abuse you'd have to suffer flat out at 28mph with an impatient queue behind you.
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>> I'm not talking about it's looks, but the abuse you'd have to suffer flat out
>> at 28mph with an impatient queue behind you.
I haven't driven there, but shouldn't that be sufficient for London?
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Would certainly be more than adequate for driving around my town, what with all the speed humps, 20 mph limits and red traffic lights interspersed with buses trundling everywhere at 20-25 and blocking the road every time they stop at a bus stop (our council has filled in nearly all the bus laybys and built the stops out into the road so the buses stop in the traffic flow) I don't think I've managed to get into top gear for a fortnight.... Drove seven miles across town the other evening and it took 25 minutes, I got above 25 once, I dream of a journey at 28mph.
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>>Actually I don't think it looks too bad ...
Oh dear Focusless, you really are missing your car aren't you? You sound like a man in the desert who after days of starvation and thirst has just chanced upon a small pool of muddy water or a dried up coconut husk !
:-)
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Anything is better than nothing Humph :)
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...although it wouldn't be so good for the tip run...
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Aye, I'm with you there !
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They have them here, and I think the kids can drive them at 15. Not a great seller, and sales seem to be split between 15 year olds and pensioners. And with low traffic volumes, they aren't much of a hold up.
As an alternative, the youngsters can drive 'tractors' at 15 also. The definition of a tractor being something with a separate load bed and max speed of 30kph or something. So some people modify cars (usually old Volvo estates) into pickups, and block the higher gears in the gearbox, then get it reregistered as a tractor complete with a large warning triangle on the back. There are even companies that will do the work for you.
Strangely though, kids can't drive a proper car until 18 here.
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Isn't there something about disqualified drivers also being permitted to drive them Dave?
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I'd rather have a tractor.
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Been to th NEC Bike show today and Aixam had a stand there. Got engaged in conversation with the UK Technical Manager discussing the legal issues. The car is quite cute really even if it is slow. I could see the appeal.
Last edited by: Fullchat on Sat 24 Nov 12 at 19:34
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It looks all right. But it costs twice what it should and is almost certainly too slow to be safe. In a 20mph London borough perhaps, but a bit vulnerable on an urban dual carriageway crowded with late commuters in large estates, white van men making progress, etc.
G-Whiz seems the same if not worse. Too slow to be safe and too small and flimsy to be safe. Also expensive. Horrid things.
A car is a car. There's no sensible compromise. God knows the things are very variable and perfectly good ones can be found for a tenth of the price of an Aixam. Thumbs down.
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I agree particularly when 12 months down the line you could buy the real thing. I touched on insurance and it would seem the costs would be similar to a 17 year old insuring a car. All in all it would seem that the target audience would be families of ample means.
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It would appeal to the same type who bought a Sinclair C5 - and there weren't many of those.
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Stupidly over priced, when you consider you can get a brand new i10 for £6500 with aircon, electric windows, central locking, airbags, ABS, an 85bhp engine and a top speed of over 100mph.
I would imagine it will loose its value as quickly as a drunk pilot falling out of the sky.
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Seen similar things in France - usually old fogies in the sticks.
Not the best of ideas.
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>> Seen similar things in France - usually old fogies in the sticks.
Or people who are banned from driving. I understand that they can legally be driven in France without a driving licence. So they're the chosen mode of transport for disqualified drink drivers.
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Don't disagree with your sentiments but where can you get a new i10 for £6,500?
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Its how much my dad paid for his, it was pre reg but only because Hydunai would not let them sell it for less than £7k so they had to pre reg it. My dad still got it a day after it was registered it and had delivery miles on the clock.
Was also one of the later 61 plates, so they may have been pushing discounts.
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The current Hyundai offer on new i10 Classic's is £6995 and low rate finance (6.9% APR). So for £7000, one can get a much better car for a lot less than the Aixam quadricycles.
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The local dealer here also sells them alongside Kia, and yes, they are more expensive than the cheapest Kia.
If you take a close look at them, they're just a lightweight steel tube chassis with plastic panels hung on it. There's even a single cylinder diesel model that sounds even worse than it looks.
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16yr olds driving cars on roads from January - Robin O'Reliant
