Kandi’s new collapsible electric golf cart is the latest tiny EV coming for your neighborhood
Golf carts aren’t just for golfers anymore. In fact, they’re getting much more use away from the golfing green as an alternative to cars in neighborhoods all over the US. Now Kandi America’s new collapsible mini golf cart is trying to reframe the concept of low-impact urban transportation.
Golf carts have wheeled their way out of the fairways, becoming the go-to chariot for zipping around local neighborhoods with a touch of whimsy and practicality. They embody the perfect blend of leisure and utility, offering an eco-friendlier alternative to gas-guzzling SUVs and even electric cars for short hops around town. Plus, there’s an undeniable charm in waving to familiar faces from the comfort of a golf cart, making every ride feel like a small parade through your neighborhood. Whether it’s the ease of parking, the breeze in your hair, or simply the joy of embracing a slower pace of life, golf carts have transformed local transportation into a delightful blend of fun, functionality, and community spirit.
But somehow in true American fashion, as golf carts have become more popular as transportation around neighborhoods, their size has also ballooned. These days, most local runabout golf carts you’ll find are likely to feature lifted chassis with big wheels and massive tires.
They’re a far cry from old-school ClubCars from a decade ago, and the trend toward bigger golf carts doesn’t seem to be waning anytime soon. Or at least that was until Kandi America’s new collapsible mini golf cart rolled onto the scene, showing that bigger might not always be better.
This tiny little golf cart features many of the same components you’ll find on a traditional cart, including front and rear seating, cup holders, independent double A-arm suspension (at least in the front), seat belts, and even a frunk for up-front storage.
But unlike larger golf carts, this pint-sized version is just a two-seater and comes in a much more compact form factor. Not only is it already physically smaller than typical carts, but it shrinks its wheelbase at the push of a button to take up even less space when parked. The little cart is just under 8 feet long when fully deployed for driving, but shrinks down to under 5.5 feet when collapsed. It’s also a mere 35 inches wide, or just under 3 feet. (For everyone else that uses a sensical unit of measure, that’s 89 cm wide and either 244 cm or 158 cm long when extended or collapsed).
It’s also significantly lighter than a typical golf cart, tipping the scales at just 265 lb (120 kg). That’s less than a third of the golf carts you see every day.
The little buggy doesn’t have a very powerful motor (between 1-5 kW depending on which spec sheet you read) or a very fast top speed (9 mph/ 14.5 km/h), but it has a decently long range of 25 miles (40 km). With a 1.8 kWh lithium-ion battery that charges from a typical 120V AC wall outlet, that range is likely enough for most neighborhood cruisers.
There’s even apparently an add-on roof accessory as well, turning this into a full (or slightly more) featured urban runabout.
And the best part is probably the price. If you haven’t checked lately, today’s golf carts are insanely expensive. If you’ve driven away from a golf cart dealer without breaking five figures, you’ve performed a rare feat. $12,000 golf carts are the norm, and the prices go up quickly from there. But this little guy? It’s priced at a cool US $4,999. Sure, I’ve got a garage full of electric bikes that can go three times as fast for a third of the price, but they serve a different role and are meant for a different type of commuter.
Perhaps small electric golf carts are the affordably-priced car alternatives needed for those who aren’t ready to throw their leg over a bike or mix it up with cars on the main roads. They’re a fair-weather friend for all of those local errands that simply don’t require a 5,000 lb vehicle.
In a sea of ever larger and heavier electric vehicle launches, this could be a chance to return to basics with a right-sized machine for local trips. Just think about it: while your neighbor is compensating for lord-only-knows-what with his Cybertruck, your sheer confidence can make you the talk of all the ladies at the local bunco night.
Electrek’s Take
You know what? I freaking love this thing. I think the world would be a better place with more odd little EVs that are designed to be just enough for the job.
How many parents shuttle their kids around the neighborhood in a massive SUV? How many down-the-road school runs could be performed in a small, fun little EV like this? How many hops down to the local market could this thing do all over the US? The possibilities are endless!
And yes, I get it – this thing is barely a step up from a Rascal scooter designed for geriatrics. But you know what? “Barely” is still something. And it’s cool/cute/unique enough that I think a lot of people who wouldn’t want to ride around on grandma’s scooter would actually have fun on something like this. I know because I definitely would! Heck, I’ve got a reputation as the guy who will drive anything on the internet, but even I don’t want to be seen on a prescription scooter. This thing though? I’d drive this Kandi mini cart until the aluminum wheels fell off!
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Tesla has released a new navigation feature to make it easier for people towing trailers to find charging stations that can accommodate them.
Towing trailers with electric vehicles is not yet super popular, but it is rapidly gaining in popularity, with more electric SUVs and pickup trucks having increasingly impressive towing capacity.
Tesla has had the Model Y and Model X with a limited but still useful towing capacity for a few years, but with now the Cybertruck and the opening of its Supercharger network to other EVs, including many pickup trucks, the automaker is starting to see more people arriving at its popular charging stations with trailers.
This can be problematic as if you don’t want to block several chargers, you are going to have to unhook your trailer to go charge your vehicle. That’s less than ideal and something gas-powered vehicles rarely have to do at gas stations.
Tesla’s solution has been to build a few “pull in” charging spots at some Supercharger stations that enable you to park with your trailer while charging (via Tesla Motors club):
Tesla is currently building more of these stations, but they are still far and few in between and hard to find.
The automaker is now making it easier to find with a new software update. Now, you can click on a Supercharger station, and it will tell you if it has trailer stalls.
Furthermore, if you are driving on “trailer mode” and searching for charging stations, those with “trailer friendly” stalls will appear at the top:
However, as usual, when traveling long distances in an electric vehicle, you are better off just doing a bit of planning about where to charge ahead of time, especially if you are going to be towing over long distances.
Now that Tesla can distinguish between trailer-friendly and non-trailer-friendly stations, the automaker can hopefully include it in its API for other automakers to integrate into their own navigation systems as many of them can start using the Supercharger network.
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Corporate America is investing in clean energy at record levels, with tech giants taking the top spots for users of solar.
Meta, Google, and Amazon are leading the charge in solar and battery storage adoption, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association’s (SEIA’s) latest “Solar Means Business” report.
Meta continues to hold the title of the top solar user in corporate America, with nearly 5.2 gigawatts (GW) of solar capacity installed. Meanwhile, Google leads the way in energy storage, boasting 936 megawatt-hours (MWh) of installed battery capacity. Through the first quarter of 2024, these companies have added the most solar capacity to their electricity portfolios, with major players like General Motors, Toyota, and US Steel also climbing the ranks.
The report reveals that US businesses have installed nearly 40 GW of solar capacity both onsite and offsite through Q1 2024, and corporate storage use now exceeds 1.8 gigawatt-hours (GWh). Even more growth is coming: Companies have over 3 GWh of battery storage under contract that will come online in the next five years.
“Some of the largest industrial and data operations in the world continue turning to solar and storage as a reliable, low-cost way to power their operations,” said SEIA president and CEO Abigail Ross Hopper.
Technology companies are at the forefront of this shift as data center growth drives skyrocketing electricity demand. Amazon, for example, leads the US with 13.6 GW of solar procurements under contract, while Meta and Google each have nearly 6 GW under contract – pipelines over 10 times larger than the next company in the rankings.
Target remains the US’s leading onsite corporate solar user for the ninth year in a row, with Prologis, Walmart, Amazon, and Blackstone also making the top five. For the first time, the “Solar Means Business” report is also tracking corporate battery energy storage, with Google, Apple, Meta, Target, Walmart, Home Depot, and Kohl’s among the top 10 companies using storage to meet more of their energy needs in real-time.
Looking ahead, both offsite and onsite energy storage are expected to play a bigger role in corporate renewable energy strategies. Medical companies like Kaiser Permanente are already using batteries to power microgrids, making their facilities more resilient to outages.
Carolyn Campbell, Meta’s head of clean and renewable energy, East, highlighted the importance of expanding solar capacity to match the company’s global operations with 100% clean energy: “We’re thrilled to rank number one for corporate solar procurement in SEIA’s report this year, and we continue to find ways to grow the grid to benefit everyone.”
Target’s vice president of property management, Erin Tyler, said of Target’s 20-year-old solar program, “Through our commitment to solar, we’re well on our way to achieving our corporate goal of sourcing 100% of electricity from renewable sources by 2030.”
The “Solar Means Business” report also looks at the policies driving corporate America’s adoption of solar. Many companies are taking advantage of the Inflation Reduction Act’s long-term clean energy incentives. To further accelerate their renewable energy investments, businesses are calling for improvements in interconnection processes, new community solar legislation, and simpler tax credit monetization.
Read more: A 100-MW solar farm just broke ground in Wisconsin
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Volkswagen Group Africa has officially begun production of a modern electric farm tractor at its multifunctional facility in Gashora, Rwanda in a bid to advance modern, low-emission agricultural initiatives in Africa.
Part of a larger Rwandan initiative called the GenFarm Project, the new VW tractor is part of a “holistic ecosystem” of electrified farming machinery set to be used throughout rural Africa – where liquid fossil fuels are often just as difficult to come by as electricity. The goal is to provide machinery that’s both sustainable and reliable.
“We are growing our footprint in Africa and regard Rwanda as a key growth market. This project demonstrates our commitment to sustainable practices and highlights our ability to provide mobility solutions to the rural community in addition to the urban community currently serviced by our Volkswagen Mobility Solutions Rwanda business,” explains Martina Biene, Volkswagen Group Africa Chairperson and Managing Director. “The GenFarm Project fosters technological innovation and aligns with Volkswagen Group’s strategy to generate meaningful value for both society and the environment through sustainable mobility.”
The GenFarm project will eventually provide mobility services for transportation of goods and people. In June 2023, Volkswagen Group Africa signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Government of Rwanda to provide land for the establishment of the GenFarm Project.
The Volkswagen tractors’ electric motor produces 20 kW (about 27 hp), making it about the same size as the Solectrac product (which hasn’t worked out well in the US, it must be said). That motor gets its electrons from a 32 kWh swappable battery. Batteries are swapped/charged at the Empowerment Hub to minimize downtime. DC fast charging isn’t available, but the relatively small, swappable batteries (hopefully) mean that’s not much of a problem.
The GenFarm project hopes the new VW electric tractor will help clean up Rwanda’s agricultural sector, which currently accounts for some 25% of the national Gross Domestic Product.
Electrek’s Take
We’ve talked a lot about the lack of new farmers in America, but the problem is global – especially as western companies, and western ideas about consumerism, continue to spread. Products like this electric tractor from VW will make farming cleaner, quieter, and (hopefully) more attractive to young workers.
SOURCE | IMAGES: VW Group Africa.
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