Watch Chinese EVs Show Off Just How Much Better They Are Than Our Inferior Western EVs

Whatever your criticisms of China's government are, they're probably valid. In light of what Republicans have done since they took power a couple months ago, it may be more of a "pot calling the kettle black" situation, but that doesn't mean your criticisms aren't fair. And yet, as much as Trump says he dislikes China, his tariff obsession isn't just isolating the United States. It's pushing other countries to work more closely with China and, most importantly for our interests here, buy more of their electric cars. 

You've probably heard by now that Chinese EVs are better than the ones we have here in the U.S., and you may have seen a few photos, but it's hard to really understand how far China's auto industry has come without getting on a plane and going to see them in person. That's a long, expensive flight, even if you didn't have to worry about whether you'd be disappeared trying to re-enter the country, but don't worry. We've got you. Or at least our friends at InsideEVs do. 

They recently put together a video from their most recent trips to China to drive some of its EVs, and when you look at the best China has to offer versus what we have here, it's clear we're behind, as is the rest of the Western world.

It isn't just the cars themselves, either. It's the infrastructure, too. Remember back in 2013, when we saw Tesla perform a battery swap on a Model S in 90 seconds? That was pretty neat, but Musk also immediately abandoned the idea. Well, China's Nio actually put the idea into practice, and while it takes a little longer than 90 seconds to grab a new, fully charged battery when the CEO isn't just scamming the government for EV credits, the five-minute wait time is still fast enough that you probably won't even feel the need to get out of the car unless you really need to pee. 

And if you don't like the idea of owning a car but not the battery, they're also ahead on charging tech. The Zeekr 007 may not be the prettiest car ever made, but it costs about the same as a Tesla Model 3 and can charge to 80% in 10 minutes. Subsidized or not, as Chinese EVs enter more markets, it's going to be hard to convince regular people to skip the one sold by a Chinese company for a slower-charging, slower car that may even be more expensive. It isn't just Europe, either. Japan and Korea just agreed to work with China more closely, Chinese EV companies are already popular in Mexico, and there's even a chance Canada could soon lift its 100% tariff on Chinese EVs, as well. 

That isn't exactly great news, but now that we've chosen to isolate ourselves from the rest of the world, all we can really do is watch while Chinese EVs take over, the rest of the world advances, and the country that used to be the world's leader for innovation becomes a technological backwater.