World's cheapest car is available in the US, runs on batteries similar to those used in WWII submarines

Published on Jun 21, 2025 at 2:56 PM (UTC+4)
by Alessandro Renesis

Last updated on Jun 19, 2025 at 3:08 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by Emma Matthews

This is the Chang Li Nemeca, the world’s cheapest car from China, which, surprisingly, is also available in the United States.

The Nemeca is part of a family of tiny EVs, including the Freeman and Explorer, which all start at around $1,000.

The name is a bit strange, as is the fact that the batteries that power these EVs are somehow similar to the ones used in WWII submarines.

But there’s also another catch, unfortunately.

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Chang Li, an automaker from China, is selling a bunch of different EVs and hybrids that cost around $1,200.

One of the cheapest cars on the market is the Chang Li Nemeca, which is a strange vehicle for at least two reasons.

First, Nemeca sounds dangerously close to the Italian word for enemy – nemica.

Imagine driving a car that’s called the ‘enemy’.

The second weird thing is that these vehicles have batteries similar to those used in some WWII submarines.

Obviously, said batteries were not used in those submarines for propulsion, but it’s still an amusing – and amazing – coincidence.

These EVs are available in the US through a third-party importer called Electric Import Motors.

That’s the good news, but the bad news is they’re not actually always street-legal.

Depending on state laws, the world’s cheapest car can be driven only on low-speed public roads. It’s also generally barred from highways because it’s simply too slow.

This isn’t unheard of.

A while back, we covered the unusual car collection of Micah Toll, a guy behind the EbikeSchool.com YouTube channel.

Toll spent $2,000 on a cheap electric truck from Alibaba and used it for 18 months, pretty much on a daily basis, and his experience was mostly positive.

Even though he loves these vehicles, Toll pointed out that most of these tiny EVs are not street-legal in the United States.

Pity.

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Experienced content creator with a strong focus on cars and watches. Alessandro penned the first-ever post on the Supercar Blondie website and covers cars, watches, yachts, real estate and crypto. Former DriveTribe writer, fixed gear bike owner, obsessed with ducks for some reason.