Like, down by 90%.
I love the idea of a tiny little one- or two-seater, no meaningful cargo space, a Tata or a Smart. Plug-in hybrid or all-electric. I don't need a lot of comfort features.
But with those limitations, it won't be capable enough to be my only vehicle, and if I have to keep two, one of 'em is gonna have to be cheap. Get me an econobox for under $10K, and you'll seriously pique my interest. Under $5K, and I'll get on the waiting list.
Oh, and I’d need a gimballed cup-holder, like the ones for boats. Cheap car or not, I can’t do the morning commute without caffeine.
I am in 100% agreement except the hybrid or all-electric.
I don't like the battery issue of the hybrids, or the issue of heat in winter. (We don't really "need" A/C here in Seattle and my current car doesn't have it.) Plug-is another issue, even though we have at present relatively cheap electricity and my commute is short enough that electric would work.
Get it down to the $5-8k range and this would become my primary commute/local-business vehicle (the nearest commercial businesses are some 5 miles away).
Love em if you like, but there’s no way those things can absorb any impact when the “crumple zone” is about eight inches. I can’t wait to see the death stats on those things in five years. It’s going to be astronomical, I guarantee, and will make about as much sense in retrospect as ethanol.