As the world rushes toward an electric future, China has positioned itself at the forefront of the global EV revolution. With production numbers that dwarf other markets and aggressive adoption rates, the Asian powerhouse has become the dominant force in electric mobility. But behind this apparent success story lies a strange and haunting sight: vast fields filled with thousands of brand-new electric vehicles, abandoned and slowly decaying under the elements.
Recent drone footage reveals an almost surreal landscape in Hangzhou, the capital city of eastern China’s Zhejiang Province. Row after row of pristine white electric cars stretch across massive lots spanning over 15,000 square meters (about 3.7 acres). These forgotten vehicles sit silent, their once-gleaming paint now dulled by dust and dirt, with wild grass growing around and between their wheels.
Ghost cars with registration plates
What makes this automotive graveyard even more bizarre? Each abandoned car bears official registration plates. Inside their cabins, many still have factory plastic covering the seats, with dashboard screens that power on normally—signs these vehicles were never actually used.
The models identified in the footage include several Chinese-market electric vehicles: the Geely Kandi K10 EV, Neta V, and BYD e3. For context, if these vehicles were sold in the U.S. market, they would likely be positioned in the $20,000-$30,000 price range, making their abandonment all the more puzzling.
One section of the footage shows what appears to be a staging area with a caption that translates to “BYD inventory flooded, 600 cars waiting to be processed.” The static fleet creates an eerie visual—hundreds of identical white cars sitting motionless in perfect rows, slowly being reclaimed by nature.
The failed car-sharing experiment
How did thousands of electric vehicles end up abandoned? According to Chinese state media outlet People’s Daily, many of these cars belonged to a defunct car-sharing service called Microcity. The company had invested heavily in Kandi 11 models before its operations collapsed.
The timeline matches a broader trend of failed mobility ventures in China. Between 2018 and 2019, multiple car-rental and vehicle-sharing businesses went bankrupt across the country, leaving behind substantial fleets with nowhere to go. (Sounds familiar to anyone who remembers the ride-sharing bike graveyards that made headlines a few years back?)
This phenomenon bears striking resemblance to what The Atlantic documented in Shanghai back in 2018—not with cars, but with bikes. When China’s bike-sharing boom peaked in 2017, companies flooded streets with millions of bicycles. After the bubble burst, mountains of abandoned bikes created their own unique industrial wastelands.
Why would new electric cars be abandoned?
Some online speculation suggests these vehicles might be evidence of manufacturing overcapacity or even possible subsidy fraud. One theory proposed in the reshared footage is that some manufacturers might register vehicles as “sold” to inflate sales figures and qualify for government subsidies, only to abandon them afterward.
While this makes for an intriguing narrative, we should approach such claims with skepticism. The reality likely involves a mix of failed business models, market saturation, and rapid technological advancement that can make even recent models commercially obsolete.
What’s the weight of this waste? Each of these compact EVs weighs approximately 2,500-3,000 pounds, contains valuable minerals in their batteries (like lithium, cobalt, and nickel), and represents around 7-10 metric tons of carbon emissions from manufacturing alone. Multiplied by thousands of vehicles, the environmental impact of this waste becomes significant.
Current status remains unclear
It’s worth noting that some of the drone footage circulating online dates back more than two years, with local reports of these automotive graveyards first emerging around 2019. Whether these cars still sit abandoned today or have since been recycled or repurposed remains unknown.
The ghost fleet raises tough questions about the sustainability of rapid EV scaling. As the U.S. pursues its own electric transformation with models like the Ford F-150 Lightning, Chevrolet Blazer EV, and Tesla’s lineup, could we face similar scenarios if adoption rates don’t match production?
For now, these fields of forgotten EVs serve as a stark visual reminder that even green technologies can create waste when market forces and business models don’t align. Perhaps the most valuable thing about these abandoned cars isn’t their batteries or motors, but the lessons they might teach us about planning sustainable transitions.
Have you noticed any signs of electric vehicle surplus or waste in your area? The transition to EVs is happening at different rates across regions, but these haunting images from China might be a warning about what happens when growth outpaces actual demand.
