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The Kandi Mini is unlike any other golf cart in the world in two key ways. First, it’s less than half the price of your average golf cart. And secondly, it is much more compact than the average golf cart.

Both are key features for people who have become curious about the golf cart but don’t have room in their garages or wallets for a new full-size cart.

I’ve written before about how useful golf carts have become as alternative transportation. As much as I love a good electric bike, a golf cart can usually carry more people and cargo, offers better weather protection, and is a more comfortable feel for many riders. The only problem is that they usually cost an arm and a leg, usually starting in the low five figures.

you don’t believe me You obviously haven’t been checking the prices of new golf carts lately. $10,000 for a relatively basic golf cart is pretty standard these days, and it’s easy to get into the $12 to $15,000 range when you start looking at elevated carts with bigger wheels and nicer features.

Enter the Kandi Mini: a $3,999 (or $3,499, depending on where you buy it) electric golf cart that’s small enough to not take up too much space in your garage. In fact, it has a nifty feature that allows it to shrink to an even smaller size. You can see it in detail in a fun unboxing and testing video I made here.

Fully extended, the stroller is 96 inches (8 feet or 2.43 meters) long, including the rear foot platform. When you press the switch on the dashboard to fold it, the front end of the stroller vacuums itself. Add the folding rear platform and the stroller drops to a length of just 66 inches (5’6″ or 1.68 meters).

I installed the optional roof canopy and windshield on my Kandi Mini, even though these are accessories that don’t come standard. The roof canopy is removed with a quick release and the entire canopy folds down to make the stroller even shorter. The canopy quick release even has a built-in hex key that you can use to remove the steering wheel for even more collapsibility, so you don’t have to remember to carry your set of wrenches.

I was able to fit the stroller in the back of the family minivan, which is a serious testament to how compact it can get. On a side note, I didn’t even have to use the telescoping feature to make the stroller even shorter; I just folded the rear footrest. But if your van or SUV isn’t as roomy as this one, you can make the stroller even shorter to fit tighter spaces.

Small as it is, the stroller can fit two adults side-by-side on the front bench, as my dad and I discovered while riding together. The marketing seems to show one adult in the front and a second adult in the back, so it looks like they intend this to be a two-seater.

But with a 400 lb weight limit, you could probably fit two healthy adults and one or two children in the stroller.

The controls are about as simple as could be. There is an accelerator pedal on the right and a brake pedal on the left, with a parking brake built into the top of the brake pedal.

There’s an on/off switch on the center console (although I’m told this has been expanded on current models with a key switch for added security) and there’s also a battery gauge along with the lights and bezel collapse/expand switches .

I really like how this battery meter gives an actual percentage reading instead of just five LED dots like many cheaper battery displays offer. This gives you a better idea of ​​your actual battery capacity, although the 25 mile (40 km) range means few people will find themselves running on a dead battery. I just can’t imagine driving that 25 miles at a time.

Charging is also quite simple, with a small charger like those used for a laptop or e-bike, and which plugs into a 120VAC outlet.

The only other control input is the shifter, which is mounted on the front of the platform under the seat just between your knees. You can reach down to shift gears, such as when backing out of a parking space, and you don’t even have to look for a button on the center console, as it’s the only switch in its place behind your calves.

There are two retractable seat belts, one each for the entire front and rear seats. They have a DOT label on them and feel as sturdy as real car seat belts, although that doesn’t mean it’s a street-legal LSV.

Still, the inclusion of high-quality seat belts is a nice addition, especially if you have small children you don’t want jumping up while riding.

I tested the stroller on all kinds of off-road terrain, from rough and sandy pastures to gravel roads, and it performed admirably. The front suspension uses a common independent setup of double A-arms, while the rear is a straight axle swing arm. The shocks aren’t what I’d call top-end, but for $3499 they’re pretty good.

When I got back on paved roads and trails, the suspension was no problem and felt great. When riding around rough off-road areas, I definitely bumped into the terrain a bit, but the suspension performed pretty decently for what it is. It’s definitely not a high-end UTV, but it’s not some cheap little buggy either. It’s a modest suspension that works quite well on most terrains.

It has about six inches (15 cm) of ground clearance, which is more than I would expect from such a small golf cart. I’ve taken this thing way beyond where the roads end and never once had a problem with it while off-roading. I was actually able to drive down into ditches and back up the other side multiple times. That doesn’t mean you can’t center it high on a toppled telephone pole, but every ride has its limits, and you probably shouldn’t try to cross telephone poles with a mini golf cart.

The strength also surprised me. Not that it’s particularly punchy, but rather I was expecting a turtle situation based on the 1000W power rating for the spec sheet. I was pleasantly surprised that when I hit the gas pedal the stroller didn’t protest. It’s not powerful, but it doesn’t feel underpowered either. I climbed grassy embankments and never felt like I was sinking. Not that it’s a huge force, but I even towed my kayak to the local lake on a small trailer.

While the stroller didn’t feel underpowered, it did feel a bit slow. Top speed is listed as just 9 mph, and it didn’t feel like it was going much more than 10 mph (16 km/h). I took it out on some local lightly trafficked roads (it’s not street legal, but this testing was in Florida, where a golf cart might as well be on the state flag) and it felt a little weird going that slow on the road, even with barely visible car. This stroller is definitely better placed on stroller paths, walkways, and other multi-use paths.

However, this slow speed didn’t really limit me from using it as a true urban golf cart. I’ve taken it shopping, made runs to Target and Walgreens, and used it all over my parents’ ranch and my family’s suburban neighborhood, and it’s performed wonderfully in every situation.

Some of the impressive features I was surprised to see on such an affordable little golf cart included a pretty damn roomy front storage rack, alloy wheels (usually a paid upgrade over steel wheels on many vehicles), a lithium iron phosphate battery ( 1.8 kWh) with a 3-year warranty, hydraulic disc brakes, the rear seat flips down into a small cargo bed, the stroller comes with automotive-style metallic flake paint and has a bunch of colors to choose from.

Some of the improvements I’d like to see would be a higher top speed and maybe a bigger battery to go with that speed. As it stands, the existing battery is sufficient as the low top speed makes this cart extremely efficient. A range of 25 miles (40 km) sounds like more than I’ll ever need for trips around the neighborhood. But if they could make the cart go faster, even up to 15 mph (25 km/h), then a slightly larger battery would be nice, as the range would take a hit.

But that also speaks to the value here. We can click our heels and wish for more speed and bigger batteries all day long, but if that was somehow delivered, then we’d have to dig deeper into our pockets.

They are able to offer a well made electric golf cart at a third of the price of the big boys precisely because it doesn’t come with super fast speeds or massive batteries.

Instead, it offers us modest performance that allows riders to save serious money. If you need more speed and power, Kandi has bigger golf carts (and they still cost less than the competition).

But for the people out there who don’t need to go 20-25 mph because they’re just getting around the neighborhood or camping, this is probably enough of a stroller for them.