R2 Roof Sun Shade

[John Matusiak]

I wouldn't touch this thing yet.

The product itself already feels rushed: $359 retractable assembly mounted against a brand-new R2 headliner, but they don't even publish the weight. Zero reviews, unknown long-term fit, rattles, sagging, etc.

Then I looked into Hansshow and it didn't exactly increase my confidence. They market themselves as "California based," but their own legal info points to Guangzhou/Shenzhen, China and Hong Kong law. Their own website says founded in 2018 with 300+ employees, while LinkedIn says 2009 and 100+ workers in Guangzhou. Even the basic company story doesn't match.

Their site advertises "30 days Return," but the actual policy requires the product to be unused and uninstalled. Kind of useless for an accessory where you need to install it to find out if it fits properly.

BBB currently gives their California operation an F rating, with 13 complaints and 6 unanswered.

China isn't the problem. Plenty of excellent products come from China. It's the combination of rushed product, vague specs, inconsistent company information and marketing that tries very hard to make the business look more American than it really is.

I'll let someone else beta test this on their headliner first...

Holy Christmas. I changed my mind. You must be an investigative journalist!

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[rvnxyz001]

Holy Christmas. I changed my mind. You must be an investigative journalist!

You may have also come across VION while looking for R2 accessories. I did, and I assumed it was a fairly established US EV accessories brand. The name is everywhere: Amazon, Rivian forums, giveaways, YouTube reviews, free products sent to owners, influencer discount codes, the whole thing.

Then I tried to find the actual company behind it, and that part gets weird.

Their website doesn't list a legal business name, physical address, phone number, registration details, owner, management team, or manufacturing location. Their live Terms of Service still contain these Shopify placeholders:

[INSERT TRADING NAME]
[INSERT BUSINESS ADDRESS]
[INSERT BUSINESS PHONE NUMBER]
[INSERT BUSINESS REGISTRATION NUMBER]

It also still has placeholder links to other policies and says the terms are governed by the "laws of United States without even naming a state. The Contact page is basically one email for support and another for "business development/collab"

The only solid ownership trail I found was through the trademark records. The VION trademark is registered to Hao Yi personally, as an INDIVIDUAL, not to VION LLC or VION Inc. The filing uses an Alhambra, California address and lists China as the owner's country. The roof shades I checked were also listed as made in China.

Nothing wrong with a product being made in China. What bothers me is that VION itself doesn't explain any of this. There is no information about the factory, who designs the products, whether VION manufactures anything, or even what legal business is taking the order on its own website.

Meanwhile, their marketing operation is very easy to find. VION sponsors forums, runs giveaways, sends out free review products, and has an affiliate program. Some reviewers clearly disclose the free product or commission, which is good. It also explains why the name starts to feel familiar and trusted even though almost nobody knows what company is behind it.

It feels very similar to Hansshow: American looking branding, Chinese made EV accessories, and most of the credibility coming from Amazon, forums, and influencers. VION may actually be even less transparent.

I was also surprised to learn how little information a standalone online store may be required to show in the US. I assumed the legal seller, address, and registration details had to be published somewhere, like they normally are in Europe. Apparently there isn't one simple nationwide equivalent of the European "imprint" requirement. Amazon may verify the seller behind the scenes, but VION's own website still tells the customer almost nothing about who they are buying from.

 

[Husky]

Good detective work! It doesn't instil a feeling of confidence.

 

[DaveA]

I have one ordered from EVBase, but it has not arrived yet. I’m guessing they are just getting production underway.

Went ahead and ordered as well. Said it would be delivered by Monday.

 

[Husky]

Went ahead and ordered as well. Said it would be delivered by Monday.

Let us know what you think!

 

[asellus]

You must be an investigative journalist!

let's not get carried away here, he employed some basic critical thinking and exercised an oft-overlooked skill called "reading things posted in the public domain" and noticed that things didn't add up. this should not be impressive, this should be expected.

 

[UnsungZero_OldTimeAdMan]

If you think it's ok to give Hanshow your $... God help you. So many obvious red flags, yet people keep showing up with money in hand. Then come in the forums to look for affirmation or how to deal with problems.

 

[rvnxyz001]

If you think it's ok to give Hanshow your $... God help you. So many obvious red flags, yet people keep showing up with money in hand. Then come in the forums to look for affirmation or how to deal with problems.

I have one ordered from EVBase, but it has not arrived yet. I’m guessing they are just getting production underway.

BTW, EVBASE looks way too close to Hansshow to be just another random competitor.

Hansshow's California shop is at 3480 W Warner Ave, Suite N, Santa Ana. EVBASE is at the exact same address, Suite O, and they even use the same installation phone number...

They also have overlapping Hong Kong trademark entities connected to both brands, very similar Shopify sites, similar affiliate/influencer marketing, and some almost identical products at the same prices.

EVBASE has 29 reviews on that $699 powered shade and literally all 29 are 5-star. Hansshow has 132 reviews on a very similar shade, with 126 five-star and 6 four star. Nothing below that...

A lot of them also use the same kind of "OEM look", "game changer", "highly recommend" language.
That doesn't prove the reviews are fake, but I definitely wouldn't treat ratings on their own sites as meaningful. Especially when both companies look much worse on independent review sites.

 

[R1Thrilled]

I just want to chime in with my experience in how hard some of these companies market (not naming any specific names but they’ve been mentioned in this thread).

I started getting emails offering me free products after I made like 3 videos about the R2. They want YouTubers to push discount codes for affiliate money. Feels gross to me, I won’t knock anyone for getting their bag or whatever but I’m not making videos to enrich myself at the expense of selling likely garbage tier products to people.

Just be careful out there folks.

 

[DaveA]

Hansshow is a legit company, as I used their glass roof sunshade for the R1T and it worked great and never sagged in the middle like other roof sunshades.

 

[Brou]

I had a steering wheel made for a Tesla by Hansshow. I was able to email them and customize it to my liking. They did great work.

They also make screens to go in front of the Tesla steering wheel that have received good reviews from buyers on the Tesla forum.

My limited experience with them has been positive.

 

[Husky]

I had a steering wheel made for a Tesla by Hansshow. I was able to email them and customize it to my liking. They did great work.

They also make screens to go in front of the Tesla steering wheel that have received good reviews from buyers on the Tesla forum.

My limited experience with them has been positive.

Great, good to know. Thanks!

 

[Brou]

Great, good to know. Thanks!

Fwiw I just looked back at my Amazon order for the steering wheel and noticed it says Hansshow but was sold by EVBase company someone mentioned. Guess they're one in the same.

 

[Husky]

Interesting.

 

[AlphaSnowbordergirl]

BTW, EVBASE looks way too close to Hansshow to be just another random competitor.

Hansshow's California shop is at 3480 W Warner Ave, Suite N, Santa Ana. EVBASE is at the exact same address, Suite O, and they even use the same installation phone number...

They also have overlapping Hong Kong trademark entities connected to both brands, very similar Shopify sites, similar affiliate/influencer marketing, and some almost identical products at the same prices.

EVBASE has 29 reviews on that $699 powered shade and literally all 29 are 5-star. Hansshow has 132 reviews on a very similar shade, with 126 five-star and 6 four star. Nothing below that...

A lot of them also use the same kind of "OEM look", "game changer", "highly recommend" language.
That doesn't prove the reviews are fake, but I definitely wouldn't treat ratings on their own sites as meaningful. Especially when both companies look much worse on independent review sites.

Honestly, just watched an automatic cat litter video on how the same group of people have the same product under different company names and basically someone manufacturers them cheaply and people buy it and put their name or branding on it. This is dangerous as there is no regulation on these products and the information provided to the US user is limited and if something goes wrong, that "company" is removed but all the other versions of that company is still out there. FYI, that automatic cat litterbox basically caught the cats' head and... I'll let you imagine the rest. There are a lot of these companies these days. Just look at amazon where there are 100 very similar items sold by supposedly different companies and honestly I see more similar objects just sold under different names than anything. Always check the source of where you're buying things and remember. Cheap doesn't mean its adequate or even safe quality.

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