Elio Motors, The Next Big Thing?!!...

[Arragonis]

Originally Posted by doclees

Word from Eliomotors is that the new engine a transmission will be installed in a prototype for summer. MPG ratings are computer models and "very accurate".

Er, hmm, how, er, hmm...

[doclees]

IIRC you have proof of concept, mule, prototype and then first run production line. So the P4 is still a mule and not the prototype. So summer comes with a new engine and tranny. Run it hard and long to see what breaks and correct it for production. As long as its OS is not Windows based all should be good.

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Originally Posted by cowmeat

I also asked if they could customize mine to have the door on the curbside

Gotta agree with you, I'd rather get one if I could get a door on the curbside (altough I'd want to keep the regular left-side door too, even if it would require a collumn-shifter -or paddle-shifters in case of manual transmission- to solve any clearance issue).

[doviatt]

The ONE thing that kills all potential products more than anything....is feature creep. All companies fall for this "last minute improvement" death nail. Please don't continue the wish list other than wishing they get to production (you know they are watching). They can make great changes once they are established. Don't sink them, help them. We need this!

[Fat Charlie]

Feature creep never killed anything!



Okay, maybe one that isn't quite so perfect would be better overall.

[doviatt]

Originally Posted by Fat Charlie

Feature creep never killed anything!



Okay, maybe one that isn't quite so perfect would be better overall.

That is too funny.
...and it almost fits in your pocket (the original requirement long forgotten about).

[Fat Charlie]

I think the Swiss Army also invented the cargo pocket.

[Arragonis]

Originally Posted by doclees

Word from Eliomotors is that the new engine a transmission will be installed in a prototype for summer. MPG ratings are computer models and "very accurate".

Dragging this up again - how can you say that the MPG ratings are models and "very accurate" when this hasn't been fitted to a car yet ?

Otherwise it needs to be in the field where we keep the Unicorns.

[doclees]

Originally Posted by Arragonis

Dragging this up again - how can you say that the MPG ratings are models and "very accurate" when this hasn't been fitted to a car yet ?

Otherwise it needs to be in the field where we keep the Unicorns.

Well I guess you take the wind tunnel info, the rolling resistance info, the expected energy at the drive wheels at a given speed, the fuel flow rate and other stuff I have no idea you need to include. Stick it in a computer. You know the things we are using right now. The things that are thousands of times more powerful than the ones used to calculate the fuel needed to get us to the moon and back. OK so "very accurate " is only as accurate as the data collected. Since they do have a mule that is very close to the final product I am willing to believe they can predict within a margin of error of ±5% maybe less. But no one out there can predict my driving habbits. I don't think the "P4" deserves to be out with the Unicorns due to mileage predictions. Isn't it this site someone chopped and tweeked, or is that twerked? , a Geo Metro to get 75 mpg?

[Arragonis]

So the models are not related to the "the new engine a transmission [that] will be installed in a prototype for summer" but for older ones ? Models can be accurate but observations are far better currency.

On a seperate question how are they going to be able to complete testing prior to full production which is quite soon - for example in very wet places, snow, ice, very hot, desert, seaside, mountains, salty roads (that plays hell with electrics), rough roads, high and low speeds, town, city etc etc.

For a full sized company a new car development costs about $0.5bn and thats just for the basic cheapy models like the Mirage which probably tested in Alaska or Norway as well as Death Valley and Germany for high speeds.