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

[Frank Lee]

Chinese aesthetics

[Fat Charlie]

Originally Posted by UltArc

They seem to be able to make decent objects when their appearance is described to them over the phone.



I'm sorry, trying to go further in this format is unbearable.

That's not a Chinese copy of a Mini, it's Daewoo's copy of a Ford Flex!

[Xist]

How often is the model put on the front of the car?

[Christopher Jordan]

WOW! That orange reverse trike is almost an exact copy of a 2007 rendering that was never made. A similar green reverse trike was built and advertised, but never sold, in Hollister CA. Then I saw the green body and a few parts in the weeds on Craigslist. I still like it, but Alibaba is already flooding me with ads; so I will not ask if they still sell that enclosed reverse trike. More ads - no thanks!

[niky]

Originally Posted by Hersbird

Right, IF we were talking 4 wheels. IF China or India wanted to do a 3 wheeler it would be as easy as any of the other motorcycles that currently come from China or India. What is being said is, it is surprising China hasn't jumped to the Elio vacuum and made something similar. Maybe they bought the promises as well and thought they couldn't beat the $7000 by much if any, or like I pointed out as soon as they did it w/o an American version already on the market, the DOT would move to reclassify 3 wheelers as cars.

I've driven a $4k ($3k if you buy bulk) trike with four seats, five doors and a blower (no AC or heat). 250cc engine. 50 mph tops.

China and India have had ultra-cheap transport for years, but building something like the Elio is just not all that interesting to them. In third-world countries, as it is in the US, there's still a minimum footprint necessary for people to consider something a car. Stuff like the Elio just isn't far enough from a motorcycle or a motorized tuktuk to have wide appeal in those markets.

Look at it from their perspective... you can buy a scooter for $2k or less that will hold a rider, a pillion rider and maybe two children between them, while getting 100 mpg.

An Elio at $7k will only hold two people. And it'll get worse economy than a scooter.

[Grant-53]

A scooter or a Vetter Challenge motorcycle offers a better value for money than the Elio. Side by side seating is a big issue as is storage capacity for basic transportation.

[Fat Charlie]

Originally Posted by niky

An Elio at $7k will only hold two people. And it'll get worse economy than a scooter.

And over here we're raving about the idea because we see it from the other side: most cars only have one, sometimes two passengers and minimal cargo. A hypothetical Elio would do all that in a car-like enclosure for way more mpg and much lower cost than a regular car.

[Christopher Jordan]

Originally Posted by Grant-53

A scooter or a Vetter Challenge motorcycle offers a better value for money than the Elio. Side by side seating is a big issue as is storage capacity for basic transportation.

2 pre-Elios, and the yellow reverse trike was supposed to arrive in Oregon in 2006, oops- 2007, oops- 2008, oops- Hell with it... it was a side by side. Other 2; both tandems.

[Vman455]

Originally Posted by UltArc

They seem to be able to make decent objects when their appearance is described to them over the phone.





I'm sorry, trying to go further in this format is unbearable.

#nailedit
#lifan320foreva

[cRiPpLe_rOoStEr]

Originally Posted by Hersbird

If this one had some sort of enclosure it could actually serve me right for daily commuting. There was a similar model being designed in my country, to be eventually fitted with a Yamaha YS250 engine, but featuring a fully-enclosed cab. However, since it would have car-like controls, ain't so likely to be finally released because the ABS brakes and airbags mandate for new cars would increase the development cost of a production version, and unfortunately the engine size is still perceived as a prestige feature in my country.