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

[Grant-53]

Per Adam 728: Same with a Kubota diesel. Even if they source components, the price will be closer to $16,800. Today $6800 will buy a small motorcycle, under 500cc, or a high end bicycle.

[Christopher Jordan]

Originally Posted by Grant-53

... or a high end bicycle.

ssshhhooooooooommmm -
Man Goes 207 MPH On Rocket-Powered Bicycle - Digg

[niky]

Chinese. You can probably get an 800cc Suzuki motor, an EFI one at that, for under $2k.

That's a motor good for 30 km/l iin a car with crappy aero and frictional losses. In a properly designed tandem with non-square wheel bearings, it should hit Elio's MPG target.

Hell... the original Chinese platform for the XAP Zebra cost just over $3k, if I recall right.

[stiletto2]

Originally Posted by Christopher Jordan

ssshhhooooooooommmm -
Man Goes 207 MPH On Rocket-Powered Bicycle - Digg

HOLY SH!T !!!! ...... And that is without any real streamlining! Imagine what it could do with a fairing...

Funny when it takes off it looks like his feet get flung back from the acceleration and are just waving in the breeze.

= = = = = = = = = = = =
Anyway, I don't understand why, since it was an originally stated intent (nearly a claim) to use off the shelf parts, that they went through all the trouble and expense to get an engine that is not off the shelf by any means.
They could have proceeded much quicker by going with something that already exists... even the original Metro engine. It may not have achieved the 84 mpg target but certainly better than 50mpg. Then they could develop something better later; and get a more realistic price for it as well.

So,.... I don't think they are going to get production started in 2015 (if ever at all) going by their history........ time will tell.

Say,.... anybody taking wagers on that 2015 production start updeadline?

[Christopher Jordan]

Originally Posted by stiletto2

So,.... I don't think they are going to get production started in 2015 (if ever at all) going by their history........ time will tell.

Just saw the Elio "factory" on Facebook. Huge place... but I saw only one Elio. The other thousands sure must have excellent cloaking devices!

[doclees]

I'd bet $5 they will make at least one off the line by end of 2015 or anywhere in between. I'm hoping what we have seen is a blend of Apple and Microsoft marketing. They pick a launch date but revise it as they find they can't give the quality product as promised yet. Apple would stay quiet until the product was quality and then announce a release date. Microsoft announces they will be delivering a new and wonderful product, then tell the developers to come up with something in a time frame that is no going to happen, deliver an unfinished product and try to fix in on the back end.
I am a hopeful skeptic. It may end up like most TV miracle products where the shipping and handling is as much as the product. But even if it doesn't happen until 2016 and it costs $10k I'm still in.

[user removed]

Originally Posted by doclees

I'd bet $5 they will make at least one off the line by end of 2015 or anywhere in between. I'm hoping what we have seen is a blend of Apple and Microsoft marketing. They pick a launch date but revise it as they find they can't give the quality product as promised yet. Apple would stay quiet until the product was quality and then announce a release date. Microsoft announces they will be delivering a new and wonderful product, then tell the developers to come up with something in a time frame that is no going to happen, deliver an unfinished product and try to fix in on the back end.
I am a hopeful skeptic. It may end up like most TV miracle products where the shipping and handling is as much as the product. But even if it doesn't happen until 2016 and it costs $10k I'm still in.

And that is exactly what they are counting on but the wait will be longer and the price higher, if they are ever produced, and it will also never be in the quantites they predicted.

The new business practice, yeah right, just like the guy who washed the V nickels that did not have 5 cents on the coin, and passed them off as $5 gold pieces, or a more recent national health care plan.

History proves it's a predictable sequence of events that ultimately ends in failure.

Sadly I think my prediction has the highest odds of actually becoming fact.

regards
mech

[Fat Charlie]

Living off overoptimistic venture capital is a nice gig.

[freebeard]

I've stopped caring. There's always the Blackjack Avion.

[niky]

The Blackjack is a wonderful little toy. And not as stupidly expensive as a Morgan (apparently).