NGC Elio Motors 3 wheeler - merged threadfest

[Cool Runnings]

What?  You didn't think we'd have a merged threadfest for this, with all the cheap bastards around here?  LOL!   

Should have known.... 

[rocker59]

Should have known.... 

 

[Mark West]

Are there still people who think this scam will ever materialize?

If you really want to waste some dough, bet on a 50:1 horse. You're odds of getting something in return will be a lot better.

[Spaghetti]

So. I feel the urge to chime in here. I have a cousin who  has worked with robotic installations at some different car plants. He is the one who first brought Elio to my attention. He was quite excited about a $7K, 3 wheeled, American made car.

I am less optimistic than he is and I had remembered reading about the 20th Century Motor Car Corporation previously. (Not the 20th Century Motor Company, that was from Atlas Shrugged.)

Here is the Wikipedia take on it.:

The Twentieth Century Motor Car Corporation was an automobile company started by entrepreneur Geraldine Elizabeth Carmichael in 1974. The company's flagship vehicle was the Dale, a prototype three-wheeled two-seater sports car designed and built by Dale Clifft. It was powered by an 850 cc air-cooled engine and featured 70 mpg-US (3.4 L/100 km; 84 mpg-imp) fuel economy and a $2,000 (in 1974 US dollars) price, which were popular specifications during the mid 1970s US fuel crisis.

Carmichael, 37 in 1974, claimed to be the widow of a NASA structural engineer, a mother of five, and a farm girl from Indiana. In reality, she was a trans woman. Under her biological male identity, Jerry Dean Michael, she had been wanted by the police since 1961 for alleged involvement in a counterfeiting operation. The company would ultimately prove to be fraudulent when Carmichael went into hiding with investors' money.

Dale

The Dale was originally envisioned by Carmichael. The prototype was designed and built by Clifft, and the project was subsequently marketed by Carmichael. Much of the interest in the Dale was a result of the 1973 oil crisis: higher economy automobiles like the Dale were viewed as a solution to the oil crunch. Speaking to the Chicago Sun-Times in November 1974, Carmichael said she was on the way to taking on General Motors or any other car manufacturer for that matter. She said she had millions of dollars in backing "from private parties", and also talked of a 150,000 sq ft (14,000 m2) assembly plant in Burbank, California and over 100 employees on the rolls.

The Dale was also marketed as being high-tech, lightweight, yet safer than any existing car at the time. "By eliminating a wheel in the rear, we saved 300 pounds and knocked more than $300 from the car's price. The Dale is 190 inches long, 51 inches high, and weighs less than 1,000 pounds", said Carmichael. She maintained that the car's lightness did not affect its stability or safety. The low center of gravity always remained inside the triangle of the three wheels making it nearly impossible for it to tip over. She also went on record to say that she drove it into a wall at 30 miles per hour (48 km/h) and there was no structural damage to the car (or her). She said the Dale was powered by a thoroughly revamped BMW two-cylinder motorcycle engine, which turned out 40 horsepower (30 kW) and would hit 85 miles per hour (137 km/h). She expected sales of 88,000 cars in the first year and 250,000 in the second year.
Other vehicles
Two additional vehicles were proposed by Carmichael to complement the Dale: the Revelle and the Vanagen. Both of these would also feature a three-wheeled design and used the same 2-cylinder engine. None of the vehicles ever saw production and only two prototype vehicles of the Dale were made. Only one of those was able to run under its own power.

Rumors of fraud began to emerge and the California Securities Commission began an investigation. Although Clifft said he still believed in the project and said that he was promised $3 million in royalties once the Dale went into production, he only received $1,001, plus a $2,000 check, which bounced. Carmichael went into hiding and was featured in an episode of Unsolved Mysteries which detailed the fraud behind the Dale as well as the fact Carmichael was wanted. She was eventually found working under an alias in a flower shop, arrested, tried and sent to prison. Carmichael eventually died of cancer in 2004.

Any of the above sound familiar? I mean aside from the trans-woman part.......

[Triple Jim]

Is this quote from Wikipedia in any way related to the Elio, or are you just speculating that the Elio story may be similar?

[LaMojo]

Going into any business venture with no money and expecting investors along the way never works.

[Aaron D.]

I don't know, so far it works for Square.

[Lannis]

Going into any business venture with no money and expecting investors along the way never works.

Founded in 2008, production delayed from 2012 to 2013, 2013 to 2014, 2014 to 2015, 2015 to 2016, now 2016 to 2017.   I predict one more cycle, delay from 2017 to 2018, then the pyramid implodes.

It's not hard to figure out.  Just check out "help wanted" ads for factory workers in Shreveport, LA.   Supposed to be 1500 people working on production there.   Far as I can tell, there's not ONE ...  And considering it takes a hugely capitalized company like GM 10 years to design, tool up, and manufacture a new Corvette, well ...   

Lannis

[Arizona Wayne]

I gave up waiting for the Elio to appear for sale. They do have at least 1 running model and have built a motor, but so what?   Least I didn't put $100 deposit down like some,  Went out and bought a used Ford Fiesta recently instead. 

[Mark West]

I saw a short piece on the Dale on Jay Leno's Garage and thought, So that is where Elio got his inspiration.

Just remember what your elders taught you; If it sounds too good to be true, it is.

[Lannis]

I gave up waiting for the Elio to appear for sale. They do have at least 1 running model and have built a motor, but so what?   Least I didn't put $100 deposit down like some,  Went out and bought a used Ford Fiesta recently instead. 

I guess what frustrates me so bad it not just that it's a con; there's millions of those ... but it's a con purporting to sell a product that I would buy in a New York Minute were it real.   I drive Ford Festivas when I drive a car ... 1800 pounds, 1.3l 55 HP engine, 43 MPG, cruise from here to Denver and back at 70 MPH.   I'd love to have a car with the specs of an Elio; I'd buy one at $14,000 although I think that it would take $25,000 to produce them in volume.

But alas, it is not to be.

Lannis

[Arizona Wayne]

I guess what frustrates me so bad it not just that it's a con; there's millions of those ... but it's a con purporting to sell a product that I would buy in a New York Minute were it real.   I drive Ford Festivas when I drive a car ... 1800 pounds, 1.3l 55 HP engine, 43 MPG, cruise from here to Denver and back at 70 MPH.   I'd love to have a car with the specs of an Elio; I'd buy one at $14,000 although I think that it would take $25,000 to produce them in volume.

But alas, it is not to be.

Lannis

I wanted the Elio for the wife and our 2 small dogs so they could follow me on a bike/scooter to rallies.   

[LaMojo]

All's quiet at the former GM plant in Shreveport

http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/tag/elio-motors/

[Chuck in Indiana]

When deliveries were just a "year away" a guy on another list I used to frequent was all over it. I told him I used to be involved with new cars. I was an engineering modelmaker at GM. What they were showing as their engine was obviously to the trained eye a wooden mockup. It takes more than a year just to get through emissions once you have a viable engine. Just getting the lighting certified takes longer than that.. etc. etc. He bit anyway.
He has a nice T shirt for his money..

[Tom]

A Hack at this point would work better.

[Arizona Wayne]

A Hack at this point would work better.

Have had hacks.  If you just want transportation, yes, they will do.  I want a bit more.   

[Tom]

I did look at the website with some interest but for some of the reasons listed by others.  I agree that it seems a way of getting funds with the "offer" of buying later.     I should have bought that Triking replica in So. Cal. that was available for $12K.

[Tom]

Okay.  Seem Paul Elio needs more money.  I've been seeing this spot on cable tv.

https://www.ispot.tv/ad/AtCF/elio-motors-alter-the-course-of-transportation

[Chuck in Indiana]

Why am I not surprised? <shrug>

[Tom]

Don't know if this got put on the thread.

http://www.adamsautoadvice.com/elio-motors-scam/

[Lannis]

Going into any business venture with no money and expecting investors along the way never works.

You can see the end from here ....

"A United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing reveals Elio Motors had just $101,317 in cash on September 30, 2016. That's a rounding error at best for a car company. Worse yet, the same document declares recurring net losses caused an accumulated deficit of over $123 million. The company explained it's uncertain about what the future holds.

"If we are unable to continue to obtain financing to meet our working capital requirements, we may have to curtail our business sharply or cease operations altogether," wrote Elio Motors in the SEC filing. More recent information about the company's finances hasn't been released to the public."

They've taken deposits from 64,000 investors (totaling about $100,000,000), but they've run through that and haven't even started setting up the Shreveport factory.

I think you can stick a fork in this one ... it's done.

Lannis

[Arizona Wayne]

They're still advertising on TV for more suckers. 

[Tom]

Looks like your MP3 and my Eldo hack are more viable than an Elio.   

[guzziownr]

What is your guess on the annual salary of the CEO of this American success story?

[JJ]

I have seen and sat in an Elio...when I see one on the streets, I will believe it.  Concept car at best, and doubtful it will be manufactured and offered at $8K. I believe I just read they are having major financial problems...

I have ridden in a Polaris Slingshot, and while cool, it is HUGE! 

Now this TriKing, with a Guzzi motor is my idea of a three-wheeler!

[Lannis]

What is your guess on the annual salary of the CEO of this American success story?

I have a feeling this one was a scam from the very beginning.   Sometimes, a man might think he has an idea that will really work, but screws up the execution of it, or gets let down by people he trusted.

This one was never going to work from Day 1.   All the reasons that people have been giving, on this board and others, why you can't manufacture and certify a fully functional car using future customers' "deposits", and sell it for $6800 with no dealers, turned out to be true.

Whether Elio has been socking it away in a Cayman Islands bank, or ends up like DeLorean, trying to sell cocaine to make up his losses, we might never find out.

Lannis

[JJ]

First saw on at Barrett-Jackson in Scottsdale Jan. 2014. Here is the car and the motor...






multi image upload

[kirby1923]

This reminds me of the "Flying Car" capers that have made the rounds. Moller comes to mind.

If people think that the drones are going to be a problem possibly dropping out of the sky into your patio morning breakfast, think what a flying car would do!

Total madness!

Untill we can manipulate gravity this is a complete pipedream.

:-)

[rodekyll]

Don't forget the "Nationwide service network" of "Pep Boys Professionals".  Pep boys are in about 35 states and usually only in metro areas.

[Aaron D.]

I like the Elio engine shot, JJ, especially the "Do Not Touch" sign-obviously don't want anyone to get a splinter.