JohnJ
Elio Addict
Every time I see this picture it makes me both sad and mad! 
-
Welcome to Elio Owners! Join today, registration is easy!
You can register using your Google, Facebook, or Twitter account, just click here.
Elio's time has come again?
- Thread starter DScott
- Start date
And wistful.
RSchneider
Elio Addict
This one will make you happy then.
Totally agree with you sentiment JJ. I went to at least 2 of their show and tell events, even got to sit on it. It's really cute, a little rough on the edges as it's still a prototype and I liked the 3cyl. engine, perfect for urban commute. Elio could've started a small batch just to test the market but no, he wanted to go big.....went bust instead. Heck, I was ready to pay up to 10k for it higher than his ridiculous $7,500 price tag.
RSchneider
Elio Addict
I see that but $10K isn't enough. To start without that fancy plant and tooling, it would be in excess of $80K each. Arcimoto spent $60K to make that piece of junk with no real amenities and sold it for $20K. At the time Vanderhall was at $25K. Vanderhall is privately funded and thus we have no idea what it really cost. Since they are still in business, they must be making something. Even with an open cockpit vehicle that has a massive high step in area.
I look at it as Paul was trying to be the big guy and try to get big guy pricing. That just doesn't work. Plus Paul was just a middle class guy that was not hanging out with the rich folk. So, funding to make it work, just wasn't going to happen. I just feel bad for people that fell for this because he really wanted it to happen but he also knew, the chances were very low. To keep the crowdfunding coming in, he had to put on a happy face and treat everyone here when he seen you, with respect. After that, he just left and has moved on.
This plays out in various industries and it's sad it does but I have never been a fan of crowdfunding because it draws way too much on emotion and not facts or data. When Elio started doing required SEC filings, the handwriting was on the wall. I feel that emotional driven investors ignored those facts and just were all hoping that it would work somehow.
It's a lesson learned and I bet if there was an Elio 2.0, people here would just fire up the microwave, throw in a bag of popcorn, then sit and watch the show. All while just saying to themselves. Seen this before. I started to watch Aptera again and that's a really expensive three wheeler. Yet they are almost going down the same route as Elio. It's like 2015 all over again.
The Arcimoto FUV was far from a piece of junk. My wife and I took 2 FUVs out on our test drive. People on the streets and in their cars waved as we drove by and others asked where they could buy one during our stops along the way. I could have sold 10 FUVs during our 2 hour test drive experience. The driver comfort, performance, and handling was amazing. Most fun I’ve had driving any vehicle. My wife doesn’t give a rats butt about 3 wheelers, but following her personal test driving experience she climbed on board with ordering one, but only after confirming the availability of the full enclosure option. We did order one, but cancelled due to the delayed availability of full doors. Management lost focus in the process of making the needed changes for production scale and full cabin enclosure needed for wide market appeal……..otherwise it was just another open three wheel motorcycle. Plenty of those on the market to include the reasonably priced niche market Vanderhall. I’m not disappointed by Arcimoto management…….. I’m pissed!
RSchneider
Elio Addict
The FUV is junk. You can try to defend it all you want but if it was so great, then it would have survived. Yet the founder was an idiot but he's gone and they have nothing stopping them from building them in their current facility and selling more of them. This tells me that the current management knows they are junk and doesn't want to deal with the long term costs of things like warranty. Instead, they keep open a mom and pop shop to sell some parts and service the Eugene area. They auctioned off most of what they had, lost the ramp and then a convenient fire took care of a few other items. Now their total expenditure is no different than a local repair shop that is in Anytown USA.
The FUV is such a piece of junk, nobody even wants to touch it. Why take on that disaster. So, the current CEO is MIA and thus just riding out the clock making a paycheck until the place can't pay their bills. If he believed in the company like you and the other fans do, he'd be doing something and communicating with the public. Yet he doesn't. I guess he's another Paul Elio where he decides that when the going gets tough, just hide in the corner and wait until people just move on.
Before you point out the handful of current owners that love it. I can find a batch of current owners of Chevy Vega's too that will claim they are the best too.
I’ve driven a Vega…….it’s junk.
Sonoran Sam
Elio Addict
What do the signs say that the individuals are holding??