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What Is Elio Stock Trading For Today?

RSchneider

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“ I hope Elio will not go down this path.“

I’d be happy with any path.
I can't imagine that people would want Elio to be into predatory lending and using that to make the numbers look better. I can't imagine anyone would want to see the price of gas double just to make Elio look better and get to production faster. Elio is to be doing good, not planning on disasters and people that are not too bright for their product to get to market. We can't have 20% car loans and $8 gal for gas just to make Elio get to market faster. That's just selfish and literally would cost us all in many other ways.
 

Rob Croson

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I wonder if the plan is for EM (or some affiliated financing company) to retain the title of the vehicle, with the credit card company acting as a pass-through for the funds. The credit company is never owed any more than the monthly charged balance on the card, and just passes through double the amount charged for gas. In this manner the credit card company doesn't take on the debt of the car, and then doesn't get to charge default interest rates on the balance owed on the car. The credit company makes money on the card the exact same as they do with any other credit card: transaction fees and interest on purchases. The auto financing company takes the risk of the buyer defaulting on the auto loan, not the card company.

This would obviously have to be some really detailed relationship between the companies involved. It would be suicide for EM to allow the credit companies to take the debt and then engage in their normal predatory practices with the Elio buyers.
 

Sailor Dog

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If it is set up like a credit card, they'd just be charged the minimum fee (let's call it $100) if they didn't purchase the required $50 a month in gas. If they pay off the credit card each month, there would be no interest. That's part of the card's deal. However, nobody mentioned what the default APR is. Perhaps it's 20% and the card company is just hoping that one in 4 people continually doesn't pay the thing off each month which would give them an Average of 5% on the loans... plus the 3% they get from all fuel transactions that the gas station would have to pay.

Simple, yes?
That's how it works...part of what some call ELIO Marketing but a clear & simple way to promote the ELIO's low price coupled with ULTRA HI mpg. All on a ELIO Visa Card perhaps.... Simple. A minimum gas charge, say $50 x 3 ($100 minimum on a 0% card going to principal so a $10,000 ELIO is paid off in just over 8 years if you hardly drive it) in my universe is balanced out by all the commuters and solo travelers doing 15,000 - 50,000 + miles a year...paying off the ELIO @ 0% in only a few years or going off the rails @ 29% interest paying for everyone else's 0%...just how Visa cards work :(

As far as autocycle legislation is concerned, it's virtually a non issue between the States & Fed per today's momentum...spearheaded is I believe is the word today.
 
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Elio Amazed

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That's how it works...part of what some call ELIO Marketing but a clear & simple way to promote the ELIO's low price coupled with ultrahigh mpg. All on a ELIO Visa Card perhaps.... Simple. A minimum gas charge say $50 x 3 in my universe.

As far as autocycle legislation is concerned, it's virtually a non issue between the States & Fed per today's momentum.
Yes, non-issue as in the states' designation of "autocycle"...
Doesn't mean much of anything other than no helmet or endorsement required.

The states calling the Elio an "autocycle" does not allow the states...
To require vehicle safety requirements that differ from existing Federal MC requirements.

That being said, EM deserves huge credit and appreciation...
For the affect that those state designations and exemptions have had...
On the endorsement and helmet requirements.
 

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RSchneider

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That's how it works...part of what some call ELIO Marketing but a clear & simple way to promote the ELIO's low price coupled with ULTRA HI mpg. All on a ELIO Visa Card perhaps.... Simple. A minimum gas charge, say $50 x 3 ($100 minimum on a 0% card going to principal so a $10,000 ELIO is paid off in just over 8 years if you hardly drive it) in my universe is balanced out by all the commuters and solo travelers doing 15,000 - 50,000 + miles a year...paying off the ELIO @ 0% in only a few years or going off the rails @ 29% interest paying for everyone else's 0%...just how Visa cards work :(

As far as autocycle legislation is concerned, it's virtually a non issue between the States & Fed per today's momentum...spearheaded is I believe is the word today.
So you are thinking that banks will loan out $10K for 8 years and charge 0% APR. There's no incentive for banks to do that because they are not in the business of losing money and that plan would have them losing lots of it. This is banking 101 and there's no way Elio has figured out a scheme to get you an Elio for 0% APR unless you pay it off in the first month.
 

Ty

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Like I said, I factored all that in. I understand the theory and the process.
It's all fun and games on paper until you throw in the human element.

People will cheat (themselves in reality) because they can.
And when the big (for many of them) bill comes at the end of the month...
They'll be scrambling and acting surprised.

"Oops, I forgot it was that close to the end of the month!
OMG, whatever shall we do now?"

Granted, for some individuals, it will be a great opportunity that they otherwise may not have had.
For others, it could very well set them up for additional financial strain.

Let's not forget that the Elio is not a family car. It's a commuter vehicle. It's an "and" vehicle.
You can't haul 3 kids and a dog around in an Elio. Many times budgets are tight in full households.
Some families can't afford two vehicles. Many can't afford a new vehicle no matter what it costs.
I own two '03 Dodge Caravans with bodies in immaculate shape. I paid $1700 and $1600.
Not great gas mileage, but they'd haul a family. Some simply can't play the long game.

I think it's worth trying if done well. It's not like it'll be a bad thing for the vast majority of participants.
I'm simply pointing out that it's not necessarily the magic bullet that will make the conversion rate soar.

Don't forget people who are just starting off whether it be college students or simply kids moving out of their parent's home. Some don't have the best credit and being able to get a car via the credit card may be just what they need to survive. For every successful used car purchase, there are probably several that end up costing a lot in maintenance and unexpected failures. Many would probably love to be in a car they perceive as thrifty and reliable (Elio will get a bye for a while on reliability and if they prove reliable, could become quite popular)
 

RSchneider

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Don't forget people who are just starting off whether it be college students or simply kids moving out of their parent's home. Some don't have the best credit and being able to get a car via the credit card may be just what they need to survive. For every successful used car purchase, there are probably several that end up costing a lot in maintenance and unexpected failures. Many would probably love to be in a car they perceive as thrifty and reliable (Elio will get a bye for a while on reliability and if they prove reliable, could become quite popular)
How about this. Elio has no history of reliability. So, that will not be available for a few years after the targeted 2019 production start. Even at that, it'll be a year before the non reservation holders can buy one. Looking at today and the Elio official timeline, they can't crank out a reservation holder car until August 1, 2019 (the 76 week Elio timeline in the SEC filing). So a customer version will not appear for a year or August 2020.

Since an Elio with the targeted price a base model will cost you $8840 out the door with no license. Right now I can buy a 2016 Ford Fiesta for $8870 (includes tax and paperwork processing but no destination since it's used). It's a 50K mile car that is 2 years old. When I check a 2016 Fiesta is pretty good on reliability. By the time that the Elio will get out to non reservation holders, a brand new 2018 Fiesta will be 2 years old and most likely the same price. What does a person pick? A 4 door car with a trunk made by Ford or a new 2 passenger car with very limited space from a unknown.

I would not think that a 50k mile car that is 2 years old would be a clunker or needing lots of maintenance. If I was willing to go to a 2014 model, I can find a CPO version for $9K that has 39K on it. It comes with a 1 year warranty on top of the remaining factory one. Plus I know that there are plenty of Ford dealers around as opposed to hoping that I'm in an area where Elio is for warranty and service.

Also, EZ credit = high APR. If you wonder what those payday lending guys do, then here you go:
http://www.kansascity.com/news/business/article193241289.html
 
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