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Kit Car

Doctorbar

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If Elio was offered as a kit car I would buy one today. With all of the research, laws changed, deals with manufacturers it's ready and I am sure they would like their efforts not to go to waste. Does anyone out there know how to find out where the tooling, molds, drawings, contact personnel are? This would make an excellent employee owned business just like Rotorway.
 

LGilbert

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Manufacturing an Elio kit would involve actually creating a tested/proven car. This was never finished. The original P3 was a golf cart quality, flimsy, flexible frame that would have failed upon the first deep pothole. The P4/P5 were unibody and not applicable to a kit unless it was assembled at the factory. Add the exterior molds, all of the suspension parts, the bespoken motor and you have the same requirements for a factory as producing the assembled car, except the final assembly. Elio spent 190,000,000$ and failed to produce a single street capable specimen in eight years. There are better kits to buy.
 

Gaylord

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I am still hanging on. I often think there were a lot of political roadblocks that should not have been there. We may luck out if gas prices increase another dollar or two. I predict $4 by the summer and return to $5 by the fall.
 

BaldGuy

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I do not think the kit car would mesh with what Paul wanted to prove by building the car. He wanted to prove it could be built in North America (hinted USA), employ lots of workers and make a profit.

Maybe if the kits was made in North America the '4 must haves' could be met. IDK. The safety one might also be in question.

https://www.eliomotors.com/features/#the-4-musts
 

AriLea

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Manufacturing an Elio kit would involve actually creating a tested/proven car. This was never finished. The original P3 was a golf cart quality, flimsy, flexible frame that would have failed upon the first deep pothole. The P4/P5 were unibody and not applicable to a kit unless it was assembled at the factory. Add the exterior molds, all of the suspension parts, the bespoken motor and you have the same requirements for a factory as producing the assembled car, except the final assembly. Elio spent 190,000,000$ and failed to produce a single street capable specimen in eight years. There are better kits to buy.
I agree mostly. But the requirements of a Kit car were met with the P3, which requirements are actually near the golf-cart level.
A P5 however, yes, this is volume production stuff.

It would be very easy to put out a kit of the P3 tech, if it would sell at the 40kusd level. BlackJack-Zero already did something similar, but open topped. His BlackJack-Guzzi is even better. But the guy retired or something, they ain't saying more than that.

You can see all the parts laid out in the website, and can build your own if you really wanted to get the custom machine work done.

But few people here are interested in a $40k-$60K P3 kit (some ARE). We wanted a $10k P5.

Vanderhall is appropriating the name by offering the Venice Blackjack at around $26K in the US, CA.
 
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AriLea

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I went by the local dealer in AZ who sells the Vanderhall, see below. The owner verified for me that the Venice is $25,950 USD(correction: This is the Blackjack price), the one below. He also had a white one on hand.
It seems smaller in person. In fact, it is very lightly built and seems a lot like a double wide lay-back-lawn-chair with wheels. Absolutely no crash protection at all. If you get hit or hit something, it might fold-up like an accordion. But maybe it is too light for that. A 5MPH direct hit with something solid will be a 'total' I would guess.
The seller says it's a motorcycle and it is way overreach to suggest it has any more protection than that. No way consider it an autocycle at all. He is honest about that.

But, He also says he gets Slingshot trade-ins. Everyone says the Venice handles much better and safer in than the Slingshot.
I've seen the 'shot' and it has as much crash protection as an original VW Dunebuggy, which is to say basically nothing. The Vanderhalls have even less. All Vanderhall models were there at the shop.
So the Venice will let you drive safer in any weather, and you really better do that.
So NO, do not commute to work in it, wear a helmet and maybe a flack jacket too.
My wife would never let me drive this, not ever. As for me, just for fun, yup I absolutely would, if only on the weekend and away from heavy traffic. Given my age and health, it would be safer than a motorcycle for me.

Also this gives me more context for the Blackjack Guzzi. They do look like fairly direct equivalents.

I sat in a Reliant Robin here in the US. It had a lot more protection for about the same sized vehicle. But the handling? Top Gear aside, no Reliant owner dives his Robin irresponsibly. And they avoid any crowded US freeways if they can.

Added: I was told it gets around 40mpg.
Heck my 2020-Corolla gets that while I'm driving around 80MPH.
20210601_162107_HDR.jpg

The Top Gear test
 
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