Financing Elio Motors Development And Production

[outsydthebox]

If EM can provide the tour team with even a single automatic equipped E-series test drive vehicle about 4-5 months out from production they could run a very limited series of test drive events with specific priority given to early reservations holders with reservations which will be built in the first 3 months. More vehicles would of course be helpful, especially a manual transmission to compare to the automatic, however everyone can drive an automatic and many people have concerns about the AMT so that wold be the one to have if there is only a single vehicle.

Based on comments from several members here, who own smart cars with AMT's, I wonder if a "short test drive" might raise more issues that it would dispel. Comments like (IIRC), "It took a while to learn what to do to make it shift smoother." A 3-minute drive might not be enough. As for the reliability of amt's, I don't think that's an issue. I've heard they are pretty reliable.
So...Is the question: "If the AMT doesn't shift as smooth as my caddy, I won't buy the Elio?"

 

[Rickb]

Based on comments from several members here, who own smart cars with AMT's, I wonder if a "short test drive" might raise more issues that it would dispel. Comments like (IIRC), "It took a while to learn what to do to make it shift smoother." A 3-minute drive might not be enough. As for the reliability of amt's, I don't think that's an issue. I've heard they are pretty reliable.
So...Is the question: "If the AMT doesn't shift as smooth as my caddy, I won't buy the Elio?"

What if it shifts smoother than your caddy? LOL Most media folks having experienced short P4 test drives compare it to the handling and overall feel of smaller cars they've driven. It's important to get a fleet of shiny new EP5's out on tour if nothing else an opportunity to ride & not drive. It would also give us the chance to oooh! and aaaw! over the Elgin Dash.

 

[BADBOY]

according to news reports :

"(CNN) -- Maybe the cash-strapped U.S. government should start selling iPads.

According to the latest statement from the U.S. Treasury, the government had an operating cash balance Wednesday of $73.8 billion. That's still a lot of money, but it's less than what Steve Jobs has lying around.

Tech juggernaut Apple had a whopping $76.2 billion in cash and marketable securities at the end of June, according to its last earnings report."

when I heard this report this morning, I couldn't help but think that Apple could be a great financial backer for EM .... with the Skyz company being an Apple partner, having EM go into production could yield significant sales for Apple ....

Hey! You taking my idea? lol Posted that exact thing somewhere.

 

[JEBar]

Hey! You taking my idea? lol Posted that exact thing somewhere.

if that means we think alike, you might want to consider therapy ..

 

[WilliamH]

Just a couple of random thoughts on the "E" series vehicles..........
You have to have the engine line established to have engines to test.
You have to have the "frame" line established to have frames to test.
You need the body panel line established to have panels to put on the frame.
You have to have enough of all the parts to put the "X" number of "E" series units together.
And for the "E" series to be valid for test, they need to come down the line and be assembled like the production cars will be.
For those of you who watch Overhaulin', that means you can't have Chip Foose's "A" team build it and claim it is an engineering version.
You need the welding robots to do their thing and all of the other automation.
Of course I may be wrong, but hand built / assembled by skilled craftsmen is a lot different than assembly line assembled by robots and line workers.
Elio has a ways to go, and getting the plant and line ready is what needs to be done to have those "25" "E" units.

 

[Charlie G]

And for the "E" series to be valid for test, they need to come down the line and be assembled like the production cars will be..

This isn't entirely accurate, at least not from a development standpoint. What you can do is produce hand-made production prototypes to develop your specifications and tolerances.
You're right that they won't be exactly the same as the production model, but what you can say is things like "bolt X at torque Y is able to withstand vibrations under Z conditions sufficient to pass quality control", do that for nearly every part in the car and then you can test it.
You can then work to ensure the components on the assembly line are meeting those specifications and you can have some assurance that the finished product will react similarly under testing.
You can't replace testing the final product entirely, but you can start the process before everything is in place.

 

[WilliamH]

This isn't entirely accurate, at least not from a development standpoint. What you can do is produce hand-made production prototypes to develop your specifications and tolerances.
You're right that they won't be exactly the same as the production model, but what you can say is things like "bolt X at torque Y is able to withstand vibrations under Z conditions sufficient to pass quality control", do that for nearly every part in the car and then you can test it.
You can then work to ensure the components on the assembly line are meeting those specifications and you can have some assurance that the finished product will react similarly under testing.
You can't replace testing the final product entirely, but you can start the process before everything is in place.

The things I would be more concerned about are the welds on the frame which looking at P1 show how critical they will be in crash testing.
The partial frontal will probably just sheer off the suspension on that side. The full side impact should be very interesting. Full frontal and rear will also be interesting. Also do they do both left and right side crash, thinking about only left side door?
Again, just some thoughts since the frame (cage) welds will be so critical.

Can't get rid of my F150 or my Jeep 'cause ranch work, but it will be real nice to have something more economical for some of my runs into town for groceries or just visiting local friends.

 

[Rickb]

The EP5s are the hand built fleet of pre-production prototypes required for testing and necessary for the factory tooling required for a production line built Elio. Please build one EP5 allowing for factory tooling so the first production Elio can actually roll off the production line to be crash tested.

 

[goofyone]

Just a couple of random thoughts on the "E" series vehicles..........
You have to have the engine line established to have engines to test.
You have to have the "frame" line established to have frames to test.
You need the body panel line established to have panels to put on the frame.
You have to have enough of all the parts to put the "X" number of "E" series units together.
And for the "E" series to be valid for test, they need to come down the line and be assembled like the production cars will be.
For those of you who watch Overhaulin', that means you can't have Chip Foose's "A" team build it and claim it is an engineering version.
You need the welding robots to do their thing and all of the other automation.
Of course I may be wrong, but hand built / assembled by skilled craftsmen is a lot different than assembly line assembled by robots and line workers.
Elio has a ways to go, and getting the plant and line ready is what needs to be done to have those "25" "E" units.

This isn't entirely accurate, at least not from a development standpoint. What you can do is produce hand-made production prototypes to develop your specifications and tolerances.
You're right that they won't be exactly the same as the production model, but what you can say is things like "bolt X at torque Y is able to withstand vibrations under Z conditions sufficient to pass quality control", do that for nearly every part in the car and then you can test it.
You can then work to ensure the components on the assembly line are meeting those specifications and you can have some assurance that the finished product will react similarly under testing.
You can't replace testing the final product entirely, but you can start the process before everything is in place.

Vehicle manufacturers build and test hand assembled mules and prototypes all the time so how to do this is in a way which represents the final production model as accurately as possible is well understood in the industry. I am sure IAV has plenty of experience building pre-production engines for in vehicle testing and EM's product engineering partner, Altair, will provide EM's prototype builder, Technosports, with all the specifications they need to produce E-series vehicles which meet industry standards for such vehicles.

 

[John Painter]

Vehicle manufacturers build and test hand assembled mules and prototypes all the time so how to do this is in a way which represents the final production model as accurately as possible is well understood in the industry. I am sure IAV has plenty of experience building pre-production engines for in vehicle testing and EM's product engineering partner, Altair, will provide EM's prototype builder, Technosports, with all the specifications they need to produce E-series vehicles which meet industry standards for such vehicles.

Glad I found this post again, since I've been wondering about an interview at the Arizona State Fair back in October 2013 I had read where Branden Carey mentioned that they actually had 25 prototypes in production at the time. Was he misquoted, or is it possible they actually have a couple dozen P4's stored around somewhere?