The Elio Engine

[Devilstower]

If IAV is actually pouring blocks, and has created the mold for the custom Elio engine, that may represent the first physical bit of the car to exist outside of the prototypes. It's a much bigger deal than the trumpeted Pep Boys partnership, and the first thing in a while that actually gives me a warm "this is going to happen" feeling.

 

[Ty]

If IAV is actually pouring blocks, and has created the mold for the custom Elio engine, that may represent the first physical bit of the car to exist outside of the prototypes. It's a much bigger deal than the trumpeted Pep Boys partnership, and the first thing in a while that actually gives me a warm "this is going to happen" feeling.

I know what you mean...

 

[pj rogers]

Ah, so much for off the shelf parts..brand new german engine, new improved Japanese AMT, brand new body panels, can you buy just one windshield wiper?? Dash is custom built, tires are specially made by cooper...the list goes on and on...will there be a extended warranty beyond the 3/36,000 on this drive train...it's one thing to be bragging about how everything is tried and true, proven equipment, and then this???
The tour people are telling everybody the tranny is under a $1000, the destination charge is $750, there will be a dealer prep charge and the prices are fixed..so if you don't like it, go buy another vehicle...and the next elio dealer is 400 miles away and because it is a factory store your exact quote will be shared by all the stores..you have no bargaining power at all...a take it or leave it experience.
Good thing I figured my elio to be about ten grand with an auto, a/c tinted glass and cruise...I can wait till late 2015 or early 2016...but the patience is wearing thin. Still positive it will be built, How about you folks.?

 

[Ty]

Ah, so much for off the shelf parts..brand new german engine, new improved Japanese AMT, brand new body panels, can you buy just one windshield wiper?? Dash is custom built, tires are specially made by cooper...the list goes on and on...will there be a extended warranty beyond the 3/36,000 on this drive train...it's one thing to be bragging about how everything is tried and true, proven equipment, and then this???
The tour people are telling everybody the tranny is under a $1000, the destination charge is $750, there will be a dealer prep charge and the prices are fixed..so if you don't like it, go buy another vehicle...and the next elio dealer is 400 miles away and because it is a factory store your exact quote will be shared by all the stores..you have no bargaining power at all...a take it or leave it experience.
Good thing I figured my elio to be about ten grand with an auto, a/c tinted glass and cruise...I can wait till late 2015 or early 2016...but the patience is wearing thin. Still positive it will be built, How about you folks.?

That take it or leave it experience is looked forward to by many who hate the whole haggling b.s.... How many times does that salesman need to go see the manager anyway? I get it. The longer the customer waits, the more anxious he'll be to finish up the purchase and won't make the best deal... he will be beaten down. Tried and true was in reference to the technology, I believe. There is nothing fancy about the motor. I don't know about the transmission.

 

[Double D in Ohio]

Am I wrong, or is this actual news? I don't think I'd heard before that sample engine blocks have been cast and the molds adjusted to produce essentially a "production" product.

Just got it as an email Yesterday from Elio motors. Double D

 

[Dustoff]

Just got it as an email Yesterday from Elio motors. Double D

View this email in your browser

We live in a world of instant gratification. Rushing to find absolutes where they often don’t exist. And, when anxiously awaiting the arrival of something necessary, needed and game changing, like the Elio, we often forget that things most valuable to our existence take time.

Elio Motors continues to forge ahead with major developments. As noted on the timeline in the Elio Motors Tech Talk v4, (click here) one such development is the prototype kick-off for the engine block and cylinder head.

Elio Motors 3-Cylinder Block Program

IAV Automotive Engineering (click here), the power-train design and development engineering consultancy for Elio Motors, intends to produce engines using a high-pressure die casting process. To achieve this, IAV, together with Grainger & Worral (click here), will use their skilled expertise to design the prototyping process to replicate the design process for mass production.

Step 1: This process begins with the receipt of data from IAV. Best practices of manufacturing will be discussed to achieve the desired program timing and budget. While designing the tooling, IAV’s CAD model is checked for thin wall areas using specialized software. This activity is included in the design for manufacturability activities along with foundry processes including the addition of contraction, adding draft, removing undercuts and adding extra machining stock.

Step 2: As part of tooling, the gating and feeding system is to be designed for the casting. The introduction of the liquid metal into the mold cavity ultimately determines the integrity of the material and hence the functional life of a casting. The feeding system is used to ensure the last liquid metal to solidify is outside the net shape of the desired casting. Depending on the material properties required, chills can be used to enhance the properties of certain areas of the casting. For the 3-cylinder block this will be the cylinder bores and the bolt bosses.

First prototype Elio Motors 3-cylinder block raw casting
A few sample parts are poured and left until solid for the initial casting validation. After this process, the castings are knocked-out and the gating and feeding systems are removed. The castings are dressed with joint lines and any flash is removed. Castings are then heat treated and finally shot blast to clean and improve the appearance.

Step 3: The purpose of this final step of the process is to validate the material integrity and dimensional accuracy of the part. Using a CT scanner, 1 mm image slices are manipulated by a software program into a digital 3D model. This model is then overlaid to IAV’s machine CAD model and reviewed by a metrology engineer. Any deviation from the IAV model is highlighted and reviewed by the project team. This information is then relayed back to IAV via an inspection report.

During the development process, small modifications had to be made for the water jacket and the clamping feature locations for final machining. These were all common items needing detail during the design for manufacturing process.

What’s Next?
As you can see, the first prototype Elio Motors 3–cylinder block has been cast and is in the process of being shipped to IAV in Northville, MI. The next steps will be to take the raw casting and machine all of the specific Elio features.

Using companies like IAV and Grainger & Worral provide leading word-class design for manufacturing processes and features to ensure prototype parts will perform as designed. Stay tuned for an update on the Elio cylinder head in an upcoming Tech Talk.

First prototype Elio Motors 3-cylinder block raw casting -top view

​

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[Neal]

Ah, so much for off the shelf parts..brand new german engine, new improved Japanese AMT, brand new body panels, can you buy just one windshield wiper?? Dash is custom built, tires are specially made by cooper...the list goes on and on...will there be a extended warranty beyond the 3/36,000 on this drive train...it's one thing to be bragging about how everything is tried and true, proven equipment, and then this???
The tour people are telling everybody the tranny is under a $1000, the destination charge is $750, there will be a dealer prep charge and the prices are fixed..so if you don't like it, go buy another vehicle...and the next elio dealer is 400 miles away and because it is a factory store your exact quote will be shared by all the stores..you have no bargaining power at all...a take it or leave it experience.
Good thing I figured my elio to be about ten grand with an auto, a/c tinted glass and cruise...I can wait till late 2015 or early 2016...but the patience is wearing thin. Still positive it will be built, How about you folks.?

You can and do buy only one windshield wiper at a time. In fact, that's all I can find. My Kia requires different size wipers for the drivers and passenger side. Most do these days. The base price is just that, like any other "car". As for the take it or leave it price, I bought a Saturn years ago and that was their sales stategy and was the best car buying experience I have ever had. I left not feeling like I gotten taken because i am not a good negotiator. The price of a car should be the price of the car. You shouldn't have to haggle over it.

 

[jtmarten]

can you buy just one windshield wiper?? .... Dash is custom built ....

Of course you can. Even the refills for my BMWs are sold individually.
Of course the dash pieces are custom designed for Elio. Think before you ask these questions, Mitch. Twenty points higher than me? Thinks a big Geo Metro dash like that will fit in an Elio?

 

[Dreamsinger]

The old NikaSil aluminum bores have come a long way since the ill fated Vega. I'm assuming IAV will be using Plasma Wire Arc Tranfer to coat the bores. That works.

 

[outsydthebox]

Of course you can. Even the refills for my BMWs are sold individually.
Of course the dash pieces are custom designed for Elio. Thinks a big Geo Metro dash like that will fit in an Elio?

I'm not saying that it is, or isn't, but the "gauge cluster/ instrument panel/ gauge pod, in my '94 Metro, sits in front of the driver, and is only about 15" across, and WOULD fit in the Elio. The dashboard could be shaped around it. Later models might be slightly longer, but would also eliminate the cost of designing a new one. Just sayin'