What does Oppo think about Elio?

"Makoyouidiot" (makaan12)
02/26/2014 at 00:46 • Filed to: elio

Seems they have over 10k reservations for the things already...not bad.

DISCUSSION (39)

MtrRider > Makoyouidiot
02/26/2014 at 00:54

Kinja'd!!!

10k people really want this thing?

HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles > Makoyouidiot
02/26/2014 at 01:17

i think if I had the cash flow I'd pre-order five of them.

Mercedes Streeter > Makoyouidiot
02/26/2014 at 01:22

It's not bad at all. Although the Elio makes me sad. I wish the Aptera actually made it to the production stage...

themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles
02/26/2014 at 01:58

Or you could put that money down on something like a Fiesta 3-cylinder ecoboost, or the new mazda 2, or even a......*sigh* I have to admit this one......A used miata. A used miata would be the better buy.

Scott Keelan > Makoyouidiot
02/26/2014 at 04:12

I like it but I would want to drive one before I put money down and even then I'd probably wait a while so they can work out the inevitable kinks of the early models.

I think this is the amount of car that is more than adequate for 80% of drivers 90% of the time.

Jayhawk Jake > themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles
02/26/2014 at 08:11

Maybe . This one has that X factor of being a single seat fighter.

The problem is IIRC it's front wheel drive.

WorldRally17 > themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles
02/26/2014 at 08:32

Two of the vehicles you mentioned are more than double the price. The third one you could get for a similar price, but then you wouldn't get a 3 year/36k warranty. Another added bonus is the Elio is registered as a motorcycle, which means motorcycle registration cost and motorcycle insurance cost.

WorldRally17 > Makoyouidiot
02/26/2014 at 08:38

I like this car for a couple reasons:

1) 3 cylinder

2) 5 speed manual

3) manual steering

4) 1250lbs

5) $7k! and 84mpg (so they say atm)

6) It's a motorcycle, so registration and insurance are cheap.

themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > WorldRally17
02/26/2014 at 09:00

Its half the price because its half the car and actually its overpriced because its only 1/4 as good.

WorldRally17 > themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles
02/26/2014 at 09:32

How can you say it's 1/4 as good? They don't even have the engine for it made yet and I doubt you've seen or driven it. There are no other cars out there that can get anywhere close to 84mpg for that price, new or used.

themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > WorldRally17
02/26/2014 at 09:49

I can tell just by looking at it. Its like every other car they've ever made like this. Looks good on paper, but you don't really want to own one.

JEM > WorldRally17
02/26/2014 at 09:56

Exactly.

JEM > MtrRider
02/26/2014 at 09:56

Yep, and I'm one of them!

JEM > Makoyouidiot
02/26/2014 at 09:58

I'm one of those 10K! Pretty excited for this thing. I commute 80 miles a day and already have a motorcycle license, this thing seems perfect.

Also, it's weird. I love weird.

WorldRally17 > themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles
02/26/2014 at 10:45

Being that I've attended development meetings for this car I can tell you that there is a significant amount of work going into making sure this is a quality car. There is always a possibility that it could fail miserably, but why would you so quickly dismiss something that you really don't know much about? On paper it might look like many other vehicles that have tried to take this same route, but you know nothing about the people that are behind making this car a reality and exactly how much engineering is going into the vehicle. There were hundreds of car companies in the US in the early 1900s and most of them failed, but some didn't. Just because a lot of similar vehicles have failed in the past doesn't mean this one will too.

I personally want to see this thing succeed because I like the fact that you can get great gas mileage only using an ICE when everybody else is trying complicated hybrid systems or full electric, fuel cells, etc. It's a simple car that's engineered and built in the US and it's another car I can get with a manual transmission :)

Don't judge a book by it's cover.

Makoyouidiot > JEM
02/26/2014 at 11:02

I also love weird, and I think it's pretty cool. Not as cool looking as a Morgan 3 Wheeler or an Aptera...but that price...awesome.

Makoyouidiot > WorldRally17
02/26/2014 at 11:03

All very good things!

JEM > Makoyouidiot
02/26/2014 at 11:04

Oh nowhere near as cool, but yeah, nowhere near the price either!

I'm already wondering how well this would take to mods. First thing I'd do is take the black plastic wheel skirts off. Then maybe think about fitting a fatter rear tire. Intake? Exhaust? Turbo?

themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > WorldRally17
02/26/2014 at 11:26

I'm sure the fisker karma looked great in development meetings too. And as a pototype. So I'll throw the phrase back at you - don't judge it by its cover.

It makes the most sense to be pessimistic about these cars. The track record for success is bad and most owners end up high and dry when they go under. I wish them the best but I know better than to get hyped over it.

Makoyouidiot > Scott Keelan
02/26/2014 at 11:41

You mean we all don't need 5 ton 9 seat 8x8 v16 quad turbo AMG M division trucks??? Pshaw

Makoyouidiot > Mercedes Streeter
02/26/2014 at 11:41

Agreed

Makoyouidiot > HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles
02/26/2014 at 11:43

I'd buy a pair and call them my running shoes

Makoyouidiot > themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles
02/26/2014 at 11:44

But those aren't nearly as cool!

Makoyouidiot > MtrRider
02/26/2014 at 11:45

I'd imagine a lot more want it but aren't ready to commit yet

WorldRally17 > themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles
02/26/2014 at 11:47

I think the fact that there are already 10k reservations shows that this has a better chance of success than the Fisker, who only sold 1,600 in the US during the entire production run. The market for this car is much larger than a $100k+ hybrid sedan, so as long as they keep getting funding for development I think it has potential. I'm not saying that it's a done deal, but I can see the potential.

themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > Makoyouidiot
02/26/2014 at 11:48

The elio is cool in the same way a really well done kit car is cool. Like 5 people will agree and the rest will just look at you like you're a simpleton.

Makoyouidiot > JEM
02/26/2014 at 11:50

Turbooooooo

themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > WorldRally17
02/26/2014 at 11:51

The questions I have are

1) how many will actually buy it? Not just reserve it but buy it.

2) will demand continue?

Lots of cars throughout history have had tons of reservations and even had a decent first year. Like the Yugo. If this does make it to market, I would expect yugo-like sales.

Makoyouidiot > themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles
02/26/2014 at 11:54

Cool is cool. Next to this thing, the average econobox is just dull.

WorldRally17 > themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles
02/26/2014 at 12:03

I know that they have both refundable and non-refundable reservations. I don't know what the exact ratio is between the two, but I do know that when they first introduced the option for a refundable reservation, the number of reservations jumped significantly and a good majority of those new reservations were actually non-refundable.

themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > WorldRally17
02/26/2014 at 12:35

Fisker karma had over 3000 reservations. Reservations =\= sales.

themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > Makoyouidiot
02/26/2014 at 12:36

It looks like a Tesla roadster front end on a Prius that got caught in a vice. Meh.

WorldRally17 > themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles
02/26/2014 at 12:51

Fisker's problems weren't necessarily that they couldn't sell cars though, it was that they couldn't make them. Between not having enough money and not having a battery supplier, they couldn't exactly keep themselves going. If you look at worldwide sales, they sold over 1,800 cars in less than 6 months. Production stopped 6 months later, so total sales would have been higher. So was the lack of sales really due to the fact that people didn't want the car, or that they couldn't get one?

themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > WorldRally17
02/26/2014 at 13:01

It was quality issues hurting sales combined with a hyped launch that kept getting delayed. They also used a lot of existing suppliers save for some of the hybrid bits. Its not identical, but what I'm getting at is Elio is currently in a position many other cars have been in over the years. Almost all of them failed and the few that succeeded had some major backing behind them. All I'm saying is - I see nothing here to get hyped over. I see another automaker promising the moon but failing to deliver.

Makoyouidiot > themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles
02/26/2014 at 13:10

Your opinion is your own, I suppose.

themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > Makoyouidiot
02/26/2014 at 13:34

Ask worldrally17 - my opinions are actually fact. I haven't been wrong since February of 2006.

Makoyouidiot > themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles
02/26/2014 at 13:44

Ahh. Now I want to know what you were wrong about

themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles > Makoyouidiot
02/27/2014 at 00:40

I told myself I was going to buy a porsche 924 that was for sale in my neighborhood. That didn't happen. Not even close. I ended up with a van.

Makoyouidiot > themanwithsauce - has as many vehicles as job titles
02/27/2014 at 10:43

Aww.