Galt's Gulch

Three-wheel $6,800 car gears for 2015 US launch - Yahoo News

Posted by $ nickursis 12 years, 5 months ago to Business
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Now this is something a 20th Century Motors fan could get into.
SOURCE URL: http://news.yahoo.com/three-wheel-6-800-car-gears-2015-us-193306020.html

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  • Posted by ObjectiveAnalyst 12 years, 5 months ago
    It is not for me, but choice is freedom! Around here we have many gravel trains. I have seen what happens when a small car tangles with one and it isn't pretty. Of course a few years back there was a pickup truck involved in an accident with a whitetail deer that went through the windshield and was fatal for the driver and deer. It happens... However, it could be great for city driving and who doesn't want to save money on fuel? I bet it is fun to drive. I wonder about the insurance costs though...
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    • Posted by $ nickursis 12 years, 5 months ago
      That is the real truth of it. It isn't for everyone, and there are all valid concerns about safety and survivability. That is why I would want a close look at what it is they think will provide the safety factor. I am sure it involves a full cocoon of airbags. I was hoping to find somewhere to see a hard copy of it.
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  • Posted by $ rockymountainpirate 12 years, 5 months ago
    I like the price and the car is cute. Like the Smart Car, I just see this thing getting sucked under the drivers of a semi at highway speeds. Maybe if you're just driving on city streets it would be OK.
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    • Posted by khalling 12 years, 5 months ago
      Its not for Montana - I can just see a moose or buffalo winning on the road
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      • Posted by $ rockymountainpirate 12 years, 5 months ago
        You should see what an Elk can do to a big SUV and the people inside it. This thing would just be a wheeled coffin up here.
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        • Posted by $ nickursis 12 years, 5 months ago
          Well, I drive the little Ford Fiesta in Oregon Bigfoot country. I have not tousseled with a BF yet, but I did have a large buck come whipping out of the brush a full speed. I backed off gas, pressed brake and kissed his butt, he kicked out my grill, but that was only damage beyond his sore butt. It is exactly that reason I drive very cautiously, in dark 1/3 of a year, and have covered about 300K miles in 17 years at my job, with only 2 near misses from animals (plus a 50% hit factor on small rodents, they are way to hard to miss cleanly). The design is actually fairly good for animal avoidance, it is a small profile, and an animal not hit at 0 angle on the bow, will probably slide off, vice getting impaled. The exposed suspension may be a little trickier. But animals are always a risk, and bigger just means more parts to pull deer or moose bit out of. I have a Dodge Ram 3500 dually for horse haulin, and we have yet to encounter anything with it, but my wife is a bigger and better type, until you go to fill it up. You have to be willing to trade off and develop better skills and methods to avoid.
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  • Posted by Hiraghm 12 years, 5 months ago
    So we have Vietnam II in Iraq, now we have Detroit II in Louisiana. Back to the 70s...

    Joy.
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    • Posted by $ nickursis 12 years, 5 months ago
      Well, Detroit I haven't been exactly an overwhelming success. I prefer someone who is actually concerned about his customers, as well as making a buck, not just making a buck.
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      • Posted by Hiraghm 12 years, 5 months ago
        By Detroit II I mean what was done to the U.S. auto industry in the 1970s.

        Everyone's oohing and ahhing this rolling turdmobile.

        We've recently had two gas price spikes; in 2007 it reached $4/gallon, and now hovers around $3.

        In the 70s we had two gas price spikes, one where the price went nuts (to the point where gas was unobtainable in some places), and then after remained ridiculously high.

        In the 70s, in a fit of insanity, Americans turned their backs on large, safe, powerful, beautiful, *comfortable* (particularly for long-distance travel, an important point) vehicles in favor of cramped, ugly, cheap rattletraps.

        Why? Because... gas prices. They learned to love the Japanese crapmobiles, vehicles designed to travel the goat trails of Europe... and eventually Detroit got a reputation for making crappy cars, not because of the luxury yachts they once made, but because in hurry-up mode they tried to compete with the foreign peddle cars, which they couldn't compete with because the manufacturers were being subsidized by their government, for the very purpose of breaking the U.S. auto industry.

        So they gave up quality for... nothing.

        Now this ugly little golf cart comes out... ooh, 84 mpg... Safety be damned, comfort be damned, taste be damned...

        And there's only a market for it because of the brainwashing done during and since the 70s.

        You want a peddle car? How about a Nash Metropolitan?
        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nash_Metro...

        It got between 30-40 mpg, sat two, had a convertible model, handled well... in the 1950s.
        And it was cute, rather than ugly.
        But, in the 1950s, it was marketed as a 2nd car for the family, a backup vehicle, as it were. Because we had not yet been brainwashed against real cars.

        But the brainwashing never really took... real cars got remodeled and relabeled "SUV".
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  • Posted by $ WillH 12 years, 5 months ago
    I like it. I will be due a new car here in a few years, and this will figure into my plans. Right now my car averages about 40 mpg. This might be my next one, assuming the reliability of the design. It will take more research as 3 cyl. motor are naturally unstable.
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    • Posted by $ nickursis 12 years, 5 months ago
      I have had some concerns about that, but if you talk to someone who owned Geo Metros (they were the one cheap small car success in the late 90's) they swear by them, one guy I talked to about this car last night told me he had a Metro, put 150K on it, killed the motor, go a used motor from Japan with 30K on it for 600.00, and put another 150K on it, getting 48 mpg out of it, and got stopped on the long incline road into LA doing 100 mph in it, and the cop was to embarrassed to ticket him, he just laughed and told him to slow it down. He said the 3 banger was actually really responsive and smooth, which I thought was amazing, but there are Geo fanatics out there who still run the little buggers.
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      • Posted by $ WillH 12 years, 5 months ago
        I have owned 3 Metros myself due to the abnormally high mpg. The biggest thing with Metros is they tent to eat exhaust valves. It's one of the problems with a 3 cylinder. The 4 cylinder "big block" Metro never had that issue. Companies like 3Tech have created hardened valves that have solved the issue. There is no doubt a 3 cylinder can be made stable, it's just a question of is this one? Time will tell.
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  • Posted by richrobinson 12 years, 5 months ago
    I have often wondered why someone didn't make a "commuter" car. One that is small but gets great gas mileage. Sort of like putting a frame around a motorcycle. I hope this is a success.
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  • Posted by $ nickursis 12 years, 5 months ago
    The appeal is someone leveraged current technology to build a car to fit a perceived need. It is a 3 wheeled, 3 cylinder engined vehicle, with the interior of a car, 86 MPG hwy, 49 mpg city, small, 2 passengers 1 front, 1 back, and costs 6800.00. They anticipate a 5 star crash rating, on top of it all. An engineer entrepreneur saw a need, hates the idea of the US sending money overseas for oil, and believed people would buy it. I find that very appealing from both a driver perspective, and the fact someone did something because they believed in it. They are going to use a shuttered GM factory in Shreveport, La., to build in, and provide 1500 jobs. All in all, I think it is a really good move.
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    • Posted by Commander 12 years, 5 months ago
      Even with it's apparent appeal, "He also plans to speak with major automakers, including Chrysler, about possible partnerships". Chrysler was just purchased by Fiat. Fiat may provide the "culture" of enthusiasm to really launch this product.
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      • Posted by $ nickursis 12 years, 5 months ago
        Very true, FIAT has a very long time experience with the small mini car market in Europe, and I would think they would understand it's virtues. The real block will be the American paradigm of "need big to be safe". I am hoping design strength can sell as well as bulk strength.
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    • Posted by khalling 12 years, 5 months ago
      I liked the building a new business angle. And the gas milage but at some point it 's obvious the smaller you are the better the gas milage. They did say top crash rating but I can guess who'll likely win in a crash between the driver of the three wheeler and a suburban. People are clearly enthusiastic about it and I wish the company much good business. A new American car company is a good thing



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      • Posted by $ nickursis 12 years, 5 months ago
        It is nice to see someone try to create a new business, especially when he is not trying to create the whole tech thing at the same time. I hope they succeed. I drive 62 miles each way to work, by myself, so I am quite interested. I have a Ford Fiesta that cost 17K, and gets 41 mpg, but this thing is a large leap. Now just have to see what comes of the crash ratings.
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  • Posted by CircuitGuy 12 years, 5 months ago
    I looked at getting something like that for times when I can't use the bicycle but don't need to take the kids. What a waste for me pull over a thousand pounds of metal around for no reason. I believe I will get some kind of car like this in the near future.
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  • Posted by Hiraghm 12 years, 5 months ago
    How about 93 mpg, seats two?
    http://www.automotive.com/smart/fortwo/2...

    or if 3 wheels are your thing...
    http://can-am.brp.com/spyder/spyder/spyd...
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    • Posted by $ nickursis 12 years, 5 months ago
      I actually thought the Smart car was an option until I saw it has worse milage than a 4 person Fiesta, which is why I went there. They also are very expensive for what you get, and the design seems to be begging to become best fiends with a deer. The Electric version is 28K and goes 80 miles on a charge. Spyder is basically a 3 wheel motorcycle, no cab, and again, is grossly overpriced. That is the real thing about the Elio, it is an enclosed cabin, comfortable looking, high mileage vehicle for 6800.00. That is one reason I was amazed someone came up with this, something that fills a need, at a reasonable cost. I was amazed we can still do this in the US.
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  • Posted by khalling 12 years, 5 months ago
    I 'm curious. Why? The technology isn't anything new. Safety is an issue on the highway. What 's the appeal nick?
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    • Posted by $ nickursis 12 years, 5 months ago
      The appeal is exactly what the designer is trying to meet: a safe, comfortable, small vehicle that gets 2x the gas mileage of anything available, for 1/2 the cost. The only issue they will face is to challenge the American paradigm of needing big vehicles for comfort and safety. If they can sell their concept of comfort and safety to enough people, they will be successful. I don't care what anyone else drives, they can drive an Abrams tank if they feel the need, I just happen to not believe I need it, and this is a good looking alternative that bears further investigation.
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      • Posted by Hiraghm 12 years, 5 months ago
        Bicycles get great gas mileage, are safe, comfortable (if you get the Huffy with the fat seat) and cost far less than half the cost of a Mercedes.

        We need big vehicles for comfort and safety.


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        • Posted by $ nickursis 12 years, 5 months ago
          You mean, you need big vehicles for comfort and safety right? I don't need a big vehicle except to pull a horse trailer.
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          • Posted by Hiraghm 12 years, 5 months ago
            No, anyone needs big vehicles for comfort and safety... if they want comfort and safety.

            You take your 3-wheel peddlecar from Des Moines to Dallas, and then take a 1976 Chrysler New Yorker Brougham... the Chrysler will be more comfortable. Then tell me which one is going to turn into a can of spam if it hits a tree.

            Oh, you don't plan on driving that far? THAT is the effect of the invasion of Japan, Inc in the 70s. Americans used to travel by car all over the country. You want to control people, isolate them, get them thinking anyplace out-of-town is long-distance, so they either don't travel or take pubic transportation... take away the big comfortable, safe automobile and its related paradigm.

            You need a big vehicle for comfort and safety.
            Otherwise, get a bike. Zero gas mileage.

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            • Posted by khalling 12 years, 5 months ago
              I completely agree. I see the advantages of this car much like I would rate a scooter I guess you're better off in the elements, but your center of gravity is lower.
              There's definitely a market for them, but I'm with you-urban dwellers who have never driven across country before. it's like european thinking (no offense intended nick and will).
              I checked out the toyota competition and their concept "car" it really looks like a covered motorcycle. probably makes sense for short commutes. it is all about tapping into you. Your smart devices and "reading" your emotions-whatever that means. also it can sense which direction to go by how you move. sort of takes the driving out of driving. my husband is a big fan of the pod concept. I don't know what they call it, but basically your vehicle hovers over the road and is electronically talking to everything: the road, other vehicles etc. so let's take you des moines (my son has a "Des Moines, Hell yes! teeshirt)to dallas example. the vehicle is travelling the most efficient speed etc. and as it approaches other vehicles, it may connect with them to cover large distances as a way to reduce wind speed, increase fuel economy etc. that's just part of how it works, but basically you're not driving anymore. govts still don't like the idea because it's more private in concept than public-mass transit. There is something uniquely american about driving all over the country. and people from all over the world enjoy flying to the US and renting a car and touring the west, for example. HTis car just seems so foreign to me. just a personal opinion
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          • Posted by Hiraghm 12 years, 5 months ago
            No, everyone who wants to travel comfortably and safely does.
            Drive your 3-wheeler from Des Moines to Dallas, and a 1976 Chrysler New Yorker Brougham. Then tell me which is more comfortable. And which one becomes a can of spam when you hit a tree.

            But, if *you* don't need comfort of safety, get a bike. Zero gas mileage, a few dollars for a fat gel seat, and cheap.
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