Elio Motors Inc. (ELIO)

[JohnPainter]

While some of the information you're referencing is accurate, you're portrayal of the information is less than accurate.

Elio Motors does not yet take "deposits", they do however take "reservations" for a spot in line, and a reduction in the final cost of the vehicle, if they go into production, this is comparable to Kickstarter. Elio Motors offers both refundable "want in" and non-refundable "all in" reservations from $100, $250, $500 and $1000. This is what their refundable reservation agreement says that one must electronically sign if they choose to make a reseration. https://www.eliomotors.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/REFUNDABLE-RESERVATION-AGREEMENT.pdf

Elio Motors will use some of the manufacturing equipment (which they purchased) in the former GM plant in Shreveport that they lease from Industrial Realty Group. However their production partner Comau, who was hired by Elio Motors to inventory and sell excess equipment, will also install new equipment needed for both finishing the engine (the engines will be cast by Nemak) and vehicle assembly in Shreveport.

Paul Elio was very clear, in his meeting with Caddo Parish Commissioners and public in January 2015 that the reason for delays has been funding, and it has been his fault for misjudging when they would gain access to needed capital. I think his candor as a CEO struggling to get his company's vehicle to market is rare, most CEO's would not be so forthright. The following is a fair and balanced report from KSLA's Victoria Shirley http://www.ksla.com/story/28037171/ksla-news-12-investigation-elio-could-face-fines-with-further-production-delays The raw interview footage is insightful, I think, into Elio's integrity and obvious lack of charisma such as Elon Musks.

The initial price Elio Motors believed they could sell their vehicle in 2010 was $5,995, it was called the Trikke. This was referenced in a City of Pontiac Michigan's general employees retirement system meeting Elio Motors sought funding from at the time. http://www.pontiac.mi.us/document_center/gers021010spec.pdf
By 2012 they believed they would need to sell the vehicle for $7,200 however by the time they began taking reservations they had worked their way to $6,800MSRP where it remains today. In a January 2015 interview with Jalopnik Paul Elio said they were within $500 of the target MSRP and continuing to work their way to that goal and believed they could get there, that figure is also referenced in their August 2015 filing for Regulation A+ with the SEC.

Elio Motors has built with their partner Technosports Creative five prototypes (technically they are mules) called P1,P2,P3,P4 and the last prototype P5, though P! actually became P2 when they added body panels to it.

Other than three wheels, there's nothing similar about Elio Motors vehicle and Apera's or the company's business models. Aptera as a company was all over the place in terms of business model whether they were limited or mass production, whether they were EV or ICE, whether they sat two or more passengers, etc, etc, etc. Elio Motors has remained laser focused on what they are; safe, fuel efficient, low cost, American made, mass production, commuting.

It is accurate if Elio Motors does not begin hiring employees in Shreveport this year they will be fined by RACER Trust $5000 for each automotive employee position they do not fill from the 1,500 employees they agreed to hire. Their Board member and "angel investor" Stuart Lichter who owns Industrial Realty Group (IRG) and who's company actually holds the lease on the entire Shreveport plant (he sublets to Elio Motors), will experience a significant balloon in the lease from the current $25,000/mo nearly doubling to $257,000/yr. Elio Motors also disclosed in their SEC filing last August, with updates as required, other liabilities including an interest rate hike on a loan from a past missed deadline.

I would agree Elio Motors has not gotten into production at the times they estimated they would, and Paul Elio has explained why and accepted full responsibility for that. Otherwise it is not accurate they have missed every deadline, e.g. they completed their engine on schedule though they did not have a big public showing as planned, they surpassed their Reg A+ goal a month ahead of schedule, they recently completed the frame and engine box ahead of schedule, etc, etc. Sadly, Elio Motors has learned from their mistakes of providing too much information (and some very vocal and caustic comments from the public), and over the past year have started doing what most other manufacturers do...keep tight lipped until something is actually finished.

All this information is very public if one does their due diligence.

While there's obviously plenty of risk for anyone attempting to start a new mass production vehicle company, there are no knives and certainly at this point nothing inevitable other than a small company making one hell of run to try and get what I think, as a reservation holder, as a very worthy product to market.