# Economics,Conservering getting the most....



## Smitty901 (Nov 16, 2012)

Big part of prepping is all 3 and more making the best use of what we have. Gas will be harder and harder to afford SHTF or not.
Pre-SHTF it will likely be more expensive. My stomach turn every time I hear go green stuff, most of those folks are just liberal hacks IMO.
Hybrid cars do not pay off if you do the long term math even the small ones. I am not getting rid of my normal cars but I will now conserve and have a vehicle that will give me up to about 84 MPG.
I have jumped in got on the ELIO band wagon I have put the cash down and in line for one. Check it out spread the word.
An American 2 person ride that makes sense.

Elio Motors: Ultra High Mileage Vehicle


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## Ripon (Dec 22, 2012)

I've been following the Elio for some time. As it goes I'm not sure it's for me, but I like the concept. To be honest I'm considering the Fiat 500 e which is only available in CA where I still have an address and think I can qualify. Electric cars are of interest to me as many employers are silly enough to "let" their employees plug in. It's like getting free Gas. A month or so ago I enjoyed lecturing my cadets on retirement saving and not just counting on their defined benefits for the job. There was some push back by a 20 year old who'd be 21 on graduation day. So I had him look up gasoline 50 years ago, $.24 a gallon vs $3.69 right now. Do the math forward 50 years. Try $55 a gallon. Makes saving for retirement a little more important don't you think?



Smitty901 said:


> Big part of prepping is all 3 and more making the best use of what we have. Gas will be harder and harder to afford SHTF or not.
> Pre-SHTF it will likely be more expensive. My stomach turn every time I hear go green stuff, most of those folks are just liberal hacks IMO.
> Hybrid cars do not pay off if you do the long term math even the small ones. I am not getting rid of my normal cars but I will now conserve and have a vehicle that will give me up to about 84 MPG.
> I have jumped in got on the ELIO band wagon I have put the cash down and in line for one. Check it out spread the word.
> ...


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## Slippy (Nov 14, 2013)

If they made one with a truck style bed, I would look into it for running errands around town and working on my place. Very interesting concept. Thanks for the info.


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## Ripon (Dec 22, 2012)

That would be cool. The only electric thing close was a Toyota Rav with a tesla motor but they already killed it and it was $50k



Slippy said:


> If they made one with a truck style bed, I would look into it for running errands around town and working on my place. Very interesting concept. Thanks for the info.


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## Camel923 (Aug 13, 2014)

Nice concept. Poor life,large size and instability of the battery and the need for a 24 hour recharge after 90 miles has convinced me that electric cars are not a viable option for me at this time. Hybrids do under perform economically and bring many of the problems electric cars do. High mileage with gas/ diesel works best for my needs. I would love to hear how this works for you Smitty over the next year or so. Nothing like field testing to see how things preform. Hope you new vehicle is everything you hoped it would be and more.


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## PalmettoTree (Jun 8, 2013)

It seems to me once the civil rights generation is gone some of this crap will stop or not. Then we will have proof of what we already know. I know it will not stop.


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## Jeep (Aug 5, 2014)

I'm only going to stress this one time, its for you to do. My wife got on the coupon bandwagon and did some things through Facebook. We don't do savings like the show does, but paying 80 dollars for 170.00 is a nice day. We do this every week and we spend our free money sometimes on deals. We already need another shelving unit after 5 weeks of deal shopping. It adds up. We don't go for 1k in groceries for 40 bucks like on the show. But we get 2-3 times the amount of other things we will need and pay the diff.


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## Seneca (Nov 16, 2012)

What is the base price? What s the life of the vehicle or how long does it last? in years , what are the estimated maintenance costs over the life of the vehicle? If it turns out the Elio can save you money over a conventional economy vehicle. Then I'd say yes. Often vehicles are marketed on one strength, say fuel economy or horsepower luxury, while other aspects of the vehicle may cost you more than you'd like to spend or be in the shop more than you'd like. 

If we have reached peak oil as some suggest then we have another 100 plus years of fuel left in the ground, so it is not like we will run out of fuel in our lifetimes. I agree wholeheartedly with being economical, my caveat is this often going green is like stepping over a dollar to pick up a dime.


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## Smitty901 (Nov 16, 2012)

The ELIO comes with a 3 year 36K warranty. It is not meant to replace your SUV. It address a need that has not been filled yet. In my case until the snow flys I am on the motorcycles 90% of the time. Not for economy but because I want to. When weather just makes it to impractical for the bikes again I seldom need room for more 2.. The ELIO will sit here and anyone that needs to make a run into town can take it. Those of us that do not live in town see the effect of fuel cost a lot more than others. There just is no walk down to the store for us.
For what I expect the Elio to do for us it does not need to be anything more than it is. The Smart car witch I find to be a dumb car sells about 9k a year. I think this thing could top that . There are a few small cars on the market now but now of them really return great mileage for there size and they are way over priced.
It could turn out to be a total fail, Not drinking the cool aid on this, just will to roll the dice. I did not get where I am today by sitting in the back of the class, or being afraid to take a chance . In this case it is a done deal long as they do go into production I am committed. It will turn our to be a cool thing to have, or another addition to the bad idea box either way I am in. I did my research on the Smart car when it came out, At first it looked like it might work , as I dug into it more and more if failed every test. The Elio passed.
CanAm Spider 3 wheeler sells for over 21K it is cool but only gets about 40mpg and no cab. It is a rear wheel drive unlike the Elio that is front wheel drive. The Spiders does not go well in snow. The Elio prototype does. Of course the Spider is a performance motorcycle and the Elio is a ride there and back.
There have been a list of 3 wheel offerings with two in front.
Harley had the TRIHawk bit a head of its time, The Moragn had a HD air cooled engine.
If the ELIO can deliver 50-84 MPG, stay on the road in poor weather it may just have a chance. I am willing to take a chance on a American start up.
I refuse to do anything because it is GREEN.


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## Arklatex (May 24, 2014)

They are in the local news all the time out here. The elio plant is having job fairs and demonstrations often. They are very serious about their product and are providing much needed jobs to Caddo parish. I saw one in person and I can say one thing about them: they are tiny. I'd hate to see one get run over by a truck.


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## Chipper (Dec 22, 2012)

Just pick up a couple of these. Have less than $3500 in the pair. KLR will get 50 plus MPG if I keep the RPM's down. Can go over, around or through just about anything. Can lug the engine down in 4th gear and sneak around almost silent at 25-30 MPH. Yet still run 70-75 mph on the highway.


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## Smitty901 (Nov 16, 2012)

Another interesting part of the ELIO is parts. Except for the frame and body most are off the shelf items already used for other purposes.


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