It sounds like Elio Motors is having a hard time raising capital to fund development. According to KTBS, Elio has not raised enough money from private investors yet to build the next level of prototype, and is asking for seed money from the Louisiana parish where their plant would be located.
Caddo Parish should be very cautious. While jobs are great to have, it takes many millions of dollars to bring as complex a product to market as an automobile.
Caddo Parish should be very cautious. While jobs are great to have, it takes many millions of dollars to bring as complex a product to market as an automobile.
Chances are unfortunately high that Elio could wind up as another Fisker or VPG (who built cars and the flamed out) or Aptera (who never managed to actually deliver a finished vehicle.)
In the meantime, Elio is taking non-refundable reservations for the vehicle, and selling t-shirts.
I wish Elio luck, this would be a neat vehicle to see on the road, and it might be fun vehicle to drive if done right. But in the current climate, after numerous failures, raising money for a new car company is probably very, very hard.