Imagine one of Roush's turbocharged V8s under the hood. Just kidding...
Elio Motors is making a significant step towards finally launching its long-overdue “ultra-high-mileage, low-cost three-wheel Elio vehicle.” The Phoenix-based automaker has signed a memorandum of understanding with Roush, which also owns the Roush Performance tuning division, to provide a new powertrain for the three-wheeler. Initial calculations estimate the new deal will save up to $120 million from research and development activities.
“Purchasing an OEM’s existing powertrain has an enormous impact on the project, it helps both expedite the timeline, and it directly reduces our capital requirement by about $120 million dollars,” Paul Elio, founder and CEO of the project, comments. “This powertrain will also greatly enhance the Elio’s performance by nearly doubling its horsepower while still maintaining class-leading fuel economy at an affordable ultra-low price”.
Elio Motors struggling to cope:
At this point, no technical details about the new engine are available, but Elio Motors claims the new powertrain will push the vehicles’ performance specifications “far beyond prior consumer expectations.” According to the manufacturer, the power will be doubled compared to the original Elio prototypes, which should, naturally, result in a significantly improved acceleration.
In its official press release, Elio Motors explains that Roush engineers will work to integrate the powertrain into an Elio prototype and will begin preliminary testing procedures shortly after that. Even at this very early stage of development and testing, the company claims the new powertrain will enable the vehicle to achieve the promised ultra-high fuel efficiency, despite the substantial increase in performance.
Given the hefty fine from Louisiana’s Motor Vehicles Commission last year, this new contract with Roush should be warmly welcomed. According to previous reports, the financial situation at the company is not bright, as it finished 2016 with only $120,000 cash on-hand and a $24-million deficit.
The original plan of the automaker was to start producing the Elio three-wheeler before the end of this year, but this new move is expected to delay the process.
Source: Elio Motors
PHOENIX, September 27, 2018 — Elio Motors, Inc. (OTCQB: ELIO), developer of the ultra-high-mileage, low-cost three-wheel Elio vehicle, announced that they had entered into a memorandum of understanding with a Fortune 500 OEM, to provide the engine foundation as part of a new powertrain for the Elio vehicle. Elio currently projects that the new powertrain will result in $120 million in research and development cost savings. The company is working with the engineering team at Roush to develop a new Elio prototype employing the OEM powertrain.
“Purchasing an OEM’s existing powertrain has an enormous impact on the project, it helps both expedite the timeline, and it directly reduces our capital requirement by about $120 million dollars”, said Elio Motors CEO, Paul Elio. “This powertrain will also greatly enhance the Elio’s performance by nearly doubling its horsepower while still maintaining class-leading fuel economy at an affordable ultra-low price”.
Roush will integrate the new powertrain into Elio’s prototype in order to begin preliminary testing procedures. These testing procedures will prepare the Elio for production, which will occur at the Elio Motors manufacturing facility in Shreveport, Louisiana.
The new powertrain will push the Elio’s performance specifications far beyond prior consumer expectations. The engine should offer nearly a 100% increase in horsepower rating when compared to initial Elio prototype vehicles. When combined with the Elio’s low curb weight, the new powertrain is expected to deliver excellent driver response and a highly improved acceleration time. Even with the Elio’s substantial increase in performance, the advanced technology in the new powertrain should enable Elio Motors to achieve their promise of ultra-high fuel efficiency.