Elio Motors Planning New 3 Wheeler in Former Louisiana GM Plant

by PAUL CROWE

Elio Motors 3 wheeler to be built in a former GM plant

When someone announces a new motorcycle or car, coming soon with great specs and amazing price, you just have to be a bit cautious, so this new 3 wheeler from Elio Motors, may be a huge success, it may never be produced or it may fall somewhere in between.

Elio Motors 3 wheeler to be built in a former GM plant

The quick story:

• 3 wheels
• tandem seats
• 84 mpg highway / 49 mpg city
• 8 gallon tank
• inline, 3 cylinder, 1 liter, 70 HP, fuel-injected, SOHC gas-powered, liquid-cooled, automotive engine.
• 5-speed manual or automatic with reverse
• 3-wheel disc brakes with ABS
• front engine front wheel drive
• $6800

Three wheels means it's a motorcycle for registration purposes, but the CEO says it will meet automotive crash standards.

They are setting up shop in a former GM plant in Shreveport, Louisiana and will employ 1500 workers and it will be manufactured in the USA with American made parts.

Add it all up and my "I'll believe it when I see it" radar is on high alert, but you never know. A lot of former auto execs are on the board so maybe it will take off when it is introduced in the spring of 2014.

Head on over and see for yourself.

Link: Elio Motors

Elio Motors 3 wheeler

from thekneeslider

left for Africa Scam but do not worry we will return!

DEFENSOR by DP Customs

Introducing “DEFENSOR.”  This bike was inspired by one of our heroes, a true racing legend.  Just sitting on this bike will put a smile on your face.  All hand made, right down to the 2 into 1 exhaust.  The nine stage custom paint job is finished in a hot-rod matte clear.  We hope you like it!

BMW’s 1960s R50/2 – More ‘Munich’ than ‘Monterey’?

With its classic lines, piano black paintwork and traditional layout, you’d be forgiven for thinking this 490cc BMW motorcycle is from the 1930s, not the acid-tripping late-60s.

Yet the beautifully restored example that Classic Driver dealer Movendi is offering came out of BMW’s Munich factory in 1969. That does not make it any less ‘modern’ compared to its contemporaries, though, as the Bavarian company’s products were usually pretty advanced – just ‘different’ from the others.
The bike features the famous BMW flat-twin ‘boxer’ engine and shaft-drive – features to be found on its bikes today. At the time, a BMW motorcycle was considered the ‘thinking man’s bike’, providing reliable, low-maintenance transport for the connoisseur, or a tough workhorse for sidecar duty. But performance from a machine like the R50/2 wasn’t bad: 145km/h flat out from 26HP wasn’t a lot different from a Bonnie or Besa of the day.


And high-performance fiends could always order a R50S. With a higher compression ratio, the ‘S’ model raised the R50 series' maximum speed by another 10km/h. You will notice the front wheel’s characteristic ‘Earles fork’, an engineering solution to the problem of conventional telescopic forks plunging the front of the bike sharply under braking, thereby shortening the bike’s wheelbase and creating inherent problems with its handling.
Today, classic BMW motorcycles are prized not only for their engineering quality but also for their style. In fact, an older BMW, with bouncy big rubber seat and stark black paintwork, is about as hip as you can get. Movendi’s example can be described as ‘near concours’, perfect for a ride in the Peak District with similarly groovy friends.

Realted Links For furher details of this 1969 BMW R50/2, please look in the Classic Driver Marketplace Classic Driver dealer Movendi's entire stock can be viewed in the Classic Driver Marketplace

Text: Steve Wakefield (ClassicDriver)
Photos: Movendi