Arcimoto FUV

Thom Riddle said:
Just joined and can't believe nobody has posted anything on the Arcimoto SRK.

https://www.arcimoto.com/
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I visited the Arcimoto headquarters in Eugene last summer and test rode the Arcimoto. Way too much fun! Test rode with one of the engineers. He was very nice and informative. I have a reserve on one arcimoto and hope I'm riding it by end of next year. Plenty potent with two people. Didn't ride it on freeway, but did get to check it out in windy hills near Arcimoto headquarters. Very nice handling. What a Blast!
Regen, where motorcycle front brake is normally, was very intuitive. The more you pull lever back, the more powerful the regen. Also has power steering. Real nice. Have ridden trikes and at slower speeds. Steering gets harder. Power steering a huge plus.
Definitely had an EV grin at end of ride. Have ridden early Brammo, Zero SR (very impressive also) and own a Vectrix which I hope to replace battery with a LEAF pack. Also own two SUN recumbent bicycles which I've installed front hub wheels. They are a lot of fun. Own a 2013 LEAF which gets driven 200 miles a week.
I really wish Arcimoto huge success! Wish I could have made it to their factory opening, but live in Arizona and couldn't make it at this time.
 
Thom Riddle said:
Just joined and can't believe nobody has posted anything on the Arcimoto SRK.

https://www.arcimoto.com/
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I'm going to shoulder the blame for that. I had meant to write up a piece about them this week. But really, they should have already had their own thread. Thanks for starting this one.

As you may know, they delivered the first one last weekend. Was kind of hoping for a video from that with the SRK and its new owner, but they haven't published anything yet. I did watch the livestream, though, and the what they delivered was an improved version of the demo unts they've been showing around the country for the past year.
 
Domenick said:
I'm going to shoulder the blame for that. I had meant to write up a piece about them this week. But really, they should have already had their own thread. Thanks for starting this one.

As you may know, they delivered the first one last weekend. Was kind of hoping for a video from that with the SRK and its new owner, but they haven't published anything yet. I did watch the livestream, though, and the what they delivered was an improved version of the demo unts they've been showing around the country for the past year.
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Do you know if that was one of the first 50? Don't remember exactly, but I believe they were going to have the first 50 signature series going to customers for so many months as a test run. Would have liked to see that first customers reaction myself. Bet he's having a ball right now. Did volunteer back when to test one of the first 50. Told them I could give it warm weather testing. Oh Well. The engineer I test drove with did say that they were still working on some improvements. I did the test ride in summer 2016. Still anxiously waiting.
 
It's going to be awhile before they start delivery to my area, Buffalo, NY. But, I'm ready when they are.

Not and EV, but I had hopes for the Elio and got to see and sit in one about three years ago when they were taking them all over the country. As Mark F of Arcimoto made clear Elio's automotive style production intentions made huge financing a necessity and it has not been forthcoming. Elio's chances of success are extremely small. Arcimoto seems to be doing smart and WILL succeed.
 
country3wheeler said:
Do you know if that was one of the first 50? Don't remember exactly, but I believe they were going to have the first 50 signature series going to customers for so many months as a test run. Would have liked to see that first customers reaction myself. Bet he's having a ball right now. Did volunteer back when to test one of the first 50. Told them I could give it warm weather testing. Oh Well. The engineer I test drove with did say that they were still working on some improvements. I did the test ride in summer 2016. Still anxiously waiting.
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I'm pretty sure that was the first one. The first several are going to insiders, including Mark F, at a premium price. As long as they stick to their frugal spending plans, they should have several more on the road fairly quickly. The more on the road, the more exposure, the more the word will spread, the more purchasers waiting in line. A smart way to go that I believe will be successful.
 
I put in a reserve for an Elio myself 3 or 4 years ago. Didn't get to drive one though. Was kind of disappointed when they started building their own engine. One thing that first drew my attention to Elio, was them saying off the shelf parts. I just sold my Chevy (GEO} Metro with 193,000 on it. Bought it new in 1999. Still didn't burn oil. That was the motor Elio were using in their prototypes. 1 liter 3 cylinder. My Metro would get consistent 43 mpg with a manual trans. Good motor. Suzuki built the car and have thousands on the road. The Elio was probably half the weight, so I would think they could get a good 55 or 60 mpg out of it. Go Figure. Are you getting e-mail progress from them? I'm still getting that. I thought that was pretty cool when they got the HumVee factory in Louisiana. Thought from one of the most wasteful vehicles ever built to one of the most miserly. I love America, but don't understand it's wastefulness.
Will just have to wait for my Arcimoto. I have relatives in Oregon, so I'd be happy to go pick mine up myself. I think they will succeed myself.
 
When Elio decided to design their own engine, I knew they were in trouble. I suspected then that the reason for doing that was to justify continued delays in production. You are right, that Suzuki 1 Liter engine is a very good lightweight engine and would have served that platform very well. Unless the Fed loan they are hoping for materializes, and I doubt it will, they are extremely unlikely to get to the production stage. Arcimoto is in much better shape financially with their modest and relatively low-cost manufacturing plan. I am very optimistic they will be a winner and open the eyes of many traditional automakers. Some of them will get the message while others will not.
 
My wife and I test drove the SRK at their Eugene facility last summer. So much fun! We'd been looking for a fun roundabout that was electric, held two people and provided a modicum of safety over a standard two-wheeler. The SRK hit the nose right on the button. We put in our reservation in the next day. Alas, we may have to wait till the end of 2018, but I must give Frohnmayer and company kudos for forging such an ambitious effort. Starting a vehicle company from scratch is fraught with several funding, engineering and regulatory hurdles. To see them get this far is inspiring.
 
Apexerman said:
My wife and I test drove the SRK at their Eugene facility last summer. So much fun! We'd been looking for a fun roundabout that was electric, held two people and provided a modicum of safety over a standard two-wheeler. The SRK hit the nose right on the button. We put in our reservation in the next day. Alas, we may have to wait till the end of 2018, ...
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Is the end of 2018 the target date the company has given you? I'd of thought they might be a little quicker with it.
 
Domenick said:
Is the end of 2018 the target date the company has given you? I'd of thought they might be a little quicker with it.
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I'm speculating based on comments from their newsletter. The Signature Series should be released in the spring/summer with wide scale production toward the end of the year. I sure hope it will be sooner, but with the new factory and the likely teething pains, it could even be 2019. Sigh. But if I push my expectations out that far, I won't be disappointed if it takes that long. And if they deliver sooner, I'll be pleasantly surprised!
 
Apexerman said:
I'm speculating based on comments from their newsletter. The Signature Series should be released in the spring/summer with wide scale production toward the end of the year. I sure hope it will be sooner, but with the new factory and the likely teething pains, it could even be 2019. Sigh. But if I push my expectations out that far, I won't be disappointed if it takes that long. And if they deliver sooner, I'll be pleasantly surprised!
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I just talked to Mark for the story about the factory grand opening and LA Auto Show debut, and it certainly sounds like he hopes to get all 2,000 reservations delivered in 2018. THe changes to the design are awesome too. Not sure how you feel about that battery tunnel in the middle, but making it smaller should greatly improve ingress/egress, as well as make it more comfortable to sit in.

Anyway, check out the story. Lots of pics and video of the factory event: Arcimoto Flaunts Its First FUV At The LA Auto Show

Arcimoto-LA-show-17.15.webp
 
Domenick said:
I just talked to Mark for the story about the factory grand opening and LA Auto Show debut, and it certainly sounds like he hopes to get all 2,000 reservations delivered in 2018. THe changes to the design are awesome too. Not sure how you feel about that battery tunnel in the middle, but making it smaller should greatly improve ingress/egress, as well as make it more comfortable to sit in.

Anyway, check out the story. Lots of pics and video of the factory event: Arcimoto Flaunts Its First FUV At The LA Auto Show

View attachment 240
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Excellent! Thanks for the link. The Signature Series looks sharp. It definitely looks more refined. And a reduced battery tunnel size is always welcome. Kudos again, Arcimoto!
 
I have only one concern about the Arcimoto. In Buffalo, NY where I live, the long winter season includes salt on the roads for several months. I've emailed Arcimoto asking about protection of the motors from road splash but not received an answer, yet. Salty water/snow on these motors will shorten their lives dramatically, so protection from this in harsh winter areas is an absolute must. Protection for the whole undercarriage is important too but the motors and drive components in particular. If I get an answer from them, I'll post its content here.
 
A valid concern. Those motors look pretty exposed nestled near the front wishbones. One would think they could design a cover that limited road grime exposure but still preserved ventilation. Perhaps that's in the works.
 
They seem to listen well to input from folks interested in their product. Oregon winters are rather mild compared to some parts of their market (whole world), so hearing from those of us in harsh winter areas will likely spur some action on this, if not already in the works.
 
Arcimoto just posted this video from the LA Auto Show, in which they get people's reaction to the price after having them guess at it. While they talk up the $11,900 price, it's important to note that this is the starting price for the base 70-mile model. The 130-mile FUV will cost more, as well as bodywork ,solar roof, rear storage box, etc. There's still no pricing available for these options as far as I can see.

 
I just got a reply from Kyle Hayek at Arcimoto about splash protection for the electric drive motors. I had asked specifically about that since here in Buffalo we get a lot of snow and the towns treat the roads with salt. Splashing salty water or slush on the motors would render them useless in short order. According to Kyle, Arcimoto is well aware of that and said all the photos I've seen showing the drive motors exposed on the sides are that way because they are constantly removing the "hood" to do adjustments etc and changes for production models and unless the conditions require it they leave off the shields that they have designed to protect the motors from splashing. So all the photos todate are without the splash shields, according to Kyle. Hopefully, they'll have some photos on their site soon with the splash shields. Anyone wanting to ask them about it, please add to the noise. The squeakiest wheel gets oiled first :-).
 
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