Why You Like The FUV

[DiscjockeyDale]

So... How did you first hear about the FUV (formerly known as the artist, SRK)?

What do you like, and what would you change? What will you use it for?

Are you going with the base model or the higher capacity?

[Rickb]

I happened across the SRK concept back in 2007-08 while in hot pursuit of the VentureOne turned Persu V3, an enclosed tilting three wheeler concept, turned vaporware.  Also, happened across the Elio concept about a year later.  The Elio marketing process was similar to the VentureOne’s marketing process, both marketing BS/hype with no vehicle validation.  Arcimoto’s vision and responsible business model focused on private funding, R&D, with tangible production milestones met. Admirable indeed!

I had a SRK reservation back in 2010, refunded when it appeared little production progress was being made, and then reinstated the reservation immediately after the sweet Gen8 reveal.  Since then:  Major R&D production progress, personal long term investment support in the initial IPO offering,  and eager to get into the Pilot’s seat.

I like it all.......the A Team and the FUV.  It’s their baby, wouldn’t change a thing, and will take what I get providing the hardshell enclosure reveals as an option, my one requirement for year around function in my neck of the woods.  They are exceeding my expectations with specs thus far.  My primary interest is the funtility factor the FUV has to offer as an around town everyday electric. Also important for an old guy is easy ingress/egress, upright sitting position for driver comfort offering the safety advantage to see and be seen,  and that all important 2nd seat for my wife should we decide to drive it on date night. More convenient and cheaper than being forced to drive 2 SOLOs.

My upcoming FUV official purchase order will include the base range battery pack, with options to include hardshell enclosure along with possible dress up, luxury, and comfort/convenience options that may be offered.

[dmapes]

Since I was in my early 20's I remembered visiting Epcot's world of motion and seeing a slick little proto car called the "lean machine", https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngn7Io4HtdU, it wasn't electric but had me dreaming about highly efficient 3 wheeled vehicles ever since. After I traded in my car for an e-bike in late 2016 I started searching for alternative electric vehicles.

I saw the SRK on YouTube when streaming vids from companies like Sondor et. al. and when I saw the SRK I saw a real tangible possibility of having the next best thing to the lean machine over more traditional Prios, Leaf, Volt, Bolt, Tesla etc.and after looking at the company details of all the usual suspects Arcmoto seemed like the only company likely to actually deliver.

To be honest my friends think I'm crazy not having a car to begin with but I really was looking for the ability just to travel the greater Orlando area farther afield than the bike would typically take me while staying dry during the rainy season.

I really like the drivetrain configuration for reasons of safety, I know the handlebars are simpler and better overall but, I confess, a stupid part of me wished for a steering wheel to force this into the autocycle licensing category. I also grossly miscalculated how long I'd have to wait for delivery and when I hear about how long many in this forum have been waiting I'm somewhat embarrassed at how short a time it has been for me in comparison.

I might wait to see how wet I get without the side panels but my sense is I would want soft shell panels as an option, especially if they are easily removable. The 60+mile round-trip to the convention center or theme parks from my home is my measure of range and the standard battery might be cutting this close factoring in the eventual drop in range over time and highway driving so I'll be getting the extended range battery. The solar panel roof might be cool to have but not essential so probably not. Since it's Orlando you might assume AC but I'd prefer the airflow of the SRK without panels on hot days and the rainy days with panels are always cooler so no AC for me.

[Kepesk]

Oooh get ready for a tale.

I originally found out about Arcimoto completely by accident.  My wife (then-girlfriend) worked at the Hertz counter at the local airport.  Someone, presumably from the A-Team, "accidentally" left one of the Gen 5 postcards on her counter when they went through. In case you're not aware, for years Arcimoto has passed out these postcard-sized ads with info on the back to interested people. They change with each new prototype.  I wish I had a full set. Here's the one for Gen 7:



Anywho, Andrea in her wisdom thought "Hey, this is probably something that Jake would like" and brought it home.  The next day, I took it to my office in downtown Eugene and pulled up the website.  This was (I think) mid-2011 just after they had the accident with the Gen 5.  So I read all about it, including a fairly bleak newsletter saying that due to the accident the team was forced to take an unplanned vacation.  I would not be deterred and I preordered on the spot.

You see, like Mark I used to be a bike commuter.  I biked 7 miles to work and back most of the year until about 2010 when I was forced to leave my corporate job and go into work for myself.  Being a mobile computer tech made bike commuting unrealistic, but (also like Mark) I considered driving a three ton vehicle that seats five to go remove a virus from someone's computer to be a bit of a waste.  I just didn't have a better option.

As you can imagine, I was ecstatic when I found out that there WAS a better option being developed just a mile and a half from my office!  It has been a long road from that point, but I'm still a mobile tech ready to make massive use of this thing.

As an environmentalist, a heavy motorist, someone who appreciates efficient and innovative designs, and someone who just plain likes fun toys, this hits all the marks for me.  The fact that it's being built in my hometown is just icing on the cake.

And it looks pretty cool too.

[AnimalCage]

I've had over 25 vehicles in my life. '69 Ford Thunderbird. '70 Ford Galaxy. '73 Jeep Commando Half-cab (with the 304 V-8). '85 Olds Cutlass Supreme. These were my favorites. Never cared about gas mileage, only that I had enough money to fill'em up. Then the trucks for business: '72 Dodge D-100 and an '84 Ford F250 HD Extended Cab. Plus four motorcycles over the years. Never cared about the environment, until...

I remember the first time I saw a Honda Insight, and was curious, but the family situation at that time demanded all vehicles hold at least five people comfortably. The Insight got me thinking. I was able to try a few small cars over the years, but we still needed adequate passenger space. The Ford Festiva was, um, not good. My Saturn SL2 was great. Over 40 mpg. Loved that car, and it lasted a long time, but that was many years ago, and the kids were smaller. My current family situation (empty-nesting) allows me a whole lotta freedom of choice. My ideal situation has always been a truck for the snow, a nice, somewhat efficient car for the rainy seasons, and a motorcycle for fun/efficiency.

After my motorcycle sold early last year, I wanted something really efficient to get me to my weekend job that is 47.5 miles away. My Toyota Matrix isn't great on gas, 24 mpg combined. Plus, its now over 190,000 miles, so replacement is becoming more of a reality. That weekend job will become my full-time job at the end of March, so I will be commuting 95 miles, five days a week. A few weeks ago, we bought a 2001 Yukon. I know, crap for mpg, but I need to get to work in any weather. Its necessary.

Last year, I started looking at the Elio. Came extremely close to putting down a deposit. I was very excited, albeit a bit skeptical, about the 84 mpg. The news on Elio seemed to be going dark, so I put down the pen, and started searching for alternatives. Then the light shone down, I heard angels singing, and Arcimoto appears in one of those "electric vehicles of the future" videos on youtube. I checked out the Solo, Slingshot, Vanderhall, Can Am Spyder, but the SRK checked all the boxes. Efficiency, price, and fun, all in one package, not to mention a solid development history, eight iterations of prototypes, road shows, and lots of videos of vehicles in motion. My deposit happened within days, I was that sure.

Doors are less of a necessity for me. I have two other vehicles if I don't want to endure Mother Nature. I typically rode my motorcycles down to about 38 degrees, and bicycled in just about anything. I can dress for most weather. What I am looking forward to is if Arcimoto can replace my Toyota as the second vehicle with my Yukon. Again, not a necessity, but it would be great for the FUV be a full-purpose replacement for the "family car, without the family". If the doors don't work out so well, or even if they do, I wonder if Arcimoto is considering a second, different vehicle for the future, something like the Pulse, to make it into the autocycle category.

My 95 mile-a-day commute necessitates the larger battery pack. The cargo box should hold an airline-spec carry-on bag for Uber options. Blizzaks should fit, because I want the FUV to work for most driving conditions. Front and rear cabling for dashcam connections, or built-in cameras as an option. And a surfboard-type rack to fit my bass guitar.

[Rickb]

1 user like for Andrea!

[DanCooper]

After a local radio personality was killed on a motorcycle, my wife really got on my case to quit riding one. I said I would, if I could find something that was safer, at least as much fun, and at least as energy-efficient. Then I sketched out my own specifications for such a vehicle. EV 3 wheeler, 2 drive wheels in front, independent motors, steel roll cage. Then I googled to see if anyone else had that idea, and found that Arcimoto fit the bill exactly.

I will use it for almost all in-town trips. I will use it for volunteer work, like Meals on Wheels, for fun and to show it off. I have a lot of hiking and skiing options within 20 miles, so I will put a ski rack on it. Now that I am retired, I ski several times a week.

I don't need the extended range for any of these trips, but I will probably get it to be able to visit a few nearby towns and for the possibility of an occasional road trip.

I will decide on hard sides or soft covers after I see them. For myself, I wouldn't bother, beause I just dress for it and grow my fur in the winter. But my wife wants it.

My biggest concern is whether it can get up the hill where I live in Winter. 2WD won't do it, and sometimes 4WD has trouble. With most of the weight on the drive wheels, and the software differential, the FUV might do as well as 4WD if it has studded snow tires. If that isn't good enough, I would like to see a 3WD option or conversion. A small hub motor in the rear wheel should do it. It would only have to provide power up to 15 mph (because the bad patches are very short), and then freewheel.

I am very concerned about sustainability and climate change. I have reduced household energy consumption to about 10% of the US average, but have not been able to reduce transportation energy use that much, especially because the Prius won't climb the hill in Winter. My wife thinks it is much more important to go to town most days than I do, so she will drive the FUV a lot. She is willing to get a motorcycle endorsement on her license, which is needed in this state.

[Tightapex]

It's interesting... I'm not really sure how I found the Arcimoto. Online I believe.  Being a typical car nut, I had a fascination for all things mobile.  I'd kept tabs on the Elio for many years, but after a while it became obvious the car wouldn't see production anytime soon.  I had a utter fascination for Volkswagen's GX3 concept vehicle back in 2006.  God, I wanted this thing badly and I dearly hoped Volkswagen would produce. The company toyed with the idea of actually of putting the three-wheeler into production, but bailed on the project due to litigious concerns.  There was some initial enthusiasm that Lotus might run with it, but even that fell through.  Pic below.



Attention shifted to the Can-Am Spyder when it came along.  I liked the idea of two wheels up front and the design was unlike anything I'd seen before.  But I also recall being more interested in steering wheels than handlebars at time, so the thought of acquiring one was low on the priority list.  A few vintage sports cars later and I began looking at three-wheelers again.  What the hell was a Polaris Slingshot?  Yikes, I almost lost my eyesight!  Insect-on-acid styling.  I admired the low price point, low seating and performance potential, but the aesthetic was just too video game-meets-transformers.  It wasn't for me.

Then came the Arcimoto early in 2016.  "Hmmm... interesting... two wheels upfront, electric power, tandem seating, tube-frame cage, potential weather projection, cool styling... I must know more."  Fortunately, the company was offering one of their test drive sessions in Eugene, so my wife and I planned a weekend getaway and made the drive.  We LOVED it.  Our name went on the waiting list.  Mark Frohnmayer happened to be on hand that day mingling with the crowd and I introduced ourselves.  I commented on the brilliance of this machine and he said something to the effect, "I appreciate it...now we just have to scale up for production!"  Two years later and they've most certainly done an admirable job of promoting, funding, opening a production facility and acquiring manufacturing equipment.  Kudos Arcimoto!

As for the other questions, there's not much I would change.  Doors would be a nice add, but beyond that, the FUV hits the mark.  I still haven't decided between the base or extended model.  I'll use the thing primarily for my daily commutes.  I'm already quite fortunate to have a 15-mile drive through beautiful California countryside lined with vineyards and pastures.  I'm gonna go into work quite invigorated.

[ben]

first heard of Arcimoto late 2016,... at the time was kinda toying around with the idea of getting a neighborhood electric vehicle (a GEM) to address my needs to get around "town" (I live pretty close to downtown "San Diego") but after looking at one realized it was pretty limited (considering the cost$)

was kinda aware of three wheel platforms because Aptera (a three wheel vehicle developed to compete for the X Prize) was based in the area

https://www.xconomy.com/san-diego/2010/0...e-x-prize/

https://www.greencarreports.com/news/106...-economics

actually one of the local EAA (experimental aircraft association) chapter members, was hired on to fabricate some of the parts, so he would mention good/bad aspects (of the platform in general)

basically the Aptera was vary clean from an aerodynamic "drag" aspect, but he mentioned the turning radius was akin to an SR71 (which is a mach 3+ aircraft that needs lots of space to make a 180 degree turn),... so he thought the Aptera would not be practical in an urban setting because of stuff like "parking"

looking at the SRK (now being marketed as a FUV), it seems to check off all the mission requirements I'm looking for

1) low acquisition cost (base model) $12k
2) low operational costs
3) simple to operate
4) good handling characteristics (AKA "maneuverable")
5) NOT "dorky"

WRT #5,... I considered the GEM "dorky"

https://www.treehugger.com/cars/gem-e2-e...c-car.html

likewise the three wheel "Sparrow" is "dorky" (after all it was featured in a comedy "gold member" role)



http://www.hightechscience.org/sparrow.htm

typically I don't give a rats ass what other people think, and would buy a "dorky" looking vehicle if it got the job done!

having said that I consider the layout of the FUV, more akin to a "chick magnet"

www.youtube.com/watch?v=mTdnm9xUNuE

yeah, I know my sense of humor is somewhat juvenile, but seriously the one thing that appeals to me about the open truss look of the FUV is,... it kinda reminds me of an ariel atom

https://www.arielna.com/arielatom/

[DanCooper]

Some people think a Prius looks dorky, but I think it is elegant, It was designed by wind tunnel testing for minimum drag (with certain constraints). Then everything was fit into the basic form. It actually has more useful space than most cars its size. For a vehicle that will be used mainly in town, aerodynamics is much less important.