I've been following the saga of Arcimoto, a three-wheeled electric FUV (Fun Utility Vehicle) for a long time. So long, I can't remember when I plunked down $100 for a pre-order reservation.
I must have been among the first to do this, since my reservation number is #129, and I believe they total more than 2,700 now. Over the years I've gotten numerous emails from Arcimoto headquarters in Eugene, Oregon, which is just fifty or so miles from where I live, Salem.
It seems like production for retail customers like me is always just around the corner, but that corner keeps receding into the distance. For example, in January 2018 I was told that I could order a vehicle in the 3rd quarter of this year. Yet when I checked a few days ago at the beginning of July, I was told that the 4th quarter was when a vehicle could be ordered.
That led me to ask some additional questions of Arcimoto staff.
I have another question, after reading the recent Register Guard story about Arcimoto.
Yes, I could drive down to Eugene to test drive one before I make a final decision as to whether to purchase one. It just seems like Arcimoto should be focusing a bit more on getting people in Oregon familiar with your vehicle, since you’re an Oregon company,
So that covers the "anxiety" aspect of the part of my brain devoted to thinking about Arcimoto.
Well, not entirely, because the above-linked Register Guard story says that two investors are suing Arcimoto because they feel duped about "excessively optimistic and glowing remarks about Arcimoto’s progress in manufacturing and selling vehicles" made prior to Arcimoto stock being publicly offered.
I don't own stock in Arcimoto, but it concerns me that the company could be on the hook for damages to the investors, which would suck money away from Arcimoto's ability to market and sell a finished product.
OK, let's leave my anxiety aside and turn to my anticipation. That's quite high, because this three-wheel motorcycle has a lot of appeal for me, given my experience with other two and four-wheeled rides of various kinds.
Electric. My wife and I owned a Nissan Leaf for about a year. We sold it mainly because of range anxiety, given that it was my wife's daily driver. We live about six miles from the Salem city limits, so just getting to the outskirts of town and back took up 12 miles of range. Add in cold weather, using the heater or A/C, go up a steep hill, and such, and the range dropped a worrisome degree.
Yet we're still big on electric vehicles, being ardent environmentalists and believers in global warming. We just don't want a pure electric vehicle for our essential driving around.
Now my wife drives a Chevy Volt with gasoline backup, which she likes a lot. Me, not so much. The Volt doesn't have a sun roof, and visibility to the sides and rear is poor. So I drive...
Fun car. A VW GTI, which is a wonderfully enjoyable car. Before that I drove a two-door Mini Cooper S, which also was a lot of fun to drive. Thus I feel like I have a good understanding of what makes a car more than just a way to get around. It's got to have an energetic, well-designed, semi-quirky personality that makes me happy to start it up.
However, I also know this...
Motorcycle/scooter. A $5,000 motorcycle or scooter is more fun than a $100,000 car. After owning a motorcycle in the 1990s, I drove a Suzuki Burgman 650 Executive maxi-scooter from 2009 to 2012. It was way more fun to ride on than either the Mini Cooper or VW GTI was to drive.
But as I was quoted in a USA Today story about older motorcycle riders (I'm 69 now, and was 64 at the time):
As for Hines, he did sell his scooter in 2012 – something he says greatly pleases his wife. "She was worried every time I took off." He says he likes a little risk in his life, "but there are ways to fill that need without risking life and limb." He's taken up skateboarding instead.
Actually it was longboarding, which I'd propel with a paddle rather than my foot. I've given that up also, yet I still like a little risk in my life.
I've considered getting another Suzuki Burgman 650.
However, being almost 70 now, I worry even more about what would happen if I took a fall on it. Bones and muscles take a lot longer to heal at my age. That's why I considered a three-wheeled Can-Am Spyder, and watched a bunch of video reviews of this somewhat safer motorcycle.
In the end I was turned off by how expensive the Spyder is, the fact that you're still just sitting on a seat rather than being strapped in, and the handling characteristics that made motorcycle riders who test drove it say, "I felt like I was going to die." (Because a Spyder doesn't lean, and centrifugal force tries to throw the rider off while turning at speed.)
So this helps explain why I'm attracted to the Arcimoto.
It's electric. We have a level 2 charging station in our carport, so it would charge quickly. Plus, even though I haven't ridden an Arcimoto yet, most videos of test drives show people having fun. Initial reports from early buyers of close-to-final Arcimotos also are positive.
(There's an Arcimoto SRK "FUV" Club on Facebook, and an FUV forum on the web. Both offer some great information on the Arcimoto, unfiltered and based in part on direct experience of early adopters.)
I like that the Arcimoto, though classified as a motorcycle, has these features: no shifting, twin shoulder belts, rollover protection, windshield, windshield wiper, two seats, heated seats and grips, room to carry some stuff, no need to wear a helmet (in Oregon, at least; states differ as to what is required).
Sure, it won't be as fun to drive as a two-wheeled motorcycle, but an Arcimoto is considerably safer. At my age I'm willing to trade some fun for increased safety.
Given that I'd want the extended battery (about 130 mile range, vs. 70 miles for the standard battery), doors of some sort (either half doors or full doors), and likely other options, i'm expecting that an Arcimoto would cost me $18,000 to $20,000. The base price is $11,900.
That's more than a big Burgman scooter (around $12,000) and less than a Can-Am Spyder (around $24,000). It's a lot to pay for basic three-wheeled electric transportation, but the fun factor is what likely will seal the deal for me.
The Arcimoto folks have encountered some dead ends and speed bumps on their lengthy quest to design, market, and sell their vehicle, but they've done one thing very much right: calling it a FUV, Fun Utility Vehicle.
There will be various motivations for buying an Arcimoto, but for me, and lots of others, fun is a primary factor.
I too sent Arcimoto a deposit a couple of years ago. It seems to me you are correct in assuming the preorder customers are not too important to Arcimoto in thier scheme of things. Other than a confirming email on receipt of my $100 there has been no direct communication to me as a preorder customer. I have been in contact with Arcimoto a couple of times about placement and delivery dates. First answer was mid summer 2018 and second was first quarter 2019.
Waiting in Albany, Oregon
Posted by: Duane Wright | July 09, 2018 at 09:43 AM
Duane, yes, it sure seems like Arcimoto should be paying more attention to us pre-order customers. After all, how the first regularly-purchased Arcimotos are received will play a big role in whether the company succeeds.
I've been a frequent contributor to Kickstarter efforts. If I sign up to buy a pair of waterproof shoes, for example, I'll regularly get updates from the company telling me about their progress in designing and making the shoes.
The company will apologize for any delays in getting the product to me in the original time frame. They'll explain in detail what problems are being experienced and how they're dealing with them.
Arcimoto hasn't been nearly as forthcoming, and they're wanting customers to pay $12,000 to $20,000 or so for their product, not $100, as I recall the waterproof shoes cost me.
Posted by: Brian Hines | July 09, 2018 at 10:06 AM
Anyone who is anxious about the timeline and/or the frivolous lawsuits can ask for their $100 deposit back. As I understand it, they are quick to send refunds out. That should put an end to those individuals' anxiety issues. It's not like they swindled you for a non-refundable grand. You know?
Posted by: Dale | July 09, 2018 at 02:52 PM
Dale, getting my $100 back isn't what I'm anxious about. I want Arcimoto to succeed with a quality, easy-to-sell product. My anxiety stems from a worry that after so many years, and so much effort put into design efforts, the final version of the Arcimoto won't be the hit that I want it to be.
That worry stems, in part, from the thought process I went through when deciding whether to get a regular motorcycle/scooter some years back, or a three-wheeled version such as a Can-Am Spyder or various motorcycle "trikes."
A compelling argument against the Spyder that I read about on reviews of the three-wheeled motorcycle was this: it isn't nearly as much fun as a regular motorcycle that leans in corners, is more maneuverable, and can dart through traffic with more alacrity. Yet it is as expensive as many cars, but without the conveniences and safety features of cars: air bags, seating and luggage room, etc.
My worry is that the Arcimoto might fall prey to the same reasoning. If someone wants the fun of a motorcycle, and is willing to assume the risk that comes with it, they'll get a two-wheeled motorcycle or scooter. If someone wants the features of a car, they'll buy a car.
The Arcimoto occupies an in-between zone: a three-wheeled motorcycle that won't appeal to avid motorcyclists, which lacks most of the conveniences and safety features of a car. The electric propulsion will be a draw for some, as will the feeling of open-air freedom, compared to a car.
During my weekly grocery shopping trip to three stores here in Salem (Fred Meyer, Trader Joes, Lifesource Natural Foods), I tried to envision what this would have been like on an Arcimoto. I'd really need full doors that lock, since obviously after my first stop I had grocery bags in my VW GTI, plus a backpack that I usually take with me, but leave in the car.
So then I'd have an enclosed three-wheeled electric vehicle that could cost close to $20,000. Or, do my shopping in the GTI and use the Arcimoto just for fun trips where I didn't need to cart stuff around, or leave things unattended. This just shows the trade-offs that prospective buyers of the Arcimoto are going to have to consider.
Posted by: Brian Hines | July 09, 2018 at 03:43 PM
I have to agree with the statements above. I too threw down the $100 not worrying about getting the money back and more to show support 4 electric vehicles in general. I only thought it could work since it would be a fun vehicle to drive used as a second option in the home and could do a lot of the grocery getting and casual City drives wow while not burning any fossil fuels. However the writer is correct in that there has been no interaction between reservation holders and the company. I never hear anything about this company if I don't search out the news myself. One of the ideas of making the vehicle affordable was that it used many basic available parts instead of reinventing the wheel. I find it very difficult to believe it is this hard to get this particular type of vehicle to the market. I also have a hard time believing that production goals could literally be extended on a year-to-year basis unless major issues occurred .If so what were they?? How could anyone think a vehicle would be ready in six months that wasn't ready for two years. It does seem like the projections are just a moving target arbitrarily set not ever really knowing if and when actual production will happen. I have seen many car and motorcycle enthusiast build or rebuild a custom car in their own garages in in a reasonable time frame using their own money . 10 years and how many tens of million dollars to get 10 not yet ready bets types out to the public. I honestly don't understand what all the employees do there every day when the basic model design was finished for so long and no one is obviously building any type of volume of vehicles. What are they doing. I hear information about their 'suppliers' I put that in quotes because how many parts have any of them been asked to supply.
I also think 5 years ago it would have
brought more excitement before electric scooters, bicycles, motorcycles, Tesla, and every other established manufacturer started thinking electric is the future. I say all this as a supporter of the idea not a detractor.
Unfortunately as a semi casual observer I would say that number one, nobody besides EV enthusiasts have ever heard of the company and as a fan of the product, I sit here today wondering if I'll ever see one on my streets here in upstate New York.
Posted by: Mark | March 17, 2019 at 08:24 AM
We are getting the Evergreen with half doors, a locking trunk, and heated seats/grips for $14,900 after 2 rebates. If I’m lucky, by September. If I’m not, then next year and possibly without the $5000 in rebates if they aren’t renewed. I like supporting Oregon and our local economy.
Posted by: Harriska2 | June 22, 2019 at 04:58 PM