Elio Motors markets fleet sales but still no cars

Michael James

July 10, 2014

Elio Motors, the fledgling three-wheel vehicle company, continues to market itself with new ideas. The latest is a fleet sales division to capitalize on what the company describes as increasing interest from businesses, rental car companies and municipalities.

Although the launch of the reported $6,800 car touted with a predicted 84 mpg has been delayed and funding isn’t established, Elio has announced Brendan Carey, Vice President of Fleet Sales, a former ADESA (KAR Auctions) employee who joined Elio Motors in 2013, with head the new division,

The fleet division, Elio reports, will provide significant cost-savings to companies and government entities that have fleets for rentals, deliveries, service calls, and other travel-related needs.

With the average price a new vehicle in the United States approaching $30,000, businesses and municipalities can save nearly $23,200 switching to an Elio.

The Elio three-wheel vehicle will be introduced in 2015.
The Elio three-wheel vehicle is scheduled to be introduced in 2015 but its production date has been delayed six months.

In addition, assuming a vehicle gets 25 MPG and is driven 20,000 at $4 per gallon of gas, switching to an Elio would save a company nearly $2,250.00 annually on fuel costs.

“Interest in Elio Motors among the business community is extremely high, and rightfully so,” said Paul Elio, founder and CEO of Elio Motors. “As weโ€™ve taken the vehicle on its 33-city nationwide tour, we are always approached by business people, rental companies, and government officials who recognize they can attain significant savings converting their fleet to Elios.โ€

An example of some of the businesses that have made Elio Motors reservations include Griffin Beverage Company in Michigan and SOS Alarm in Oregon.

โ€œWhile most of our deliveries require a large truck, route sales orders can be conducted by a single driver with an occasional light load,โ€ said Bob Griffin, CEO of Griffin Beverage, which has reserved 18 vehicles. โ€œWe will see significant cost savings over the course of a year by shifting away from vans and into an Elio. Itโ€™s a move that will provide an immediate positive impact to our bottom line.โ€

For SOS Alarm, most of their business travel is from field reps checking up on customers.

โ€œWe donโ€™t always need to lug around a ton of equipment, so it makes sense to conduct many of our trips in a low-cost, highly fuel-efficient vehicle,โ€ said Henry Knepp, Regional Manager of SOS Alarm. โ€œElio Motors will give us a low-cost option that weโ€™ve been looking for.โ€

According to the Elio Motors website, more than 24,000 would-be owners, have made deposits from $100 to $1,500 for the odd-looking vehicle.

Other business that have reserved an Elio for fleet purposes include Peoria Car Rental in Peoria, AZ; Treasure Coast Car Wash in Port St. Lucie, FL; and Edge Auto Rental in New York, NY.

For more information, visit: https://www.eliomotors.com.

Article Last Updated: July 10, 2014.

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