A Few Concerns...

[CelticFlyer]

As excited as I am by the prospect of owning a V1 (the concept illustrations alone have sold me), I have a few concerns that deserve my undivided attention. Here they are in no particular order:

1. Financing. It goes without saying that I will have to finance my V1. I’m not made of money, nor do I expect a windfall from a legal settlement, an inheritance from a dearly departed relative, or a large lump sum lottery prize. How do lending institutions feel about lending money for vehicles that have no history? I mean, what are they securing their loan on? There’s no proof that these things will be worth anything in the aftermarket. Cars, boats, motorcycles can all attest to having resale value, and therefore, offer some assurance that the bank has security of some kind. The V1, on the other hand, has no demonstrable worth, at least in the aftermarket.

2. Insurance. How will this be determined? Will it be insured as a car, motorcycle, or as an “experimental vehicle?” If the latter is the case, I’m really worried. This could make the cost of insuring the V1 cost-prohibitive. At best, it would hinder the joy of ownership and at worst, it would be too costly to make owning the V1 practical.

3. Warranty. What do I do if something goes wrong? What if something breaks? Do I have to have the V1 shipped back to the factory? I mean, it’s not like there are V1 dealers on every corner! If it’s something small, I might be able to overlook it, or put off repairing it when circumstances permit, but if it’s something large, I’m screwed. My V1 would essentially become a giant planter. Lawn art. Garage potato. You get the idea. While this may not worry too many of you, who’ve got other means of transportation, let me remind you that this will be my sole means!

These are only a few real-world concerns. I’m sure others will surface as the prospect of ownership goes from dream to reality. Forgive me if these issues have been addressed elsewhere. I’m only raising these issues here as a sounding board; I’m curious if my fears are warranted or not. How many of you share my concerns?

[CelticFlyer]

No one. That's good. Guess I was worried over nothing! :)

[MVRacing]

Hi Celt,
There is a thread on the official site where insurance was discussed ... general consensus was the it would be about the same as a high end motorcycle.

Haven't seen any other threads about financing, however IMHO it won't be a problem ... I believe it is going to be a high quality product with outragous demand, forcing very high resales.

Have you read the threads where Ian discusses dealerships? I think the very farthest you'd have to travel will be LA. I would suspect with a CA "rollout" there will be a facility in the Bay area too.

I especially enjoyed your "First day" thread.=y:

[Derwin]

CelticFlyer,
I agree and share all of the concerns that you have expressed. But this is such a NEW and RADICAL vehicle that takes driving to such a new level, that I am willing to take on all of the downside that there may be. Personally, I won't need to finance my purchase, but I am sure that a bank will give a loan on this if you give them a title and put down a good chunk of money.

As far as the insurance goes, I agree with MVRacing. Actually, a lot of people that are new owners of the CanAm Spyder ran into a few problems with insurance.......The insurance companies did not have the thing listed, and didn't know how to rate it! But it finally got worked out when they were shown that it is just a reverse trike roadster. I'm sure it will be kind of the same way with the V1.

The biggest concern is indeed the warranty. How will we get the vehicle fixed if/when it has problems? I think this job can be done if VV would hook-up with a national chain of mechanics, or a place like SEARS (God Forbid!), or some place like that. We could just take it to our local center and have work done.

In any event, I think all of the risks are worth it in order to enjoy such an incredible vehicle. But that's just my opinion.

Derwin

[CelticFlyer]

Thanks for the feedback, guys. I'm especially concerned because the V1 will be my sole source of transportation. That's why I'm a little anxious. I get the feeling that most of you are just looking for a second set of wheels or a weekend toy. I could be wrong, but that's the vibe I'm getting from what I've read so far. If owning this vehicle is impractical or worse, a liability, then I'd rather know sooner than later, and focus on getting something else.

I've got a lot more research to do. Perhaps a phone call to my insurance agent and loan officer will help. ;)

[MVRacing]

Well you're not wrong there ... it's a fun vehicle for me, but I will do most of my driving in it too (once I allow it to get wet).

From what I've been able to gather, I think VV will put out a first class vehicle that has been fully tested (hoping to get in on that). I believe all the technology has been fully tested in other forms so that it is only their integration that has to be proven.

After the release, keep an eye on this site as I'm sure any problems that crop up will show up here immeadiately.

Sure, give them a call ... can't hurt ... may not help much either until it's in production.

[CelticFlyer]

Yeah, I figured I'd at least start a dialog with them just to get an idea of what I can expect. I hate surprises. I suppose that I'm just trying to avoid disappointment down the road.

At least I've got a little while to get my ducks in a row. =y:

[MVRacing]

Hey,
Maybe we can get a discount thru Progressive on our V1's =y:

[CelticFlyer]

eSurance's commercials seem particularly geared towards hybrid and alternative fueled vehicle owners. Maybe I should give them a holler. Anyone here insured by them? Recommendations anyone?

[RAN]

I had Progressive insurance on all 3 of my motorcycles. One thing I can say is.. they didn't raise their rates the 2nd year after giving me a good introductory rate as every company I've had since then has. I was already thinking about going back to them next year. Wouldn't it be ironic if they didn't want to insure half these new "outside the box" vehicles?

[cpaddock]

I would think that since Progressive is the primary benefactor of the X prize that they
would be interested in providing the Venture One with insurance.

[cpaddock]

BTW, relative to "a few concerns", I finally got my hands on a copy of "who killed the electric car".....Pour yourself a stiff one and sit down and watch it! Actually there weren't that many surprises, mostly confirming various suspiscions we all no doubt have had. Though depressing, I came away encouraged, especially with the X prize announcement, that we are entering a new era of consciousness and that there is now a large enough coalition of the willing and private sector visionary ACTION that David
may actually cause Goliath to stumble. I guess the $100 plus per barrel oil is a good thing if it awakens the slumbering masses....
Aloooooha!

[MVRacing]

Yes, I just watched that a week ago for the first time ... I was surprised. I think you are right in that awareness levels have increased and I don't think it could go that way again.

[CelticFlyer]

That's pretty encouraging, RAN. I'll definitely look into them when the time comes.

I'd like to see that "Who Killed The Electric Car." I've heard it was pretty interesting, and I always enjoy a good documentary. Thanks for the heads up! ;)

[cpaddock]

Also, this from autoboggreen: Progressive is providing the $10 mil out of their advertising budget. This is indeed a shrewd move.....helping the development of the cars of the future insures they will continue to have customers.....works for me....

[PHEVadvocate]

I found Who Killed the Electric Car to be a fairly balanced documentary, more than I expected it to be. I have loaned out my DVD to friends and coworkers a lot of times, spreading the “EV gospel” as my wife and son call it. It can be upsetting to some, but it tries to end on a positive note. It shows you what we could do years ago.

I think you can give it part of the credit for resparking the EV and PHEV revolution.;)

Please watch it, share it, and spread the word that EV's and PHEV's are the future! =y:

[RAN]

If anyone's interested in seeing it, I can upload it to Divshare for you to download. You'll need WinRar to rejoin the volumes.

[Derwin]

I have never heard of it before, but would be very interested in seeing it. If you can, feel free to upload it on the club server. Then people will be able to download it at will. Or, just imbed it in this forum. If you need any help doing that, just let me know. Thanks.

Derwin

[Derwin]

This movie is a 700 MB file. I don't know if we can handle that. If anybody knows how we can upload this movie and make it viewable to all club members, please post it to this thread. Thanks.

Derwin

[tugboatwilly]

Somebody at the show should turn around and ask the Insurance people on the corner booth.

[rexscates]

Has anyone say gone to progressive and asked?

it might be a considering factor for some people. For a nonperformance streetbike my insurance is anywhere from 120 to 400 dollars a year. :)

for this i have no clue as it is safer.

ttyl
rex scates

[Miracleman89]

Another factor is the total replacement cost! I am betting it will be probably the same as a regular vehicle.

[CelticFlyer]

Progressive is definitely on my short list of potential insurance providers. Especially since they've given Venture Vehicles a crack at the $10 million dollar kitty with the X Prize!

I'm not insuring anything at the moment, though. So I don't have any insurance contacts.:o