Early Adopter

[IamIan]

Given the reactions I have read here and else where about Aptera I have begun to wonder something.

How many people have ever been an early adopter before?

I suspect very few.
Early adopters are a different breed.

My first Poll here so we'll see how it comes out.

[basjoos]

I've rebuilt the Honda Civic I use as a daily driver into an ultra-low Cd shape similar to the Aptera to greatly improve its mileage. I researched the work done in Germany in the 1930's on low drag cars and used it as a guide in reshaping my car. Would that count as an early adopter even though I was using research done several generations ago in producing my 0.17 Cd car?

[IamIan]

I'd say your excellent aerodynamic work on your car would probably fall into the:

No established Co. built my own , after others show how

Definitely a vehicle aerodynamic early adopter. :)

I've been an early adopter many times... and almost always there are bumps along the way... I remember when I bought my OQO Model 01... My Bank did not have them in their data base so by default my bank's computer system flagged it as a possible fraudulent transaction and canceled the order... My bank said I had to choose between waiting until they were in the bank's data base or I could pay the $20 fee myself to have them added... I was impatient and so I paid the $20.... never before had I ever encountered that particular banking fee... and I have sense changed banks, so I hope to never see it again.

[Ardie3301]

basjoos, I'm sure you are a hero to many others here besides me. I'd *love* to have the brainpower to understand automotive aerodynamics, electric motors and charging systems well enough to keep from killing myself or my family. But "a man's got to know his limitations.'

- - -

Over the years, I have discovered that being on the cutting edge of technology can bleed a bit.

I dilly-dallied and bought a second model year (1980) Mazda RX-7. Same great car, but $2,000 higher price. Newer ones were faster, but not enough to justify (to me) their ever-escalating price tag. (Mazda is particularly guilty of doing this until they kill the model. Also see the Miata timeline and corresponding MSRP.)

I rushed to buy the new Windows 2000. Crashed and burned horribly. Had to reformat/reload Win98 and limp until WinXP came out.

I *begged* my dad to get a new 1965 Mustang. He got a practical 1965 Fairlane for the same price. (Oh, well. Perhaps at that age, I would not have survived had he bought the Mustang.)

I suspect the newest version of the Aptera 2e will be a sensation, but it will have teething problems. Hopefully they will be manageable. I expect that successive model years will come with greater range, faster charging times, better suspension, and comfier seats.

That said, the 2e is just *too* exciting to but it on my cerebral back burner until they improve it with another iteration.

I ought to be in their ideal demographic group. I make enough money to buy one, I would use the car almost exclusively for commuting (about 65 miles a day), I have a 2nd car (A 'wagon) that fits all of our other hauling needs, I'm local (Orange County), and, given the current economic situation, I'd rather buy American. I even have 220V available in my garage. How could I *not* sign up?

-- Ardie

[Rat]

I generally consider myself a 2nd-tier adopter - not the earliest but not too far behind them. I don't want to be a beta tester and I don't want to buy something that costs less a year later for a greatly improved version. I put myself there with the Aptera, too, because I figure that by the time my number comes up I'll know the pluses and minuses pretty well from this forum and elsewhere. Those with numbers below 500 are the early adopters, probably, and at 1087 (2e) I'll be in the 2nd wave, assuming I buy.

[A1phaGeek]

Life long early adopter. I am VERY picky about the quality of the product, but less so about how established the company behind the technology is.

I did not get the nickname AlphaGeek by being always being second to a cool new parade. =)

[KarenRei]

As a Linux geek for the past ~12 years, much of what I've done, computer-wise, has been of the early adopter vein. Heck, I even write my *own* programs when ones that I want don't exist. As for cars, however, I'm not the sort of person who buys I car every five years. I still drive my '96 Saturn that I got used, a couple years old, from my parents when I went to college as my main car, and have an '86 Olds inherited from my grandfather as a backup; the 2e will be the first car I've ever bought on my own.

[mikekinney]

I have not been an early car adopter. However I work as a mechanical enginner and have been involved with the design and early testing of many consumer products from both large companies and my own start-ups. I am always an early adopter of these products.

[garygid]

If I had the excess money, being an early adopter would not be a problem.

However, the 2e will need to include significantly good design and
engineering before I can justify this substantial expenditure.

One reason I offered to help Aptera was to make sure that
their vehicle actually comes out really "solid" so that nobody
would feel the need to make any "excuses" for it.

[Carbon Saver II]

1973 when we got married my father-in-law offered his new wankel engined car for our use on the state driving tour we took for a honeymoon. I opted to take my 1963 Comet with its bald tires instead, because I did not want to be responsible if my father-in-law's vehicle had any issues.

The bald tires held, we went from Thousand Oaks to Sacramento to Monterey to Lake Tahoe, and other places I can't remember. When we got home the Mazda was dead. Blown water seals in that very hot wankel engine with no mass to take away the heat. Every notice that wankel engines get bad gas mileage? They literally use gas as a coolant in the combustion chambers by design....

Lesson: early adopter can be painful. The Mazda never did run reliably after that and was kept for years of non-service.....

I do plan to listen carefully to others if I take delivery of the :aptera: It is looking to me like the competition with have product sooner, and if that happens deposits are not going to turn into sales.....

[KarenRei]

What serious competition are you referring to that will have a product sooner? Tesla Roadsters? BYD F3DMs (do you live in China?) Or Th!nks (do you live in Europe? And that's assuming they survive...)? Certainly not the Volt, the MiEV, the R1e, the Karma, the Model S, any of Ford or Chrysler's, and on down the list.

[G.M.]

It will probably depend on where you live.

I expect the Aptera to beat all those, except the Tesla, in Cali. Or at least Southern Cal.

Countrywide, I expect Mitsubishi to probably be first with an electric car available in multiple states (though not likely in all states).

Depending on roll out, a few companies could be selling electric cars in multiple states before the Aptera does.

The Mini electric could sell in multiple states by 2010. An electric Prius could be done easily and in all 50 states if Toyota decided to.

Of course with gas prices what they are all car companies could just decide to slow down electric developement.

But I think that would be a mistake. And I think Honda and Toyota and others will be moving quickly to get something to market. If for no other reason than for publicity and bringing press and feet into the show rooms.

Again, I don't think any of us know just how fast Aptera will get cars in garages. Nor how fast they will get cars in garages in other states. And we don't know how fast Mits or Mini or Chevy or Toyota or Honda will get cars out either.

It is all a waiting game.

Which kinda benefits Aptera.

I still believe that Toyota could crush Aptera tomorrow if they wanted. They could release press that an electric car is coming at the end of 2009 and steal a lot of thunder, still a lot of potential sales.

I also believe that Aptera can easily sell a few thousand cars each year on shape and style alone. They would be niche, but safe.

Again, Toyota could release an electric with a similar shape to Aptera and that would be hard for Aptera.

But that seems very unlikely.

G.M.

[jhm614]

Certainly not the Volt, the MiEV, the R1e, the Karma, the Model S, any of Ford or Chrysler's, and on down the list.

Not to hijack the thread but...

I don't think any of these - the Volt, the R1e, the Karma, the Model S, any of Ford or Chrysler's, as being competitors for the 2e. However, the Volt sounds like a direct competitor with the 2h -- even the prices are in the same ball park. (I know that's hard to say without seeing option lists for both vehicles.)

Also, why don't you see the iMiEV as being a competitor to the 2e? Both products have been announced and public demonstrated. Neither has a firm ship date or pice. I guess one major difference is that with the iMiev you are trading range for the security from buying an established company.

[KarenRei]

In terms of release date, I don't. Aptera's targeted release was last December. Even if they missed it by a couple months, that still puts them way ahead of Mitsubishi (at least for US release). Their target Japan release for fleets is summer of '09, and they haven't announced any US release date at all.

[IamIan]

To me the release date / area only matter to specific types of early adopters.

If the release date is too far into the future. That doesn't matter to the DIY early adopter.

If the initial release area of California is not where you live. That doesn't matter to the same early adopters that use 3rd party / import companies to get vehicles like the Twike that are not sold where they live. Such early adopters could do the same thing by paying other people in the roll out area to shipping one to them somewhere else.

Toyota , GM , etc. being able to out produce / "crush" Aptera only matters to those who are only willing to early adopt from a major established company... and none of them so far have made any steps toward a vehicle that can equal or better the Aptera in FE. So, at best Aptera is starting with a healthy lead on them.

Major established companies look for products that appeal to the masses. Things that have large markets. Aptera is not such a market. Aptera is a smaller market for those who have put FE high enough to dwarf other factors that other vehicles offer but the Aptera does not. So, I doubt the likes of GM , Toyota , etc... will be producing / selling anything that can equal or out perform the FE of the Aptera in the next ~20 years.

just my 2 bits.
:happy0025:

[NmGfan]

I didn't buy a Sparrow from Corbin Motors before 2004 because there was a long waiting list that included a $1K deposit and output from the factory was a little sporadic. When Corbin Motors folded in Mar '04 with hundreds of peoples deposits (with no chance of getting the money back) I was bummed that I missed an opportunity to even drive one but glad I didn't lose my deposit.
I discovered the Myers Motors site with the NmG in Dec '06, did a little research in Jan '07 and pulled the trigger in Feb and put my $1K deposit down. The line was short and I had a delivery date! In May '07 I became an early adopter of the only nation-wide commercially available freeway legal EV. Say what you may; it was on sale before Tesla (1/4 price) and I'm gaining experience by driving an electric vehicle every day, rain or shine.

BTW; NmG's (three of them) were featured on Good Morning America about two weeks before Christmas '08. http://www.myersmotors.com/index.html

:happy0025:

[RainCaster]

I have been an early adopter- perhaps to a fault. Worked for 7 different startups over a 30 year span. All I have to show for it is a lot of friends and about $60,000 (total) in usable stock.

Beta tested BSD 4.1 & 4.2, and every version of Windows since NT 3.51. Hacked the EFI on many of my cars. Rebuilt 7 different rotary Mazdas, doing numerous engine transplants and tuning along the way, Porting, heat treating, trick apex seals...

So while I am willing to stick my neck out a bit for some new technology, I will draw the line at waiting forever for the Typ1e to become a heavier Typ2 and a even ugler Typ3 burger-getter.