Would YOU drive this 'car'? Tiny £4,000 Elio needs stabilisers to stop it tipping over - and reaches a top speed of 100mph
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It might look like a bizarre toy car with stablisers, but the Elio could be soon be taking over roads across the US.
The three-wheeled $6,800 (£4,075) vehicle seats two passengers and goes 0 to 60 mph in 9.6 seconds.
It is the same length as a Honda Fit, but half the weight at 1,250lbs (570kg), allowing it to do 84 miles to the gallon.
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The three-wheeled $6,800 (£4,075) vehicle (pictured) seats two passengers and goes 0 to 60 mph in 9.6 seconds. Phoenix-based Elio Motors plans to start making the vehicles for the US market next autumn
Phoenix-based Elio Motors is now planning to unleash the car on the US market next year, claiming it is the ideal vehicle for commuters.
The company plans to start making the cars next autumn at a former General Motors plant in Shreveport, Louisiana.
More than 27,000 people have reserved a model, and the firm hopes to make 250,000 cars a year by 2016. That's close to the number Mazda sells in the US.
Because it has three wheels - two in front and one in the rear - the Elio is classified as a motorcycle by the US government.
But Elio Motors founder Paul Elio said the vehicle has all the safety features of a car, such as an anti-lock brakes, front and side air bags and a steel cage that surrounds the occupants.
More than 27,000 people have reserved one , nd Elio hopes to make 250,000 cars a year by 2016. Because it has three wheels - two in front and one in the rear - Elio is classified as a motorcycle by the US government
Elio Motors founder Paul Elio said the vehicle has all the safety features of a car, such as an anti-lock brakes and a steel cage that surrounds the occupants. Drivers won't be required to have motorcycle licenses
However, drivers won't be required to wear helmets or have motorcycle licenses.
The Elio's two seats sit front and back instead of side-by-side, so the driver is positioned in the centre with the passenger directly behind.
That arrangement, plus the low seating position - the Elio is just 4.5ft (54 inches) tall - and the lack of power steering, are said to take a little getting used to.
But test drivers claim it feels just like any other small car.
That's partly because its two front wheels stick out by a foot on both sides, aiding balance and preventing the vehicle from tipping.
The Elio has a three-cylinder, 0.9-litre engine and a top speed of more than 100 mph (160 km/h). It gets an estimated 84 mpg on the highway, and 49 mpg in city driving.
Elio keeps the costs down in several ways. The car only has one door, on the left side, which shaves a few hundred pounds off the manufacturing costs, claims the firm.
It mixes the compact size of the Smart car with the stability and manoeuverability of the Can-Am Spyder cycle.
It will be offered in two configurations - with a manual or automatic transmission - and it has standard air conditioning, power windows and door locks and an AM/FM radio.
Germany's Daimler also promised to revolutionise American commutes with the Smart car, but that hasn't panned out, claims Karl Brauer, a senior analyst with Kelley Blue Book. Smart sold just 9,264 cars in the US last year.
The Smart has a starting price of $13,270 (£7,900) for a gas-powered car and gets 38 mpg on the motorway- not enough savings or fuel economy to justify sacrificing comfort in the tiny car.
The Elio has a 3-cylinder, 0.9-litre engine and a top speed of more than 100 mph (160 km/h). It gets an estimated 84 mpg on the highway and 49 mpg in city driving. It will be offered in manual or automatic transmission
The Elio mixes the size of the Smart car with the stability and maneuverability of the Can-Am Spyder cycle (left)
But, Mr Brauer said, the equation might work in the Elio.
'If it really gets 84 mpg and doesn't drive terribly, it would justify the compromises you're making in size and comfort,' he said.
Elio will also save money by selling the cars directly through its own retailers and not through franchised dealers, similar to electric car maker Tesla Motors.
Mr Elio, a one-time stockbroker and New York City cab driver, said he dreamed as a kid that he would one day own a car company called Elio Motors.
'As I matured I decided that was as likely as playing in the NFL,' Elio told The Associated Press.
But he did earn an engineering degree at General Motors Institute - now Kettering University - and started his own company engineering products like children's car seats.
Mr Elio said so far, reservation holders are older, more affluent buyers who will use the Elio as a second or third car for commuting.
'It's an `and' purchase for a lot of folks,' he said. 'So keep your SUV or your minivan or your large sedan, and when you're driving back and forth to work all by yourself, take the Elio'
Eventually, though, he believes the car will appeal to students as well as used-car drivers who want something newer and more reliable.
He also hopes to eventually export it to other countries.
Elio Motors plans to make the vehicles at a former General Motors plant in Shreveport, Louisiana, next year
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