Comments by "N. Bruce Nelson" (@n.brucenelson5920) on "FutureAzA" channel.

  1. I spent much of a career attempting to clean up the messes, including in Kuwait during the fires. There are American cities that have had as much as 20 ft (!) of fuel floating on top of the water table. This is one of the reasons I am so eager for Aptera to ship. We need to change course as quickly as we can. I have trained workers on cleaning up leaking gas tanks in many countries.
    13
  2. What makes you think that? A glance and you think you understand the design? I had a ride in an early prototype and the engineer driving intentionally hit a speed bump at around 30 with no issues. In testing they have hit curbs hard enough to deflate the tires with no damage to the vehicle. I will be taking mine to Death Valley straight from the factory.
    7
  3. "Aptera has gone bankrupt before" Why do people keep repeating this lie? The fact is that years after Chris and Steve were booted from the company in a surprise board vote organized by the Idealab appointed CEO, they had abandoned the plan that Chris and Steve had raised money for. They were unable to fund their changed vision for the company, and they held an orderly liquidation. The company never went bankrupt.
    6
  4.  @CypHiLL2007  This is pure imaginary fear. Aptera will have this vehicle 3rd party crash tested to FMVSS part 200 standards and publish the results, even though it is not a requirement for the class. Expect this information as soon as there are production intent vehicles available to test.
    6
  5.  @aussieideasman8498  There is photographic documentation of the beta after being driven at a curb at high speed. You need to have some evidence when you accuse others of lying - too bad you have never figured that out.
    6
  6. You don't understand the history nor the market. First of all, there are already more than 33,000 pre-orders for these. Back in the '70s, the 3 wheel Reliant Robin sold around half a million examples and took Reliant to the #2 manufacturer's position in GB. Aptera uses 1/3 the energy to go the same distance as the most economical Tesla. With 28 cu ft of cargo space, the ability to gather much of its energy from the sun, and to charge at a rate of 500 miles per hour from a 50 kW DC fast charger, it will pay for itself in fuel savings alone for most owners in a matter of a few years. Many of us have figured this out. As far as no one in the countryside wanting one - I live in rural Iowa and will be taking delivery of one of the first ones. You don't seem to know the reasons that Aptera failed the first time - it was because the company abandoned the vision of the founders. That is unlikely to happen again. You might want to do some due diligence regarding the history and why people with deep automotive industry knowledge are working with Aptera and investing their own money.
    5
  7. Aptera has shown much better financial management than any other startup I can think of. Chris is hands on on this and has a record of success. He took a lithium battery company public as CEO at his last company and has proven the knows how to do it. I have worked as a supplier to many EV startups over the years and seen both successes and failures. I know of none that have done better in the same time frame.
    5
  8. No, I don't think it works that way. They will deliver largely by order number for orders placed now. The 1000 mile range models will be last, but once they start making those, they will be mixed in with the others.
    4
  9. This version of Aptera started in 2019.
    4
  10.  @bryanwhitton1784  No question that investing in an early stage company is very risky. People were able to go on test drives in the Roadster even when they were still breaking the transmissions with every demo ride. They came within minutes of closing, when a last gasp 50 million dollar investment from Daimler saved them. I know, because I worked across the street from Tesla in Union City at the time, and my company hired their motor engineers when Tesla had to lay them off. I have had a ride in an Aptera alpha prototype. You can do all of this with Aptera, and many, including my wife and myself have. There will be increasing opportunities. I suggest from your comments that you need to do more due diligence. Both founders have developed numerous successful companies. Chris Anthony co-founded and as CEO took public a lithium battery company that I have also invested in, and is rated a buy by the analysts following it. I have also been corresponding with Elaphe and other key partners for well over a year at this point.
    4
  11.  @tygorton  People have already gotten insurance quotes for their Aptera pre-orders, in line with other 3 wheelers such as the Slingshot. I live in rural Iowa, and every one of the independent shops near me can't wait to work on it. I think it unlikely that people will find either one of these to be an issue, based on the responses I have gotten when I inquired.
    4
  12. Aptera has been an admirer of Tesla from the beginning and made no secret of it. Chris owns a model S. Crowd funding doesn't remove the need for due diligence. But it does allow non-qualified investors to participate in a way that didn't used to be possible. I am a small investor, and am grateful for the opportunity. I don't recommend anyone investing anything that they can't afford to lose. Most of my investments are in companies whose products I believe in and I donate with the same thinking that I give to charities - because they can help create a world I want to see and live in.
    4
  13. I live in Iowa, and expect my daily range will be more like 20 - it still makes the full solar option a no brainer.
    4
  14.  @aussieideasman8498  Not what happened last time. More "history" from your imagination.
    3
  15.  @aussieideasman8498  Sandy knew CPC many years ago when he was running the Dodge Viper production. Calling people "clowns" when you are the one who is ignorant is not presenting you in a good light.
    3
  16. Aptera is designed to be at least as safe as other automobiles, and will be voluntarily crash tested to FMVSS Part 200 standards and the results published as soon as there are production intent vehicles available to test.
    3
  17.  @vic321344  Why do you lie? Since you are so fond of Tesla, point us to the results for Cybertruck for comparison, LOL.
    3
  18.  @aussieideasman8498  So was the Tesla Cybertruck. Perhaps you haven't been paying attention to the world supply chain situation?
    3
  19.  @tonydeveyra4611  You have to look into Aptera's history. The founders originally partnered with Idealab. Idealab appointed a CEO from Detroit to start production in 2009. He decided he wanted to build a more conventional car instead and with the help of Google and some other large investors, he ousted the founders from control. He couldn't find backers for his plan, and returned the deposits and liquidated the company in 2011. Aptera's founders went on to found other successful companies. Chris Anthony took a lithium battery company public as CEO. He was offered the rights to the old Aptera in 2019, and regathered the original key people and restarted the company. I don't think Aptera is interested in a buyout at this point.
    3
  20. The arc of the door makes it less problematic than with a normal opening door. Aptera's front wheels fit inside a normal compact parking space.
    3
  21. It is WAY to far in advance to set launch pricing. Look at what happened to Rivian when they tried. While inflation has take a toll, battery prices are plummeting, and the labor, speed and scrap production of the new body panel system are far lower than the original vacuum resin production process would have been. Tooling is much more expensive, but costs are dramatically lower per body produced. We will have to wait and see, once all of the supply contracts are in place.
    3
  22. I will be getting an early Aptera for use in Iowa. I will be giving reports on my experience with it in winter conditions.
    3
  23. Where did you hear that? There is video of prototypes on California highways. My wife and I had rides in an alpha model ourselves last November. No $1000 deposits were ever required by any version of Aptera. The original vehicle deposits were $500 and they were refunded when the company liquidated. The current deposits are $100, or $70 with a code, and they are refundable on request at any time.
    3
  24. I don't think anyone "forgets". Tesla started with a much more expensive and less practical 2 seater. If you read their SEC reports, you will see that, like Tesla, this will only be the first of many vehicles for other, more mainstream customers - all focused on efficiency.
    3
  25. More cash would be welcome and speed up deliveries. However they are in much better shape than Tesla was in Dec. 2008. They seem to have had better cash management, and have doubled their cash position from their last two SEC reports.
    2
  26. I wonder why? They have a much better chance at this point than Tesla did after their first 3 years.
    2
  27. Wheel motors can still have some advantages, depending on the maximum speed desired, basically by lowering the number friction points. It will still present trade-offs - as every engineering solution does.
    2
  28. Aptera was considering use of hemp from the beginning when they were planning to use vacuum resin infusion. At that time they thought the demand would be for around 5,000 vehicles. Pre-order numbers forced them to go to a faster production method, and a side result is that the precision fit of the body panels is improved.
    2
  29. No question that it is risky. Sometimes we donate what we can to charities that have the chance to make a world we wish to see without necessarily needing a sure return on our money.
    2
  30.  @FutureAzA  That is in line with my own thinking, as far as my own pocketbook can take it.
    2
  31. It is.
    2
  32. Aptera does hope to be able to use the Tesla connector, and all the others with adapters.
    2
  33.  @vic321344  So? Aptera has production tooling an order of magnitude less expensive than gigapresses. Aptera has multiple sources for their batteries, including EVE. I have been to the Aptera factory site in Carlsbad, and it never was an "empty hanger". It is now occupied. And Aptera has built more prototypes and is closer to a production one than Tesla is with the Cybertruck. Facts - not spin.
    2
  34. Do you mean intellectual property? You can get a beginning indication by looking at the patent filings. A major one relates to heat dissipation without causing air resistance.
    2
  35. There are already more than 33,000 pre-orders. Once you understand how much fun they are to drive and how much the owners can save driving them, you will start to understand the reasons.
    2
  36. I would be careful about planning to pull anything much heavier than a Sunfish, Sail fish, or a couple of kayaks. What do you have?
    2
  37. Yes, it is in Carlsbad California. I visited last November and had a ride in a prototype.
    2
  38.  @barnabasseadog7660  I have around 1/2 a million safe miles on two wheels. Aptera will be FAR safer.
    2
  39. Delta was not the expected production model. Aptera did not lie, they changed the design with changing circumstances. They originally thought that the demand would be for around 4,000 vehicles - easily achievable with vacuum resin infusion. It became clear that that couldn't scale fast enough to deliver 40,000 plus orders in a timely fashion. The switch to using CPC and carbon fiber and SMC stamped bodies took a while before the agreements were in place, and the new construction had to be designed. Tesla was shipping "production vehicles" before they even had transmissions that could hold up to the torque of the motors, while Aptera has had better financial management and functional prototypes back in 2021. I know, because my wife and I rode in one. We are stoked that the vehicle that will be delivered will be far higher quality than what the original offering was indicating.
    2
  40.  @dr.jerrywolfe1289  Pre-order 12/5/2010 and also a Wefunder investor. My main thing is that the world needs this to happen.
    2
  41. Of course! Thanks for keeping me honest!
    2
  42.  @DQ-su6qf  Splitting the rear wheel would increase the rolling resistance of the vehicle - counter productive.
    2
  43. Aptera Inc. has done a much better job of funding their startup than Tesla did when they began.
    2
  44.  @vic321344  Back in the day they completely ran out of money, laid off all their motor engineers, and were only saved at the last minute by a $50 million dollar loan from Daimler. Don't try to re-write history.
    2
  45.  @vic321344  You are correct about the time line. That first roadster was shipped in February and by December 24th of that year they were completely out of money. For years they were lying about having a working Roadster. They were giving rides to potential customers and investors, and breaking the transmissions with every ride. On demo days, they would wheel the broken vehicle into a garage and close the door to do a quick transmission change while they gave the next ride, all the while claiming that they had working vehicles. They were located across the street in Union City from where I worked and when they laid off their motor engineers we hired them to work on a marine engine project. I saw those early days first hand. That first vehicle shipped 6 years after Tesla started working on it - a far cry from the time Aptera has had for a far more complex task. Credit to Tesla for paving the way.
    2
  46.  @CharlesAnsman  Aptera will be tested by a third party to FMVSS Part 200 standards, and the results will be made public. There are many new vehicles on US roads that have no public crash test ratings at all.
    2
  47.  @charlesrothauser1328  Aptera will be providing open source service documents with QR code access for much of it. My local independent mechanic can't wait to get a shot at mine.
    2
  48. I will make that trip to visit my daughter in Bellingham, WA before I head back to Iowa.
    1
  49.  @aussieideasman8498  When I am driving mine what will that prove?
    1
  50. I am in Southern Iowa, but we still get below zero days. The frequency is decreasing due to global warming. I do remember one year when our biggest snow storm of the year - over 6"- came on a May 1st. A couple of days later it was all gone. The saying here is "if you don't like the weather, wait 5 minutes.
    1