Riversimple, Welsh car maker, doing a Hydrogen fuel cell/Supercapacitor hybrid.
In-hub motors acting almost entirely as brakes which feed the capacitors.
Looks interesting compared to the trad hybrid or fuel-cell machines.
11hp fuel cell plus the stored charge means 10s to 60, and can then cruise at 60mph on the fuel cell output.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=utmkddBFUg0
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That is quite impressive Lygonos. Although, if I was going to take part in a video about my revolutionary car, I think I'd have chosen to wear a newer jumper ! Tsk !
;-)
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And the hairdo is reminiscent of Radovan Karadžić in his ethnic cleansing phase.
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Yes it is ! Knew I'd seen him somewhere before.
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Clever bloke. Love the business model. I hope the car is good.
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I am more impressed with the business model...... provided the price per month is correct.
big gamble for the company
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Mmmm, great idea, but not sure about the business model. I'm not sure that they will get the take up quickly enough to fund capital outlay as well as such things as recalls, insurance and legal costs, etc. etc.
Still, I do hope it works because I think its a fantastic philosophy.
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>> Mmmm, great idea, but not sure about the business model. I'm not sure that they
>> will get the take up quickly enough to fund capital outlay
The faster the take-up, the higher the capital requirement once it gets going. I expect they have already looked at block discounting, or some other way of using the rental cash flows as security.
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Well its a curve isn't it. Really fast take up, medium and slower all have different impacts.
Whenever I see these crowdfunded things I can't stop myself wondering why traditional routes weren't available.
I read somewhere that only something like 35% of projects raise the level of investment they wanted, and only 1/3 of those ever ship as promised.
So what's that, 12% chance? You must have exhausted a bunch of banks and traditional investors to end up with those odds.
Last edited by: No FM2R on Tue 7 Jun 16 at 14:16
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They are trying to raise £3m for 7.5% of the business.
I think the appeal of crowd funding is that while it doesn't guarantee that the business is viable, it does potentially get over the chicken and egg question to a degree. PE investors want too much of the business if they come in at all, and lenders want some track record (and/or your house).
If they can get a few cars out there, showing reliability and steady rental income, it should get a lot easier with either of those routes.
I might have a little bit.
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>>They are trying to raise £3m for 7.5% of the business.
But doesn't that raise more questions?
Firstly is values a company that holds no patents, no defence against competition and no market or brand possession at £40m. Which seems like a lot.
Secondly, that sounds like they want the £3m for OpEx to me, so what happens after that is gone, which in automotive development will be very quick, since it will likely represent no increase in company value?
You'd think that they would have thought this through and know what they are doing, but the track record of crowdfunded investments means that is far from sure.
I might also have a little bit, but more out of hope than financial or business logic.
Last edited by: No FM2R on Tue 7 Jun 16 at 14:50
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Yes I wondered what to infer from "open-source design".
If they can push some of the "amortisation" back up the supply chain, that will save some cash, but I can imagine a conventional supplier's reaction to being paid 1p a mile for his motors instead of full settlement. On the other hand, recurring income has its attractions, especially if the variable manufacturing and finance costs can be recovered in a reasonable period, with the prospect of a further several years rentals.
Small scale may be an advantage in establishing those relationships.
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Fuel cell Hybrid - Runfer D'Hills
