Commuter Cars: Difference between revisions
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#REDIRECT [[Commuter Cars Tango]] {{R from merge}} |
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{{Article for deletion/dated|page=Commuter Cars|timestamp=20190706214039|year=2019|month=July|day=6|substed=yes|help=off}} |
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{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2019}} |
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[[Image:TangoSide.jpg|thumb|right|300px|The [[Tango T600]]]] |
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'''Commuter Cars''' is a [[Spokane, Washington]] based company founded by Rick Woodbury and his son Bryan Woodbury in 1998.<ref name="Bloomberg">{{cite web |title=Company Overview of Commuter Cars Corporation |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapid=8591364 |website=Bloomberg |publisher=[[Bloomberg L.P.]] |accessdate=16 July 2019}}</ref> They are beginning production of the first of their line of ultra-narrow [[battery electric vehicle|electric sports cars]], the [[Commuter Cars Tango|Tango T600]]. The company designs small ( 69 in. long and 29 in. wide) [[Electric car|electric cars]].<ref name="TIME">{{cite web |title=2005 Commuter Cars Tango |url=http://content.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1669723_1669725_1669744,00.html |work=[[Time Magazine|Time]] |publisher=TIME USA, LLC |accessdate=16 July 2019}}</ref> |
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==History== |
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===1980's and 1990's=== |
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Rick Woodbury has said some time in the early 1980's, his father came up with the idea.<ref name="cbsnews">{{cite web |last1=Neal |first1=Rome |title=Slim Fit For The Freeways |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/slim-fit-for-the-freeways/ |website=cbsnews |publisher=[[CBS Interactive Inc.]] |accessdate=16 July 2019}}</ref> |
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The founder of commuter Cars (Rick Woodbury) discovered that 106 million U.S. commuters were driving to work alone. He decided to produce a single occupant fast electric car. He eventually settled on a design for the car to have individual small motors for each wheel. In his spare time he worked on building his first car. In 1998 he sold his yacht to fund the company.<ref name="Cable"/> He eventually settled on a plan to use parts that were already produced, instead of producing every part in their Commuter Cars. Commuter Cars uses various assemblies manufactured for other, more common cars.<ref>https://www.autoblog.com/2011/03/16/tango-t600/</ref> Among those assemblies is a safety cage made to [[NASCAR]] specifications.<ref name=annarbor>{{Cite web|url=http://www.annarbor.com/business-review/cut-from-the-automotive-x-prize-a-one-man-car-company-leaves-mis-in-triumph/|title=Despite elimination from Automotive X Prize, Commuter Cars president leaves MIS in triumph|website=AnnArbor.com}}</ref> |
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===2000 to 2019=== |
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By 2008 Commuter Cars had only produced 10 cars which sold for an average of $121,000 each.<ref name="Cable">{{cite web |title=Innovation Nation |url=https://money.cnn.com/galleries/2009/smallbusiness/0909/gallery.innovation_nation.fsb/ |website=[[CNN Money]] |publisher=[[Cable News Network]]|accessdate=16 July 2019}}</ref> The first production car was sold to actor [[George Clooney]] who took delivery on August 9, 2005.<ref name="TIME"/> The company generated a significant amount of media interest with the sale to Clooney. However that initial media attention did not lead to a production deal.<ref name=NZ>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11202502|title=Microcar seen as traffic woe answer |work=[[New Zealand Herald]] |date=February 14, 2014|via=www.nzherald.co.nz}}</ref> |
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The company entered the [[Progressive Insurance Automotive X Prize]] in the "Alternative" category. The vehicle entered was a Tango T600 owned by [[Google]] founder [[Sergey Brin]], borrowed back for the competition. After passing many of the performance tests with ease, the car failed to complete the 100 mile durability run (one of the complicated set of requirements for the prize) on July 23, 2010 and was eliminated from the competition.<ref name=annarbor/> The company did not get a production deal with a manufacturer, and by 2014, fewer than 20 cars had been built in the United States.<ref name=NZ/> |
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Throughout the companies history, Commuter Cars has had limited financial resources. When the company did generate a small profit they reinvested the money in research and production capacity for the next vehicles."<ref>https://www.hybridcars.com/tango-t-600/</ref> When the company had sufficient funding, it employed eight workers and was able to manufacture one car a month.<ref name=annarbor/> |
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By 2018 ''[[Car and Driver]]'' magazine gave the company a {{frac|1.1|10}} chance of survival.<ref name="Berk">{{cite web |last1=Berk |first1=Brett |title=18 Automotive Startups and Their Chances of Survival |url=https://www.caranddriver.com/features/g24268804/automotive-startups-explained/?slide=17 |work=[[Car and Driver]] |date=October 26, 2018|publisher=[[Hearst Communications|Hearst Magazine Media, Inc.]] |accessdate=16 July 2019}}</ref> |
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==References== |
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{{Reflist}} |
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==External links== |
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{{Commons category}} |
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* {{official website|http://www.commutercars.com/}} |
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{{Automotive industry in the United States}} |
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[[Category:Car manufacturers of the United States]] |
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[[Category:Battery electric vehicle manufacturers]] |
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[[Category:Companies based in Spokane, Washington]] |
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[[Category:Electric vehicle manufacturers of the United States]] |
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Latest revision as of 13:12, 22 September 2019
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