Vroom for everyone: Local Motors unveiling crowdsourced Rally Fighter at SEMA
Local Motors Rally Fighter – Click above for high-res image gallery
The wild things have left the movie theaters and are headed to SEMA. Case in point, the Rally Fighter. Coming from Local Motors, which dipped into the collective wisdom of the Internet (not sure if wisdom is the right word there, but whatever) to crowdsource the design and specifications of their first vehicle. Intended to be an eco-minded Baja-like daily driver, the Rally Fighter uses a BMW 335d engine to achieve 36 mpg on the highway, or 30 mpg when off-road. Why is decent fuel economy important? Local Motors' CEO Jay Rogers fought in the Iraq war as a Marine and "saw the oil problem with his own eyes," according to Local Motors PR.
The Rally Fighter is scheduled to leave Wareham, Massachusetts today in order to make it to SEMA for its unveiling on November 3. For more on Local Motors' microfactory and crowdsourcing processes, check out a video of Rogers after the jump. You don't often hear an automotive CEO compare his company to Build-A-Bear, but you can in this case.
Gallery: Local Motors Rally Fighter
[Source: Local Motors]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Laurens 1:43PM (10/29/2009)
That is the best BMW engine, where it matters. Torque, and more torque.
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Throwback 1:51PM (10/29/2009)
I like this! It's no beauty but there is purpose to the design. It could also be that I love the WRC.
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B.Trig 2:09PM (10/29/2009)
Looks like a cross between a '67 Camaro and a '55 300SL coupe. Would make a good Hotwheels car, not sure I'd care to drive one though...
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paulwesterberg 3:51PM (10/29/2009)
A rwd car would not work well in the snow where I live in the winter and I value efficiency more than "cool" so I would never buy this car. But...
It has decent gas mileage for an off road vehicle, but I'm sure most people who need such a vehicle would prefer 4wd.
I think the collaborative design strategy is interesting and it is nice to see someone trying a different distribution and sales model. Selling cars that are user serviceable based on commodity components seems more likely to work with electric vehicles but I hope they can make a go of it.
paulwesterberg 3:53PM (10/29/2009)
Hopefully their next design will be something along the lines of a model s or fisker karma. Those are cool cars that have excellent designs as well as excellent efficiency.
Rain 2:59PM (10/29/2009)
Is there any chance of this,turning up at the Dakkar Rally?
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BowlingGreen 9:25AM (10/30/2009)
Congratulations, Local Motors on the launch of the Rally Fighter. This is real innovation. "Build a better process"
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