Mobius Motors: A Different Kind Of Low-Cost Car
Africa is quickly becoming the focus for auto makers looking to discover the last island of growth in an overly saturated global marketplace. Toyota, PSA and Renault-Nissan are hoping to make inroads on the continent beyond their current strongholds in trucks (Toyota) and North Africa (PSA/Renault) respectively. But a new start-up is proposing a very different kind of car for Africa, one far removed from the current crop of compact offerings.
With a price of $10,000 USD, the Mobius retails for the same price as a used Toyota Corolla does in Kenya, but has a very different mission. The tube frame SUV packs a 1.6L 4-cylinder making 86 horsepower and 94 lb-ft of torque, while lacking comforts like windows or air-conditioning. Top speed is a mere 75 mph, but with 9 inches of ground clearance and a payload capacity of 1,375 lbs, the Mobius is designed to carry people and goods across rough African roads, and nothing else.
With $50 million in funding, Mobius should be able to bring their first 50 trucks – and there could be more money on the way. Mobius is backed by the Pan-African Investment Company, which is partially controlled by billionaire cosmetics magnate Ronald Lauder. While $50 million is barely a drop in the bucket for most automotive companies, there’s clearly much more available, provided that the Mobius succeeds.
More by Derek Kreindler
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Mobius Motors is mostly known for African low cost car maker. They aim at providing low cost transportation in Africa and are quite successful in doing so.
I think this sort of vehicle has more potential ... http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/55/Tuk-tuk_in_Nairobi_2.JPG And on the outside chance that they succeed, their design can be copied by Korean or Chinese companies. As far as Africa in general -- and to the extent that anyone can generalize about a continent -- Americans don't get a representative view of their state of development. I was behind the curve and never saw pre development China. I wouldn't be at all surprised if parts of it develop quickly.