Elio's tiny car gets 84 mpg and costs only $7,300 - we checked it out

Elio Motors has one of the more interesting, and simple, ideas in the auto industry.

The Arizona-headquartered transport startup, with a factory in Louisiana, just started taking deposits on its first vehicle, a three-wheeler that's street-legal, made in the US, and will sell for just over $7,000. So far, more than 50,000 people have plunked down some dough for a preorder.

The idea is to provide basic mobility to folks who couldn't otherwise afford a set of wheels. The cheapest new car on sale in the US, the Nissan Versa, goes for over 10 grand.

True, you could get a halfway decent used car for $7,000, but it probably wouldn't be as exotic as Elio's new machine. It also wouldn't get over 80 miles per gallon.

So what's the thing like? Well, it runs on gas and has a standard transmission - and just two seats. Elio brought a prototype by our New York office, and we checked it out:

Photos by Hollis Johnson.