We mix vintage ways with modern days on this site. And today, we’re going to jump the General Lee! Or “flatten the hills” as Waylon Jennings would say. This General Lee, however, is a 2013 Rally Fighter by Local Motors. I must admit, I’ve wished I could jump the General Lee since the first time I saw Dukes of Hazzard as a young boy in the early 80’s. Who didn’t right?! Well, just like Waylon Jennings says, we were definitely “flattnin’ the hills” on this test drive. Buddy Crisp was doing the driving, and Ted Purdy was nice enough to grab some video footage on the iphone for us. For those of you who like cars and like to make things, I highly recommend you check out this new car company. I visited their Chandler, AZ facility last month and it was pretty spectacular. Their business model is built on co-creation and they lead an ever-growing open-source community of designers, creators, makers, all of which are automotive enthusiasts.
In another modern vintage twist, they are actually manufacturing cars there at the Local Motors facility in Chandler, AZ. But they’re doing it on a much smaller scale than we’ve seen in the last 80-100 years (don’t quote my on the exact time frame). They call it a micro-factory, and when you purchase a Rally Fighter, you get to attend two 3 day build sessions and actually “build” your own car. You get to work alongside a a design engineer/mechanic and build the car together.
Not only can you take part in the build process, you get to choose your specific options to make the vehicle specific to you. Never before have these types of customization options been available from a “factory”. Your Rally Fighter can be as unique as you are, and one-of-a-kind, just like your own tattoo.
There’s probably only one thing I can think of that would make the process even better, and that would be allowing your kids to build the car alongside of you. Well guess what, you can do that too. How great is that?!! You can bet that would be an experience your kids would never forget. If you want to check the place out, they have an open house coming up. Check out this link for the details and you can get a tour, check out the cars, and ask all the questions you can think of. The folks that work there are just awesome. I met about 12 people during my visit. You can talk with just about everyone – from the guys welding frames to the folks in the office, and in doing so, you can tell they are “made of the right stuff”.
Now, let’s put the icing on the cake and go for a test ride. Hey, have you ever heard a car company ask, “You wanna take it for a jump?” If so, you can bet you’re in a for a heck-of-a good time!
