I remember an incident from 25 to 30 years ago during the Energy Crisis of the 1970's. Sixty Minutes aired a report about a feisty single mother who had designed a three wheeled automobile that could perform as well as a regular car but get 70-80 miles per gallon. The big three automakers where not interested in her design so she was starting her own company to make and sell this vehicle. I think she had given the car a goofy name such as "The Melvin" or something like that. Sixty Minutes was airing the report to showcase the self-destructive complacency of American automakers compared to the initiative of individual Americans.
A year later, I read in a magazine (I think it was "Parade") about how this woman was actually a ############ con-man who had just been busted for fraud, having pocketed considerable sums from private investors who did not realize that there was no car, only a mockup used to scam gullible investors and Sixty Minutes investigators.
Repeated internet searches have yielded nothing on this. Does anyone recall this incident, its details, or where information on it can be found?
I did a search, didn't turn up anything that seemed to match this story...If it happened in the 70s, it probably wouldn't be on the Sixty Minutes webpage (which I checked), or Parade's site...Any names...? I searched for a car named Melvin...no luck. Any other info?
I haven't heard of this, but I'll do some research to see what I can dig up. Though 70-80 mpg doesn't seem that outlandish. In Europe they have tiny smart cars that get great gas mileage. Of course, you can't get them here in America, though I've heard that BMW is thinking of introducing one soon.
Terry Austin
Posted: Wed Nov 17, 2004 | 02:18 PM
The problem with the 70-80 mpg cars in the US is that the only way to get the kind of mileage is to sacrifice mass, which sacrifices safety. There are cars on the road today that get 50+ mpg (at least officially), but they are about as small and light - and still able to pass the crash tests - as possible with today's technology. So 70-80 isn't at all out of the realm of what's possible in the next few years.
Nick
Posted: Wed Nov 17, 2004 | 03:52 PM
what one must remember about American cars is their crash tests are much more rigorous- as it is assumed that the average American exercises his right not to wear a seatbelt. As a result, bigger, sturdier, more enviromentally detrimental cars are seen on american roads than in europe.
Paul
Posted: Wed Nov 17, 2004 | 05:14 PM
How many kilometres to the litre would that be?
We got the VW Lupo 3.0.
Doesn't mean it has a 3 litre engine, but it uses only 3 litres of fuel on 100 kilometres!
Montague
Posted: Thu Jan 27, 2005 | 09:10 AM
You are thinking of the Dale. The "woman" in question was, as was self-evident to some of us and should have been obvious to everyone at the time, a transvestite. I believe that Car & Driver published an article on the whole affair a few years back.
Montague
Posted: Thu Jan 27, 2005 | 09:17 AM
Self-correction - she was a transsexual. There is a distinction. No value judegement meant on her lifestyle, but one suspects there may have been an underlying element of self-deception. Or so it would seem to a lay person.
Montague
Posted: Thu Jan 27, 2005 | 10:08 AM
This link has some more information, and the names square with what I remember. http://www.3wheelers.com/dale.html
And yes, I am having a slow day at the office.
LOL
That's a really good find. I love it when questions about totally obscure subjects can actually get answered. It took two months, but the question was answered.
Captain Al
in Alberta, Canada Member
Posted: Thu Jan 27, 2005 | 02:54 PM
I have a 1991 Pontiac Firefly. On a recent trip over the Rocky Mountains from British Columbia to Alberta, I measured my mileage at 51 mpg. Some diesel cars like the VW turbo diesel Jetta get around 60 mpg.
I'm sure that if 70-80 mpg is attainable, it must be about the theoretical maximum fuel economy. After all, there is a finite amount of energy in a gallon of fuel. Like one commentor said, the only way to get better now is to reduce weight. Unless you want a motorcycle or go-cart, how can we expect better?
This scam is similar to those "special carburetors", talked about for many years, that promised fantastic gas mileage. But of course, the oil companies bought all the patents to keep them off the market!
RJ
in Wenatchee,Washington State
Posted: Fri Feb 25, 2005 | 10:49 PM
I remember the Dale it from when I was a kid back in the 1970's.During the gas crises then.
My dad had a broucher on it.
Can't give ya info,but I thought it was called the Dale.Been to many years gone by,but it is an interesting part of american history.
Tare
Posted: Wed Oct 05, 2005 | 09:10 AM
there is a story airing on Unsolved mysteries about the Dale wich was the "Wonder Car" of the 70's. Designed by Elizabeth Dale, a transexual, the car was suspose to be a crunch on the energy crisis of the 70's. You can get more info on the story from Unsolved Mysteries.
Rene Clarke
in Space
Posted: Wed Oct 05, 2005 | 09:12 AM
"Her" name was Liz Carmichael. The car "Dale". Ms. Carmichael wound up only having a two year suspended sentence and currently lives in (ironically) Dale, TX as a private citizen.
John
Posted: Sun Dec 25, 2005 | 03:27 PM
Holy Smokes! I posted this question over a year ago and stopped looking for additional responses after a week. I checked the thread today on a whim and found the answers all laid out. Thanks, guys!
j rogers
in oklahoma
Posted: Thu Aug 03, 2006 | 10:37 AM
I just saw an Unsolved Mysteries about Liz. The car was the Dale. It's was interesting to see how easily she/he talked the investers out of so much money with out any real proof of a product.
Dempsey
Posted: Thu Aug 03, 2006 | 04:23 PM
Hey i just watched it on unsolved mysterious today too!!! I cant believe she fooled everybody like that, i find it quite funny tho. To bad it wasnt real, it was an ugly car but who cares with gas mileage like that.
Larry
in Pasadena, CA
Posted: Wed Jan 24, 2007 | 01:22 PM
Wow! is this a surprise. I was just on eBay looking on how to sell my original Dale Automobile brochure and couldn't find any others. I googled Dale and came up with this forum. I was in the Porsche business in the 70's and was approached by Liz to invest in "her" company. I actually thought about it for a "minute". Whew! Any body know what my original brochure might be worth?
Ron Friedland
in CO
Posted: Sun Mar 18, 2007 | 06:36 PM
Hey people...
I actually lived on the same block as Liz Carmichael and her family -- I was 13-14 at the time, and hung out with his/her kids... never saw the Dale car parked out in the driveway, though...lol... Weird family. There was an "aunt" who I believe turned out to be the wife, three daughters and an older son...and there might have been a baby, too... One day when I was in their house I saw all of the wigs, makeup, girdles, etc... didn't think much of it at the time, as a naive early teen, but it sure fit the picture once all the news came out... I remember the local news did a very positive story about the car and the "woman", film clips showing it driving, espousing all the P.R. hype... good idea; too bad it never came out...
I wrote a song about it soon after: The Ballad of the Dale... some lyrics: (go easy on me, I was maybe 15 when I wrote it!)
There once was a car that they called Dale
Nobody thought that it would fail
They said it was made from original parts
Later they found it was from many different cars
An Indiana farm girl, Mrs. Carmichael
Came up with the dream to make this car
Would only cost 1900 dollars
If only it would live up to par...
Supposedly went 70 miles on a gallon
Three wheels was all that it had
There would be 88,000 by the end of its first summer
It drove a lot of people mad...
People came from miles around
To get a glimpse of the Dale
Another startling discovery was found
That this lady was a male....
And that's the story of the Dale...
Cheers, all!
pnamajck
in dfw, texas
Posted: Fri Jul 13, 2007 | 12:09 PM
greets to all . . . first-time poster here.
i found your message boards while scouring google search engine . . . using "the dale automobile back in the 70's" as search filter.
same as john's original post . . . i also found nothing else using the filter stated above. the search parameters "Liz Carmichael" returned all sorts of hits. i found the postings in this message board entertaining . . . amazed that others out here remembered this americana back in the mid 70's . . . hats off to everyone. i never had a brochure . . . but i had kept the article posted by car 'n driver for a couple decades. no longer have those magazines. <sigh>
ok . . . so Jerry Dean Michael had medical operation and became Liz Carmichael . . . and proceeded to bilk investors of a nice chunk of change.
how about the phrase "history repeats itself" . . . you all heard of that? check out the link here 'n see if you think it is genuine or another soon-to-be hoax :
