Edition #TWENTY
A Night to Remember
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Edition twenty of our newsletter kicks off with some big news: the ball is officially rolling on our investment round to fund the next stage of our company! I’m still coming down from the high of driving Shoreline Prototype One into the stunning Club Wheelhouse, and sharing our vision with our hometown community. I’d love to tell you more about the investor night, starting with my special connection to what is now Club Wheelhouse. Before it was a beautifully appointed social club, the building was home to world-renowned automotive restoration specialist Phil Reilly & Company. They would have the most incredible selection of cars in their workshop on any given day, and I first discovered the shop about 15 years ago after chasing a prewar Bugatti down the street on my bike as a teenager. I would stop by occasionally and chat with Phil and the people who worked there. They always answered my questions, and they never turned me away. That experience did a lot to feed my automotive passion, and to be presenting in the same building all these years later felt like a full circle moment. So I’d like to say a huge thank you to Club Wheelhouse for having us, and for providing a home for the automotive-inspired.
Weeks of preparation went into the planning, setup, and execution of our “Shoreline Cocktail Hour,” but it wasn’t until the day before when I was arranging 50+ chairs that I realized the gravity of what we were about to do. Which is funny, because just a few days before that, I was stressing over how few RSVP’s we had gotten! That was when I realized just how unpopular bulk emails are. Following up individually with everyone resulted in even more people confirming than we had originally invited. At one point I was a little worried about just how many names started showing up on the attendance list that I didn’t recognize, but that was a great problem to have. Over 50 people came in the end!
We were truly honored to have the crowd that showed up - some of the biggest names in the California automotive community were in attendance. With the stage set for a larger-than-expected crowd and no microphones, we turned our voices up and delivered a well-received presentation that laid out our vision to return the sports car to its racing roots. After our pitch, we had plenty of time for an engaged audience to answer questions. The feedback we received was overwhelmingly positive, culminating in multiple individuals committing investments by the end of the night! Plus, we got to drive a few points home that are really important to us. Here they are:
We are extremely capital-efficient and optimized for manufacturing.
The entirety of our vehicle architecture exists digitally, meaning we can update, procure, manufacture, and assemble our cars with an extremely high level of efficiency. Before a single part was made, we built a robust back-end for manufacturing to aerospace standards. Our car was designed to be easy to assemble, disassemble, and repair; a two man team disassembled the prototype in 2.5 days and fully reassembled it in four days. Our lean structure, internal skillsets, and extremely efficient use of capital are our secret weapons to profitably develop and produce low-volume sports cars.
We are building a car without equal, at an incredible value.
Nearly 1,000 lbs. lighter than a Mazda Miata. A higher power-to-weight ratio than a 911 GT3. A specific output on par with the latest Cosworth hypercar V12's. And an incredible value for those who crave a sports prototype-inspired experience. The price of entry for that experience today is in excess of $2,000,000, whether a new model (GMA T.33, Ferrari SP3, De Tomaso P72) or an original racer (Porsche 906, Dino 206 SP). With the LM Coupe, we are combining the driving purity of a 1960's sports prototype with a modern, aerospace-grade approach to build quality, safety, and durability. All for less than $500,000.
We are developing a truly unique powertrain.
We would not have come close to hitting our performance targets with any engine other than the BMW-derived straight six that we have made our own. It began life as a motorcycle engine, and before we go any further I'd like to address the false notion that motorcycle engines are somehow inferior to car engines. What makes an engine a motorcycle engine? Small displacement, extreme power density, and an integrated gearbox. Motorcycle engines are closer to “racing engines” than most “car” engines. Sir Gordon Murray (designer of the McLaren F1) is perhaps the most notable person who saw the advantages of motorcycle engines early on; he chose a Yamaha bike engine to power his first self-designed sports car. Even at the pinnacle of automotive technology today, Czinger Vehicles built a small displacement twin-turbo V8 based on two Kawasaki motorcycle engines to power their multi-million dollar hypercar. Our 1.65L straight six originates from BMW Motorrad, but there is a lot that sets our 250 hp engine apart from the 160 hp engine it's based on. We realized we need to do more to share that story, and it starts with our engine development partner: Ed Pink. They will receive fresh BMW crate engines and build them to our specification by hand, just as they have for every Singer 911 Classic and Czinger 21C (cars that cost 2-4x as much as ours). With Ed Pink we have the ideal partner in producing a high quality, durable, and incredibly powerful engine for our cars. Our engine is "BMW derived, Ed Pink built."
Those are the SparkNotes from our first investor night! If you have any questions about our upcoming vehicle, the unique skill sets that have allowed a two-man team to produce production-ready components from scratch, or our robust strategy to establish ourselves as a lasting carmaker, feel free to reply to this email. I could happily talk about Shoreline all day.
And now, it’s back to the behind-the-scenes work. I can’t wait to share some of the developments that are already underway for our prototype! In the meantime, you can visit our website to learn more about our vision for Shoreline, reach out, or shop for apparel. By subscribing to this newsletter, you’ll be the first to know about vehicle updates, future reveals, apparel releases and more… stay tuned!
Sincerely,
Spencer Beckman
Co-Founder & CEO