LOCAL MOTORS is an open car-building platform and small-batch automotive manufacturer originating from the United States. Founded in 2007 by former U.S. Marine Corps member John B. Rogers Jr. in Phoenix, Arizona, the brand’s core disruptive philosophy centers on “Open Source Car Building” and “Community Co-creation,” completely transforming the closed-loop model of traditional automotive design and sales. Its products emerge exclusively through online community competitions and are produced in small batches using 3D printing technology in self-built “Micro-factories.” The company launched the world’s first open-source mass-produced off-road vehicle in 2014 and the first 3D-printed electric prototype in 2015. Due to its extremely niche positioning and a broken capital chain, Local Motors announced the cessation of operations in January 2022, and its patents and design intellectual property were fully acquired in 2023.
LOCAL MOTORS was founded based on founder Jay Rogers' personal experience. He witnessed the vulnerability caused by extreme reliance on imported oil for U.S. military operations on the battlefield in Iraq. After retirement, he had a radical idea: to create a car company that does not rely on the large industrial system and can quickly produce electric vehicles locally to weaken dependence on imported oil. In 2007, he set up the factory in a minimalist workshop in the Wilham Industrial Park on the outskirts of Boston, proposing to use the crowdsourcing concept of the internet, allowing global designers to participate in vehicle design together, requiring only final assembly in a local micro-factory.
This model was quickly realized into products in practice. In 2010, the first mass-produced car Rally Fighter, decided by community competition, was officially born, rewriting the birth logic of car design. In 2014, LOCAL MOTORS 3D printed and assembled the two-seater electric vehicle Strati on-site at the International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS), attracting widespread global attention. In June 2015, the brand's first overseas dealership opened on Jinbao Street in Beijing, introducing Rally Fighter. Since then, the brand gradually shifted its strategic focus from hardcore off-road vehicles to the autonomous driving field, launched the all-electric unmanned shuttle Olli, and established multiple cooperations with IBM, Siemens, General Electric, etc. However, due to the excessively long commercialization cycle of autonomous driving buses, LOCAL MOTORS officially announced cessation of operations in January 2022 due to lack of funds. In July 2023, Virginia drone manufacturer RapidFlight purchased the entire intellectual property portfolio including patents, designs, and engineering knowledge.
LOCAL MOTORS’ product line includes one mass-produced model, two major 3D printing technology validation models, and one autonomous driving bus.
Rally Fighter (2010–2016): LOCAL MOTORS’ first and only mass-produced on-road off-road vehicle. It is the first mass-produced car model in automotive history born from the “Open Source Crowdsourcing” model. With body dimensions of 4,806 mm in length, 2,057 mm in width, and 1,759 mm in height, and a wheelbase of 2,921 mm, the vehicle weighs approximately 1.7 tons. It is equipped with General Motors’ 6.2L LS3 V8 naturally aspirated engine, paired with a 3-speed or 4-speed automatic transmission, delivering maximum power between 420 and 455 hp and peak torque of 575 N·m. The chassis uses a steel tube space frame structure and long-travel independent suspension, balancing on-road performance with desert off-road capability. The vehicle’s price started at $99,900 in the US, while the unified price in China was as high as 1.58 million RMB. Production ceased completely in 2016.
Strati (2014): The world’s first validation model “printed and assembled” on-site at an exhibition, consisting of only about 50 parts. The chassis and body were printed as a single piece. It features rear-wheel drive, a top speed of approximately 56–64 km/h, and a range between 100 and 240 km.
LM3D Swim (2015–2016): The brand’s first 3D-printed consumer model aimed at US highway road rights certification, with approximately 75% of the entire vehicle’s parts created via 3D printing. It was planned to be equipped with the same powertrain as the BMW i3, with a starting price of $53,000. Due to capital consumption and difficulties in market entry, this vehicle failed to achieve mass delivery.
Olli (2016): LOCAL MOTORS’ all-electric unmanned shuttle built on Strati technology. Equipped with the IBM Watson AI platform and integrated with approximately 30 sensors, it is capable of automatic connection, autonomous navigation, and conversing with passengers. It was designed to provide last-mile micro-circulation solutions for public transportation.
LOCAL MOTORS was always positioned as a small-batch manufacturer. Rally Fighter's total lifecycle production was only about 100+ vehicles. LM3D Swim and Olli failed to achieve stable mass delivery. During the brand's existence, cumulative financing was approx. $100 million, with investment from multiple investors such as Airbus Ventures, Toyota, and Mitsui Sumitomo Bank. For the only fully delivered Rally Fighter, according to statistics from multiple car auction platforms, the second-hand average price for this model ranges from $38,000 to £56,734, and the transaction peak for specific rare vehicles was approx. £94,411. After the brand's demise, its entire intellectual property and remaining residual assets were purchased by RapidFlight and industrial auction houses successively.
LOCAL MOTORS’ core technology is built around three pillars:
Open Source Design and Community Co-creation: LOCAL MOTORS established the earliest and largest crowdsourced car design platform in the world. All vehicle design proposals were uploaded, voted on, and iterated by the community, with the final winner receiving a substantial bonus. Design files follow open-sharing licensing agreements, allowing anyone to legally obtain and participate in modifications. During the design phase, Dassault Systèmes’ CATIA software was used for kinematic analysis, finite element simulation, and composite function development.
Large Area Additive Manufacturing (BAAM) and Carbon Fiber Composite Materials: LOCAL MOTORS pioneered the introduction of BAAM (Big Area Additive Manufacturing) technology in cooperation with Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). Its printing equipment, 12 meters in length, uses a layer-by-layer melt deposition process combined with LNP™ STAT-KON™ carbon fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composite materials provided by SABIC. This approach reduced the approximately 20,000 parts in a traditional car to fewer than 50 while ensuring structural strength.
Micro-factory Production System: The company adopted urban minimalist factories with an area of less than 40,000 square feet to replace comprehensive factories costing billions of dollars. These facilities possess rapid prototyping, small-batch manufacturing, and display retail functions. A single Strati requires approximately 44 hours from digital files to complete vehicle assembly.
LOCAL MOTORS adopts a light-asset micro-factory model globally, not establishing heavy-asset branch factories. The brand successfully established a European micro-factory in Berlin, approx. 1,500 square meters, pre-planned for open day events and vehicle display. The brand had planned Berlin as its European headquarters. The brand also planned to build a complex containing showroom, laboratory, and additive manufacturing factory in National Harbor on the outskirts of Washington. In the Asia-Pacific region, in June 2015, the brand opened its first overseas dealership on Jinbao Street in Beijing and authorized the Chinese general agent to launch the Rally Fighter model. In addition, the brand actively contacted multiple cities including Tokyo, Copenhagen, and Canberra to promote Olli's autonomous driving road tests.
As of 2026, LOCAL MOTORS is effectively defunct. All trademarks, patents, and hardware and software designs were fully acquired by RapidFlight in 2023, and its assets were auctioned. The brand has no plans to resume production, nor have there been any official announcements regarding a “resurrection” or “brand revival.” However, the experience of its main creators and engineering teams has dispersed into the electric vehicle industry. The open-source concept and 3D printing technology that once caused a sensation have inspired numerous subsequent industrial reproduction and distributed manufacturing brand projects. Some existing Rally Fighter vehicles are now found only in the garages of a few high-end car enthusiasts, while others continue to circulate in the secondary market at prices reaching hundreds of thousands of RMB.
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