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Announcement - Orbital Last Call!!!

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Old Jun 5, 2007, 08:33 PM
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Announcement - Orbital Prestige 2-DIN Upgrade - Last Call!!!

Last Call / Production Announcement

It's now or never!

Orbital Prestige 2-DIN Dash Upgrade (’01-06 Lancer/EVO)

In a motion to move on to bigger and better things, we will be ceasing worldwide production of our widely acclaimed Prestige Series 2-DIN Dash Upgrade Kits for the 2001-2006 CT9A Lancer and Lancer Evolution Sport Vehicles. In effort to address the significant level of demand for our product, we will offer approximately 300-400 units directly to retail consumers and/or wholesale distributors until the end of the summer; after which we will cease production.

Units will be available in the black grain finish as soon as mid-June, followed by various production runs throughout the summer season. We do apologize, but the metallic finish has been discontinued so please refrain from inquiring about it as there is nothing we can do at this point to bring it back to the market.

The price is $295 per kit and a one-year warranty is included for any manufacturing defects in quality or craftsmanship. Consumers may order directly at www.orbitaltechnik.com and distributors may contact us at wholesale@orbitaltechnik.com with orders, questions, or concerns.

If you’ve been on the fence about an interior upgrade for your Lancer/EVO, now is your chance to decide. Order your Orbital Prestige 2-DIN Upgrade while supplies last!














Last edited by Rich@Orbital; Jun 5, 2007 at 08:47 PM.
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Old Jun 5, 2007, 08:59 PM
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is there silver on site
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Old Jun 5, 2007, 09:03 PM
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Originally Posted by Huy's Evo
is there silver on site
Silver is out of production. The last few pictures above are for mere close-up representation of the product.
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Old Jun 5, 2007, 09:23 PM
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Why is production coming to an end? Is there a shortage in plastic?
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Old Jun 5, 2007, 09:45 PM
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Bump for Rich.
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Old Jun 5, 2007, 10:30 PM
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Originally Posted by Blue Evo 8
Why is production coming to an end? Is there a shortage in plastic?

We're moving on to other things and the business is going into a state of dormancy within the automotive aftermarket.
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Old Jun 6, 2007, 04:30 AM
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Thanks for letting us know!!! I bought mines now! I just wish it was in metallic, but anyways thanks again!
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Old Jun 6, 2007, 06:51 AM
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Well that sucks......

Rich when do you think we will have all of the kits to fill our back orders here? Its been months since we recieved anything.
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Old Jun 6, 2007, 07:28 AM
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Originally Posted by Jrod@Buschur
Well that sucks......

Rich when do you think we will have all of the kits to fill our back orders here? Its been months since we recieved anything.
It does, but what sucks more is the surprisingly low amount of wholesale support for this product from the EVOm vendor community (with the obvious exception of 201 Motorsports and yourselves). I'm personally working on other things and this project, as good/fun as it was, was simply not enough in justifying the means of all the hard work involved.

You guys are due for the first shipment in the next two weeks.
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Old Jun 6, 2007, 07:49 AM
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Originally Posted by Rich@Orbital
It does, but what sucks more is the surprisingly low amount of wholesale support for this product from the EVOm vendor community (with the obvious exception of 201 Motorsports and yourselves). I'm personally working on other things and this project, as good/fun as it was, was simply not enough in justifying the means of all the hard work involved.

You guys are due for the first shipment in the next two weeks.
Well I wish you the best of luck with the new journey.

Looking forward to the shipment as well as im sure the customers are as well.
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Old Jun 6, 2007, 10:47 AM
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in defense of vendors out there, was it really a lack of support from them? or rather a lack in mass-production from you? I know that when I was in the market for your kit, ALL of the vendors that wanted to sell the kit were either in the dark in terms of production ETS's, delays, halts, etc. There was definitely a demand for your product, I just don't think you were able to keep up with it. a 6 month back-order would definitely shake the confidence of ANY vendor trying to promote your kit...

Not a direct bash at you... just giving you another perspective.... Great product by the way. Its a shame youre stopping it. Good luck as well!
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Old Jun 6, 2007, 02:17 PM
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Originally Posted by antics22
in defense of vendors out there, was it really a lack of support from them? or rather a lack in mass-production from you? I know that when I was in the market for your kit, ALL of the vendors that wanted to sell the kit were either in the dark in terms of production ETS's, delays, halts, etc. There was definitely a demand for your product, I just don't think you were able to keep up with it. a 6 month back-order would definitely shake the confidence of ANY vendor trying to promote your kit...

Not a direct bash at you... just giving you another perspective.... Great product by the way. Its a shame youre stopping it. Good luck as well!
Excellent point, but the lack of support from vendors was the root of the vicious cycle we encountered with supply. We invested heavily in the design, engineering, tooling, and production of our kit hoping that once the product hit the market vendors would jump on board.

Several high-volume vendors, most of which promote and sell here on EVOm, gave me the confidence that I needed to invest so much in rolling out and marketing this product. When we hit the EVO community back in August '06 with our production models, the only vendor to be found was 201 Motorsports followed by Buschur Racing not so long after. (These guys are pioneers in the EVO aftermarket, btw.. )

Given the fact that manufacturing these kits (let alone two variations of the kit, with different preparation & manufacturing processes altogether) costs so much and quantities must be ordered in denominations of twenty-five per production run; there was very little cash in our business to invest into inventory. Furthermore, when the distributors we did have ordered small quantities (i.e. 4-8 units) it made it very difficult to keep supply available without dipping into bankruptcy. Mind you, we haven't even gotten into the B.S. we encountered with our manufacturer, who as far as I am concerned works as inefficiently as a 1968 Ford Mustang equipped with a 289 cid, 2-Barrel V8 (200bhp).

People can say what they want, but the bottom line is that Orbital was the one and only company that stepped up to the plate in effort to cater to the EVO community with an interior upgrade that they wanted and yet could not have due to the the available trim options of the USDM EVO. We did it. Even with limited capital, we released it and did so to the best of our ability.

Now, this is my company. I am moving on to other things and have had an amazing time with my EVO and the EVO community to which it belongs. Before I can do so, I need to stock out on the next 400 kits so that I may pay off our existing lines of credit, possibly capitalize a bit, and move the business into a state of dormancy until my next brainstorm of an idea sweeps the aftermarket.

The only way that I could remotely forsee this kit staying on the market following the 400 unit production run is if we were to strike up an account with a high-volume retail chain such as Best Buy or Circuit City...in which case, supply would never be an issue again. But, as i've learned with the majority of EVO vendors (especially those on EVOm), sometimes you just can't count on anyone but yourself and/or a select few to get things done.

That's my honest and straightforward $0.02; take it as you wish.
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Old Jun 6, 2007, 02:34 PM
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Originally Posted by Rich@Orbital
Excellent point, but the lack of support from vendors was the root of the vicious cycle we encountered with supply. We invested heavily in the design, engineering, tooling, and production of our kit hoping that once the product hit the market vendors would jump on board.

Several high-volume vendors, most of which promote and sell here on EVOm, gave me the confidence that I needed to invest so much in rolling out and marketing this product. When we hit the EVO community back in August '06 with our production models, the only vendor to be found was 201 Motorsports followed by Buschur Racing not so long after. (These guys are pioneers in the EVO aftermarket, btw.. )

Given the fact that manufacturing these kits (let alone two variations of the kit, with different preparation & manufacturing processes altogether) costs so much and quantities must be ordered in denominations of twenty-five per production run; there was very little cash in our business to invest into inventory. Furthermore, when the distributors we did have ordered small quantities (i.e. 4-8 units) it made it very difficult to keep supply available without dipping into bankruptcy. Mind you, we haven't even gotten into the B.S. we encountered with our manufacturer, who as far as I am concerned works as inefficiently as a 1968 Ford Mustang equipped with a 289 cid, 2-Barrel V8 (200bhp).

People can say what they want, but the bottom line is that Orbital was the one and only company that stepped up to the plate in effort to cater to the EVO community with an interior upgrade that they wanted and yet could not have due to the the available trim options of the USDM EVO. We did it. Even with limited capital, we released it and did so to the best of our ability.

Now, this is my company. I am moving on to other things and have had an amazing time with my EVO and the EVO community to which it belongs. Before I can do so, I need to stock out on the next 400 kits so that I may pay off our existing lines of credit, possibly capitalize a bit, and move the business into a state of dormancy until my next brainstorm of an idea sweeps the aftermarket.

The only way that I could remotely forsee this kit staying on the market following the 400 unit production run is if we were to strike up an account with a high-volume retail chain such as Best Buy or Circuit City...in which case, supply would never be an issue again. But, as i've learned with the majority of EVO vendors (especially those on EVOm), sometimes you just can't count on anyone but yourself and/or a select few to get things done.

That's my honest and straightforward $0.02; take it as you wish.
Very well put Rich. I for one can vouch for the kit and never even winced at the price. I also know you poured your heart and soul into this project so its a shame to see it go. Too bad its shutting down. Again good luck with your endeavors!
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Old Jun 6, 2007, 02:36 PM
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I never purchased originally because I didnt want to place my gauges on the pillar and regret missing out on the silver finish I wanted. I wouldnt have thought production would have ended on this though because it was such a well thoughtout and nicely crafted piece. I can definetly tell you there was demand, hate to hear that you had such pains with the company doing the work.

The price is high in the view of some due to the fact of it being two pieces of plastic (basically) but the part to understand is that this never got to be a mass produced kit where there were tons being sold (like for a Honda Accord or whatnot). It was a custom built piece that was being fabricated specifically to fit our cars PERFECTLY. I'm **** with my car. If its not perfect, its not going on.

I would recommend all of you on the bench to take this opportunity now and buy it even if it will sit there for awhile.. pieces like this dont show up everyday.
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Old Jun 6, 2007, 03:28 PM
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Originally Posted by outsider
The price is high in the view of some due to the fact of it being two pieces of plastic (basically) but the part to understand is that this never got to be a mass produced kit where there were tons being sold (like for a Honda Accord or whatnot). It was a custom built piece that was being fabricated specifically to fit our cars PERFECTLY. I'm **** with my car. If its not perfect, its not going on.
Exactly.

Most people seem to have the misconception that we're selling these kits hand over foot. We're not. The reality is that there was a serious investment made into releasing this product for a very niche market. Like you said, in essence it's a custom part designed to look OEM...that's definitely not a cheap thing to do for such a small market.

Originally Posted by outsider
I would recommend all of you on the bench to take this opportunity now and buy it even if it will sit there for awhile.. pieces like this dont show up everyday.
Thank you!

I hope we can stock out on these kits. I sure know I need to recoup all of this sunk cost soon. Come on guys, get on it!!
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