Echo Automotive Fails: Bolt-On Plug-In Hybrid Kits Used Bright Technology

Starting a company is tough; starting a company in the green automotive field may be even tougher.

So it seemed like the engineering team from defunct startup Bright Automotive, once granted investment by GM, might have a second chance to see their technology on the road.

The assets and intellectual property of Bright were acquired by Echo Automotive, which proposed to sell bolt-on plug-in hybrid kits for trucks and vans that could improve fuel economy by 40 percent or more.

ALSO SEE: Will 'Bolt-On' Plug-In Hybrid Package Succeed For Fleets Where Bright Failed?

Sadly, it is not to be.

On August 4, the company received a notice of default on debts it owed, after it had previously been able to extend some financial obligations.

"At this time," it wrote on August 6 in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, "the Company does not have adequate liquidity to repay any outstanding obligations."

Employees were let go at that time, and the company could not find the capital to complete test units and move toward production. Echo Automotive stock [OTC:ECAU] is no longer listed.

Not vans, just kits

The company had started with more modest ambitions than Bright, which proposed not only to develop a plug-in hybrid system but also a lightweight, aerodynamic delivery van in which to sell it,