Lycoia Motor Company

Lycoia Motors (NYSE: LYCM), was founded in 1905 as part of the boom of cheaper automobiles built by assembly line. The original founder, William Lycoia, the great grandson of Japanese Immigrants, was an entrepreneur who saw the benefit of hiring many people to work on assembly lines to mass produce items of value. The items he chose were cars. The first model was named the Quail. The corporate headquarters are in Decatur, IL. Lycoia Motors International is corporate designation the for Lycoia and it's two subsidiary brands of Aura and Secura in markets outside the US and Canada.

1905 - 2010
During the first decades of the company, Lycoia mass-produced vehicles and sold them where the majority of the working class could afford them. During the first World War, the company made ambulance vans for the Allied forces. During the 1920's, the vehicle line expanded from the Quail to include the Rancher, which was the first small truck the company produced. During the Great Depression, the company nearly went bankrupt but had split off its assets to other companies. It regaining them during World War II, where it produced parts for tanks and aircraft during the war for the Allies. The 50's were a hard time for the company after other car companies were more noticed for being "fresh" when it came to designing their cars. This was the era when they took a chance and funded a small race team out of Indianapolis, Indiana. During Lycoia's tenure in racing leagues, the company's brand was more noticed than before but it wasn't as recognized as the main "American brands". Lycoia expanded their reach to several racing series across the globe, the highest before the TMMC was a European Touring Car series. Teams using Lycoia have found moderate success in whatever series they were involved in.

2011 - Now
Lycoia is currently engaged with several TM sponsored or controlled series, along with several other organizations spanning the United States and the world. The manufacturer made its debut in the 2011 Round of Indianapolis, surprising many in the series by running in the top five before tire problems forced the car driven by Greg Woodard to pit twice and fall back to 28th. The 2011 Round of Decatur saw the Striker SS being driven for the first time by Teller Motors and the Brute also made another appearance. Both cars didn't handle very well on the track, though the Striker SS had better handling than the Brute. A gaffe made by Terra International Motorsports team owner Gerald Lamb almost cost the team and the manufacturer a shot in the upcoming 2012 Round of New York. There are rumors that the team may be moving elsewhere for their factory team, although the latest incident only made the move more profound.

Expansion and Conflicts
Due to the success of the Brute and Interceptor in various racing series. Several plants are being built around the World, primarily in the USA and Canada. Due to company policy, no other plants will be shut down to 'balance' costs or workload. The demand for vehicles from Lycoia has skyrocketed ever since the brand got enough screen time in ARLA and the TM Master Cup Series. Because of the sudden demand for new vehicles, plants are being built in several states, including South Carolina. The NLRB and the UAW have put in a cease and desist order for Lycoia to stop building a plant near the city of Columbia, South Carolina. The reasoning and the Mainstream Media's interpretation of the situation is because the company wants to get revenge on the unions for a strike it pulled years ago in Washington State. The company has repeatedly stated that this is not the case and that they were not shutting down plants in non-right to work states. The company has a strict policy of not forcing it's employees into a union of any kind, instead, allowing the workers choose between electing their own representation (without the dues, the representative(s) then get a slight pay raise for the extra workload). Or going with a union, which comes with the dues, among other things. Lycoia Motors is a right to work company, regardless of which state it's located in. This has gotten it into trouble with the Federal Government in the last year or so. It was also raided by the Department of Justice for 'improper importation of goods'. Except, the company had all the correct paperwork and the country which the goods (wood dash paneling for the higher end vehicles) came from backed up the company and the paperwork. The DoJ told the company if they wanted to manufacturer certain vehicles, they could open a plant in Mexico. The company refused to pull the same move Saar did, stating it was focused on remaining loyal to it's customer base and workers. Mexico and the rest of Central and South America didn't have a customer base to speak of for the company.

Current Models
Lycoia's current models include:


 * The Infiltrator or Crusader - Two door muscle car. The civilian variant will be called the Infiltrator after 2013.
 * The Brute or Sentinel or Guardian (Outside of USA/Canada) - The flagship mid-size sedan of the car line, it is one of the more popular models used in stock car organizations. As of 2014, the model name will be changed to the Impulse for both the civilian and racing variants respectively.
 * The Interceptor or Freelancer - Four door sports sedan acquired from the Fortner liquidation watched over by Lenard. It will be used in several stock car organizations. The civilian variant will be called the Interceptor after 2013.
 * The Apollo - Full-size sedan. Will be called the Illuminate after 2013.
 * The Intruder - Full-size sports sedan. Will be replacing the now discontinued Cosmos by 2014.
 * The Striker or Cosmos - Luxury Sports Sedan, developed by the now defunct Aura Motor Corporation. Will run under the new Lycoia Brandmark, which was the old Aura Brandmark. The Cosmos will cease production in 2012, forcing the Striker version to stop with one model year. It has now been discontinued but parts for the Cosmos will remain in production and can be serviced at all Lycoia dealers.
 * The Maelstrom - Crossover; Will debut in 2014.
 * The Maestro - Mid-size SUV; Will debut in 2014.
 * The Merit - Full-size Luxury SUV.
 * The Rebel or Grizzly - Small Pickup; The civilian and racing variants will be called the Rebel after 2013.
 * The Reflex - Heavy Duty Pickup; - Will debut in 2015.

Italics represent the civilian model name