New Years Day, January 1st, 1996, a meeting was called at Mike Corbin's house with a handful of his key people: a designer, an engineer, and a couple key managers. A new project would begin, the designing and building of the Sparrow. On April 1st, 1996 the project would begin and the Sparrow would be introduced to the world at the San Francisco Auto Show Thanksgiving week of that year. So with a committed dedicated team, eight months later and almost $1 million personal resources the hand-crafted yellow Alpha Sparrow took flight. The public’s response was incredible. Everyone loved the Sparrow. People placed $1,000 deposits to purchase Sparrows! People were ready for a change. Deep down everyone wanted a solution to traffic grid lock, scarce parking and air pollution.
Mike Corbins Sketch - 1994 Mike Corbins Sparrow Sketch - 1995 Computer Rendered Sparrow Concept


Next revelation - People really want Sparrows. During 1997 the next generation Sparrow was developed using the DOT and NHTSA regulations. At the 1997 San Francisco Auto Show six Beta Sparrows were introduced and received an overwhelming response of excitement and encouragement. People were cheering for the Sparrow! A handful of people became Sparrow dealers and more reservations were placed. Another $1.5 million of personal resources had been invested in the Sparrow dream. In December, Corbin Saddles and the Sparrow team moved out of its 17,000 square foot building in Castroville and moved into its new 82,000 square foot building in Hollister.
"Mule" Concept "Mule" Test Drive Sketches for the New Sparrow Design


During 1998 the idea of building Sparrows on a pre production assembly line started to come to life. The Beta Sparrow design was further developed for low volume production. Some preliminary testing began. The Sparrows were taken along with the Corbin Saddles’ show truck to motorcycle events all over the country. Again, the success of the 1998 San Francisco Auto Show was eye opening. Wall to wall people and everyone thanked Corbin for developing the environmentally friendly urban Sparrow. They now had more than 100 reservations for Sparrows. After the show, Sparrows were released to dealers for a Beta test program. This spark of an idea was becoming the shining light for the future of urban travel. Another $2 million of Corbin personal resources had been invested. The Sparrow was ready to take flight into the world on its own!

On March 29, 1999 Corbin Motors was formed. On May 10, 1999 the Sparrow met the final requirements of the DOT regulations. A few hundred reservations for Sparrows had been placed. The thirty-six running Beta Sparrows were creating hundreds of new orders. With almost $5 million of personal resources invested, the Sparrow will fly. Friends, family and Sparrow enthusiasts invested their savings and became preferred stockholders in Corbin Motors. In May, Corbin Motors purchased an engine company with a stock swap. This gave the Merlin it’s very own engine, a heart and soul of its own. The compact lightweight engine with a high horsepower to weight ratio. In September of 1999 the limited production assembly line began producing a couple of Sparrows per week. At the 1999 San Francisco Auto Show we talked with tens of thousands of enthusiastic people following the progress of the Sparrow. After the show the first limited production Sparrows were delivered to the very early Sparrow reservation holders. The size of the market for Sparrows and Merlins proved to be larger than anyone had the courage to dream. People from all over the world were emailing their comments, suggestions and desires to own a Sparrow and Merlin. More than 500,000 hits a month were being logged on Corbin Motors website (NO LONGER WORKS). Television and print media from around the world were covering this exciting new class of transportation. The turn of the Century was a milestone for Corbin Motors. Increasing gas prices and oil shortages around the world coupled with air and water pollution at unsustainable levels for human well being. People were ready for a change. A new era was beginning to bloom. People desired to do the right thing and when presented with an opportunity to purchase a clean air, compact easy to park commuter vehicle, many welcomed the Sparrow into their lives. By July 2000 the 100th Sparrow was made! What a treasure! Mike purchased the vehicle for his showroom collection. $5,100,000 of Series “A” Preferred stock had be sold to private accredited investors. The production line was starting to buzz along at one Sparrow per day producing the expanded storage Sparrow. More than 1,500,000 hits a month were logged on the website. Media coverage was extensive and Sparrow clubs were beginning to sprout up. A new revelation - “We need hundreds of Sparrows per week. Every city on earth needs Sparrows.” Solution - “Let’s take our knowledge and learning experience and specifically design a Sparrow for high volume manufacture anywhere in the world.” In August, Sparrow II started to take life. By early December the 200th Sparrow was produced, $2.5 million of Series “B” preferred stock had been sold, and two Sparrows per day were starting to be manufactured on the assembly line. The handcrafted model of Sparrow II was more streamlined and beautiful than ever. The first five Merlin engines were completed and sent out for testing. Corbin Saddles had grown 300% since the beginning of the Sparrow project and the once sparse 82,000 square foot factory was packed with almost 300 crafts people building motorcycle parts and “micro cars.”
First Sparrow Prototype Built - 1996 Sparrow goes into production - 1999 Sparrow Hatchback developed - 2000


In December 2000, Corbin Motors entered into a purchase contract to purchase a 78,000 square foot manufacturing facility on 7.4 acres of land in Hollister with move in scheduled for April to June of 2001. Agreements were entered into for the formation of Corbin Motors’ Daytona Beach, the first licensed factory to produce Corbin Motors’ vehicles. Serious discussions were under way for factories in two other countries. Corbin Motors remained a debt free company. The company was on target for profitability late 2001 early 2002. Current challenge - In order to meet the growing demand for Sparrows, Merlins and their future vehicle products they need larger capital resources. Solution - Continue to accept investments from private accredited investors and begin discussions with institutional investors, venture capitalists, socially and environmentally aware investor groups, angel investors and high net worth individuals. The search for larger financial partners had begun. In March 2003, Corbin Motors filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, effectively killing the immediate future of the Corbin Sparrow. A bankrupcy court passed the Corbin assets to Ron Huch's company Phoenix Environmental Motors. He later tried to revive the Sparrow but had no success. On July 1, 2004, Ohio businessman Dana Myers bought the Sparrow interests from Ron Huch. The new company, Myers Motors, has upgraded the Sparrows electrical and mechanical systems. They renamed it the MM NmG (No more Gas) and started selling it on Oct 1st 2005. They made a limited product run of 36 hand-made, MM NmG's vehicles that are available. The Sparrow doubles as a fun, high visibility ride that triples as a way to personally make a difference in our oil addicted world; and that hits one out of the park by helping to fund future, more affordable, fun-telligent vehicles. Who knows what exciting Corbin Motors will come out with next. We'll all just have to wait and see!






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