Whenever I see one an MV-1 what instantly comes to mind is: AI. These cars just look like something an AI image generator would come up with if prompted to…design a Checker taxi for the 21st century?
True confession: I had to look at the badge on the grille to remember its name. It’s rather forgettable. Now if this had become the successor to the Checker cab as was originally hoped, we’d all recognize it instantly.
Yes, this really was intended to be a Checker cab replacement, a purpose built cab with NYC specifically in mind. Unveiled by the Vehicle Production Group at the 2005 International Association of Transportation Regulators (IATR) conference and then at the Taxicab, Limousine, and Paratransit Association (TLPA) convention in Las Vegas, the Standard Taxi was very roomy and accessible.
The company announced in 2008 that it had signed a contract with AM general in South Bend, IN. to build the Standard Taxi, but production never got underway. It was then redesigned as a mobility vehicle, dubbed MV-1. Production started in 2011 but Vehicle Production Group went bankrupt in 2013. AM General then took over the operation and restarted production in 2014 under the nascent Mobility Ventures brand.
Originally a Chevrolet pickup truck chassis and drive train were to be used to underpin the MV-1, but production versions had a frame designed by Rousch Industries and based loosely on the Ford Panther; power was from a Ford 4.6 V8 and 4-speed automatic, which was replaced a few years later with the Ford 3.7 L V6 and 6-speed automatic.
The MV-1 was approved by the NYC Taxicab Commission and was the first accessible taxi in the fleet. But apparently its high cost and other (cheaper) vans approved for taxi use crimped its hopes of becoming the next Checker.
AM General developed a luxury version to be used in black car service, but that didn’t take off either, so it just focused on the market for those with disabilities. Some 2,000 per year were built and sold until 2016 when production ended, in part because AM General got an offer for its Mishawaka, Indiana plant that they couldn’t refuse. Just exactly how many were built in total is not readily available, but apparently it’s something around or under 10,000.
I found this one parked at a nearby senior housing center and it does look well cared for, very much not like a ten year old Checker taxi.
Similar homely units were built in Poughkeepsie NY for a bit also. Just the basic cab. occasionally still see a couple still operating in the area as taxis.. The builder had gone out of business a long time ago. I had then seen a number of the unused fiberglass bodies lying in a local junkyard for a while. They certainly were and are not a handsome vehicle…
I see a lot of similarities in the styling of the back end with this other one. The lower markers on each side of the bumper. The side marker lights. Sort of a minimalist look to the rear. The body side sculpting is a little smoother on the RR though.
I cannot unsee it now
I still remember the day I came across a parked one. I almost took pictures for a CC writeup, with the theme in my head being the first new car built in Indiana since the 64 Studebaker. But I was busy and figured I would be seeing more of them. Um, nope.
I think Checker eventually suffered from the same problem – they may have been better taxis, but they were more expensive than all of the alternatives and the company could not make money on the low volumes they were built in.
I’ve seen exactly one of these in the flesh. It was back around 2017 and there was one in the neighborhood where my son lived at the time. I saw if a few times parked in front of a house and once or twice driving into or out of the neighborhood. It is unfortunate that it didn’t last long as it was a good thing to have a factory designed wheel chair ramp vehicle, instead of the converted minivans.
Disappointed these never caught on. I haven’t been in a cab in many years but I can’t picture most of what’s out there having anywhere near enough room in the back. After one trip in a Ford Escape, anything except vans I don’t trust to fit two human legs.
I still see these here and there, being in the proximity of the O’hare airport there’s a handful being used for their intended purpose to this day, but I’ve also noticed a sprinkling of civilian ones through the years
I remember the “is this the next checker?” buzz from the auto news outlets back then, but also there seemed to be a scramble to find a car to replace the then ubiquitous Crown Vic’s as the cab of choice with their looming demise. By the time MV1s made production based on the Panther platform and powertrain it seemed like it was inherently doomed from the start; Being dependent on an automaker to provide running gear they’ll inevitably stop supporting. Though I never knew they went to the 3.7 later
I too had all but forgotten the name until now, MV1 was stored in my mind somewhere but it took this to dust off the cobwebs
Our local school district still operates some of these for disabled student transportation – I guess they’re at least 10 years old by now, so they’ll likely be replaced soon. The area’s paratransit organization also used to operate some MV-1s, but I think they’ve switched to bigger vans by now. I’ve never seen a “civilian” model like this one – great find!
“ These cars just look like something an AI image generator would come up with if prompted to…design a Checker taxi for the 21st century?”
I actually gave ChatGPT this prompt and this is what it designed.
I remember seeing one of these come out of the fog in Chicago one night and going “the hell is that?”
I have never seen one of these in the flesh. My family operated a taxi service in the 1980s-1990s. We looked into getting a vehicle specifically designed for taxi use, but we could never make the numbers work. Instead, we bought used GM B bodies for paltry sums. I still see that most taxis are just regular cars pressed into taxi service.
There was a truck dealer in Burlington V T that sold these for awhile and when we went by and saw the MV-1 sign we had no idea what they were, but then some showed up on their lot and we did see a couple around town for a while. A friend has a converted Dodge van that doesn’t work for it’s purpose all that well but he bought it used and couldn’t have afforded one of these, a much better solution to wheelchair transport and one would think there’d be a viable market for one that did.
Catholic Charities of Forth Worth ran a few of those.
I guess the whole Checker business model was that it was not pretty and not necessarily cheap, but it’ll outlast forever. And now cheap and disposable wins over functional and forever.
Around 2010 to 2011 I used to see one of these near my office in north-west Toronto. At the time I guessed that either the manufacturer or Canadian distributor had offices in the area. It never had any signage on it, and although I never saw it on the road, it did move around.
I remember when these began appearing in So. Cal. as medical transports, there are still a few being used daily .
At the time I first became aware of them we were still licensed for 6 foster boys and needed a room vehicle to squire them ’round in .
Not very good looking, I wondered if some sort of two or three tone paint might ease the FUGLY looks ? .
-Nate