I can certainly see the points about going outside the Contour community, versus supporting the community. I agree with that, within bounds of reason (the example provided of $30 is within the bounds of reason).
However, I totally agree with being unwilling to pay for goods that don't have a track record and may have substantial problems to be worked out, if the product actually sees the light of day. Most of us are using our Contours for daily drivers that if the Contour doesn't go, we don't go. This is unlike a teenager that could get transportation for parents or other cars that are frequently a second or third car in the family. It's the job of the business to front the costs of making the viable product, not the job of interested parties. If I front you money, I'm then an investor, and I want a share of your company.
I don't even think to consider a modification until it has a track record, so I won't support a project in process with comments, because it's too early for me to even think about it.
If you need to make sure there are buyers, instead of having people prime the pump by fronting you money, have them sign a binding agreement. Basically it states if you make a marketable product that does what you said it would do within a given period of time specified in the contract, that person is required to buy that product at a price stated in the contract (either fixed or cost + %).
Keep in mind that modification money is limited for most of us. We may want a given product, but we may not be able to buy it now, due to other priorities. However, it's on the list for us to buy when money allows. A correlary to this is that a lot of us also have aging cars that we either aren't going to keep long, or know we can't keep long. I fall in the latter, knowing that at 114,000 miles, and using all my modification money on a new brake setup (as it needed replacing anyway), there isn't going to be much more than upgrading what needs replacing as time passes.
I see points on both sides here, but it's truly hard to expect people to spend good money on a product that hasn't been developed yet and not get more than the product to show for it. You talk about your risks, but that's just an outrageous risk for us.
