2023 Fisker Ocean on 2040-cars

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U.S. opens another probe into Fisker's cars, over brake issue

  The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on Friday opened a preliminary probe into 6,813 Fisker Ocean SUVs built in 2023, after complaints that the automatic emergency braking system used in the electric vehicles had activated inadvertently. The regulator said its Office of Defects Investigation has received eight complaints alleging activation of the braking system without an apparent roadway obstruction in the vehicle's forward path, resulting in sudden vehicle deceleration. Three of the complaints alleged an injury, the safety agency said. NHTSA's preliminary evaluation will look into the scope and severity of the potential problem to assess its impact on safety. The regulator could close the investigation into Fisker without taking any potential action. The probe adds to Fisker's woes as its Ocean SUVs were already under investigation by the NHTSA for three prior incidents. Last month, the safety regulator received complaints that the doors of the company's EVs sometimes failed to open. Fisker had flagged "going concern" doubts in February, followed by delisting of its stock from the New York Stock exchange and the collapse of talks with a large automaker for a potential deal in March. The startup had said in April it failed to make an interest payment of about $8.4 million on some notes due in 2026 during a 30-day grace period. The cash-strapped firm initiated insolvency proceedings for its Austrian unit on Tuesday, as it looks for strategic options to raise money to meet its debt obligations. 

See the Fisker Ocean electric crossover on video for the first time

We’ve already seen the Fisker Ocean crossover in the flesh at its global debut at CES 2020, but, as always, that was just the beginning of its story. Fisker had planned on bringing its new electric car to the Geneva Motor Show, but, sadly, the entire expo was canceled on account of coronavirus concerns. Nonetheless, Fisker still had something to deliver to those intrigued by the eco-friendly EV — which has a relatively sane starting price of $37,499 — including more details, new photos and even some running footage of the Ocean testing at the track. With this latest PR salvo, we learn more about the OceanÂ’s underpinnings. It uses a multi-link rear suspension to help bolster its sporting chops, packaged to save space and provide more room for cargo in the trunk. Fisker says this multi-link is mounted on an isolated subframe in order to reduce vibration and noise, so that handling doesnÂ’t come at the cost of comfort. As for efficiency, Fisker describes an aerodynamic system that aims to balance minimizing drag with optimized cooling. The novelty is less in the concept than the approach. The air flowing toward to radiator is regulated by a computer in order to maximize driving range. In terms of safety, Fisker highlights the OceanÂ’s structure, which was designed with special focus on protecting the battery pack during side-impact crashes. So, yeah, thatÂ’s not a ton of new info. WeÂ’re not surprised, as weÂ’ve expected Fisker to feed us details of the Ocean crumb by crumb until its actual production launch in the last quarter of 2021. WhatÂ’s perhaps more interesting than the completely expected attention to comfort, efficiency and safety is that this release give us our first look of the Fisker Ocean actually driving: To recap earlier coverage, the all-electric Fisker Ocean will offer up to 300 miles of range on a charge from its 80+ kWh battery, and all-wheel drive will be offered on all but the base model. The Ocean can add 200 miles of driving range in 30 minutes on a 150-kW DC charger. It will offer up to 250 kW (335 horsepower), but a more powerful performance version will be detailed at a later date, targeting a 0-60 time of 2.9 seconds. The Ocean is 182.7 inches long, 76 inches wide, and 63.6 inches tall, with a cargo volume of 20 cubic feet that expands to 25 with a parcel shelf, and a max volume of 45 cubes with the rear seats down. The base model will have 20-inch wheels, with 22-inchers available.

Bob Lutz predicts Fisker-based VL Destino will world's fastest sedan [w/video]

Ever look at an EV or a dedicated hybrid and wonder what it'd be like with a conventional, high-output V8 under the hood instead of all those batteries and circuit boards? Bob Lutz and Gilbert Villareal did when it came to the Fisker Karma. The result is the Destino from VL Automotive – a vehicle that Lutz says could be the fastest sedan in the world. The Destino was born like a phoenix rising from the ashes of Fisker Automotive and its shapely Karma – an aborted and very costly attempt at making a dedicated hybrid luxury sedan, undertaken by noted automotive designer Henrik Fisker. The project ultimately faltered, but Lutz and Villareal formed VL Automotive to pick up the pieces and put it back together. Only when they did, they got rid of the hybrid propulsion system and replaced it with the 6.2-liter supercharged LS9 V8 from the previous Corvette ZR1, mated to a six-speed automatic transmission. With 630 horsepower, a svelte shape and 1,000 pounds trimmed off the curb weight, the VL Destino is expected to top out at or around 200 miles per hour. According to Lutz in his article for Fortune magazine, that would make it "among the fastest four-door cars in the world," but in the accompanying video below, he goes even further to say that the the Destino "most likely will be the world's fastest four-door sedan." To claim the top honor, though, it'll have to vanquish the 204-mile-per-hour Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat – another four-door sedan with a supercharged V8 made by an American automaker... one over which Lutz used to preside, no less. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.