2023 Fisker Ocean One on 2040-cars

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VLF Force 1 V10 is a rebodied Viper priced like a Lamborghini

It would appear that Henrik Fisker is done with hybrids. His latest project, called the Force 1, packs an oversized V10 engine with no electric assist in sight and all the environmental credentials of a herd of flatulent cattle. Alongside the Karma-based, Corvette-powered Destino, the Force 1 is the second product from VLF Automotive. Fisker has taken partnership in the new firm as chief designer alongside chairman Bob Lutz and CEO Gilbert Villarreal. The company isn't saying explicitly what the Force 1 is based on, but it doesn't take a CSI team to trace its roots back to the Dodge Viper. Never mind that it's being built in Auburn Hills – the same Detroit suburb where Chrysler is headquartered – or that it was jointly developed by Fisker and professional Viper racer and dealer Ben Keating. It also happens to be powered by an 8.4-liter V10, and there aren't many of those kicking around the industry. Instead of the Viper's 645 horsepower and 600 pound-feet of torque, the Force 1's ten-cylinder engine is optimized to deliver 745 hp and 638 lb-ft. That, according to VLF, is enough to send the coupe rocketing to 60 in 3.0 seconds flat, covering the quarter-mile in under 11 seconds on its way to a top speed of 218 miles per hour. The power is transmitted to the Pirelli PZero rubber through a six-speed manual, but VLF says it will fit it with an automatic at the customer's request. Around that massive engine and two-seat cockpit, Fisker designed a new shape that, for better or for worse, looks way more aggressive than the Viper's. The Force 1's proportions are tellingly super-snake, but the curves are replaced by some very angry-looking angles and vents. Its head- and taillights are ultra thin, and the deep-dish, split-four-spoke wheels seem to visually split the difference between the three-spoke wheels on the original Viper and the five-spoke alloys it wears today. If you doubted the Force 1's origins before, the interior ought to give it away, with its wide tunnel and familiar surfaces. Only VLF has refinished it in leather, suede, and Alcantara, all diamond stitched with contrasting thread to help position this as a more luxurious prospect than the Dodge. It even fit between the seatbacks place for two champagne bottles that we hope nobody would consider consuming before trying to handle that much power. Of course, none of this will come cheap.

Fisker unveils EMotion electric sedan's butterfly doors

Henrik Fisker runs a new company called Fisker Inc., founded after Fisker Automotive crumbled and the Karma electric sedan went to China to be resurrected as the Revero made by a company called Karma. Any new company needs a new product, and Fisker has it: the EMotion electric sedan, which will bring its 400-mile-plus range, four butterfly doors, and a tiny example of its "revolutionary" battery to next week's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. We have about enough specs on the EMotion to fill a Post-It note, but we're told that the range comes courtesy of a whopping 143-kWh lithium-ion battery that can be re-juiced with a 125-mile range in nine minutes. Fisker Inc. had formed a joint venture with Nanotech to produce graphene batteries, but the JV fell apart. Fisker says the replacement li-ion batteries sourced from LG Chem employ proprietary module packaging to create "probably... the most energy dense battery pack in the world." The company won't be ready to divulge all of its battery and cooling secrets at CES, however, reps do plan to bring a cellphone-sized version to demonstrate the possibilities. Other innovations in development are an automated, hands-free charging connector. As for those doors, they take us back to the Savage Rivale Landyacht GTS, being butterfly portals all around, rear-hinged for the rear set. Not sure how practical they'll be, but they make the all-wheel drive EMotion look like nothing else - something the EMotion already didn't need to worry about. Fisker says the sedan's interior will be more spacious those of its competitors, with rear legroom exceeding that of "many full-size luxury sedans." Every seat gets viewing screens, and top speed rings in at 161 miles per hour. Fisker expects production to begin in 2019 somewhere in the US, and set the base price at $129,000. The order books are open now, with a $2,000 deposit securing your reservation. Related Video:

Henrik Fisker tweets rendering of Fisker pickup, then deletes

Last August, Henrik Fisker teased what looked like the rear view of a Fisker pickup truck. The caption accompanying the image of a rendered tailgate and conventional cabin glasshouse read, "After our Fisker electric SUV, we have already decided on our next 2 EV’s on the same platform!" That platform would be the same the Ocean crossover is built on. Much has happened since then, namely a gaggle of OEMs and startups debuting, announcing, or making noises about rolling out an electric pickup in the next two years or so. Perhaps Fisker got caught up in the swell, because he tweeted a new image of a pickup with the name "Alaska" emblazoned across the back, and the caption, "Electric pickup truck!" Then he deleted the tweet. When asked about the brief preview, his company told both Roadshow and Car and Driver, "We can't confirm the model or name of a vehicle that may have been seen in the tweet," but that, "We can, however, confirm that Fisker Inc. is indeed working on a modular electric vehicle platform that may underpin several different affordable EV models in the future." What we know is that Fisker's pickup design has come a long way since August, no matter how fanciful the image in the unintentional reveal. Last August's design looked like someone spent a few minutes turning a Ford F-150 backside into a passably believable Fisker product. The newest image looks like a Fisker; weighty forms with deep vertical and horizontal sculpting, decorated with Fisker's jewelry and fonts. The only off note is the tires, which are cartoonishly rugged. We're fans of the name, though, even if there's a product called Alaska in every industry from fertilizers to electric fans, and Renault sells a pickup called the Alaskan. As of writing, Fisker hasn't filed to trademark Alaska. For now, we'll pretend the tweet was a hallucination and wait for the next time Fisker teases a vehicle we know is coming.