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Karma will build engineering, sales offices near Detroit

Karma Automotive, the successor to the Fisker brand of high-end extended-range plug-in vehicles, appears to be looking to plan its rebirth in the heart (or the lion's den, some would say) of the US vehicle industry. The company, which was acquired out of bankruptcy by China-based Wanxiang in 2014, is planning to build its engineering and sales offices in Troy, Michigan, Automotive News says, citing the Michigan Economic Development Corp. The $3.6-million development will house as many as 150 workers. Karma officially changed its name from Fisker last year, as the Fisker moniker is affiliated with the coach-building company run by Henrik Fisker. The automaker is slated to unveil its new vehicle, called the Revero, by the end of the year. That car is expected to be somewhat similar to the original Karma, including its sleek design, the use of a 2.0-liter engine, and 33-mile all-electric range. No price for the new model, which is expected to remain firmly in the luxury sector, has been disclosed. Karma will receive $450,000 from the Michigan Business Development Program in order to help build the facilities in Troy. Karma also has a 556,000-square-foot vehicle-assembly plant in Moreno Valley, CA, about 65 miles east of Los Angeles. The former Fisker Automotive, which had been based in Orange County, CA, was founded in 2007. The company had plans to make a second model called the Atlantic, and once estimated that it could make 100,000 vehicles a year. FisKer Automotive produced its $100,000-plus vehicles until 2012 before going bankrupt. Wanxiang acquired Fisker for $149.2 million, beating out Hong Kong-based Hybrid Tech Holdings in an extensive bidding war. Related Video: Featured Gallery 2012 Fisker Karma: Second Drive View 30 Photos News Source: Automotive News-sub.req. via Crain's Detroit Business Green Fisker Electric Detroit Michigan karma karma automotive revero

Henrik Fisker returns with plans to build a 400-mile electric car

What goes around, comes around. What's past is prologue. Those who don't study the past are ... oh, you get the picture. Henrik Fisker is coming back, again, with an all-new, all-electric vehicle. The name for the new brand? Why, Fisker, of course. At some point in late 2017, Fisker will reveal the "spiritual successor" to the maligned Fisker Karma, he recently told Bloomberg. Unsurprisingly, given Fisker's history, the new EV will be a premium vehicle that could have a range of more than 400 miles on a charge. A lower-cost EV (think $40,000) will follow. Fisker told Bloomberg that the reason he wants to get back into the EV world is because battery technology keeps on advancing: We have really been working in stealth mode. For the last two years I have been looking at battery technologies and wanted to see if there was something that could really give us a new paradigm. We had the strategy of developing the technology as fast as possible without getting tied down to a large organization, which would hold us back. Now we have the technology that nobody else has. And there is nobody even close to what we are doing out there. All Fisker would say about the look is that it will be, "sporty and spacious" and that, "there is no excuse for making an ugly car, even with new technology." Fisker's new company will be called Fisker, Inc., with the we've-got-all-the-tech battery division called Fisker Nanotech. The new technology is being developed at UCLA, Bloomberg says. Once Fisker, Inc. proves the tech is real, the plan is to sell it to an OEM. Fisker, Inc. is even keeping the same logo as when Fisker made the Karma PHEV as Fisker Automotive. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. News Source: BloombergImage Credit: FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP/Getty Images Green Fisker Electric Luxury Henrik Fisker nanotech fisker inc

Weekly Recap: Aston Martin to add another sports car, new Lagonda sedan, EVs

Aston Martin will revamp and expand its lineup as part of a five-year plan laid out by the company's new executives. If it succeeds, the strategy will position Aston for growth as an independent automaker with a more stable future in its second century. Aston will replace all of the cars in its current lineup and add a fourth sports car to its stable. It currently has three: the DB9, Vanquish and Vantage. The unnamed sports car will be joined by a production version of the DBX concept – an all-wheel-drive electric car that treads near crossover territory – that was revealed at the Geneva Motor Show. Aston's electric strategy also includes a potential electric-powered Rapide. Eventually, Aston plans to build a new four-door Lagonda. Though Aston will diversify its portfolio and the range could expand to seven vehicles, it will limit production to around 7,000 units annually, said Aston Martin marketing and communications director Simon Sproule, who described the company's strategy in an interview with Autoblog. CEO Andy Palmer, who joined Aston last year from Infiniti, has also spoken recently about remaking the company for the future. EVs are a major part of Aston's future, Sproule stressed, because they allow the automaker to "balance" its portfolio. Aston is studying the feasibility of an electric Rapide and is working with an undisclosed engineering firm. It's likely to use a plug-in setup and would cost $200,000 to $250,000 or more. It could use either a rear-wheel or all-wheel-drive configuration. View 14 Photos "It's a study, but we're serious about it," Sproule said. He added for emphasis: "If not this, there will be an electric Aston Martin in the future." Aston has taken note of what Tesla has done with the brisk-driving Model S and decided that's the dynamic it wants for some of its own cars. Even though EVs don't emit the same sonorous note as a V12 – they're better than the alternative, Sproule said. "The sound of silence is much more preferable than the sound of a four-cylinder whining away under the hood of an Aston Martin," he said. Speaking of V12s, they're not going away. Aston will continue to make its own V12 engine, but will source its V8 from Mercedes-AMG (whose parent, Daimler, owns a small stake in Aston). While the V12 is sure to please the faithful, Aston admits EVs and the crossover-like DBX will rankle many. Sproule argues those are the moves that will keep Aston relevant.