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Fisker announces plans to build an electric pop-up Popemobile

Resurrected EV builder Fisker announced early Friday that it plans to build an electric Popemobile for Pope Francis based on its forthcoming Ocean EV. Fisker says it will deliver what it is calling the first all-electric papal transport vehicle next year ahead of starting series production of the Ocean. Fisker says company representatives pitched the idea to the Holy See in a private audience on Thursday. The announcement comes just days after a Biden administration official indicated that electrification of the presidential limousine dubbed "The Beast" is under consideration.  The presentation to His Holiness included the design sketch and renderings above. They're a bit on the quick-and-dirty side, but check out photoshopped Pope Francis in his little pop-up (Pope-up?) roof bubble thingy. D'aww.  "I got inspired reading that Pope Francis is very considerate about the environment and the impact of climate change for future generations," Henrik Fisker said in the announcement. "The interior of the Fisker Ocean papal transport will contain a variety of sustainable materials, including carpets made from recycled plastic bottles from the ocean." For now, this is a one-and-done project; Fisker did not announce plans to supply any additional EVs to the papal fleet. Hey, beats a Dacia Duster, right? 

Destino's VL Automotive merges with GreenTech Automotive

Here's a twist to the Fisker/Destino/MyCar stories we didn't see coming. WM Greentech (WMGTA), the company behind the struggling-but-not-dead-yet MyCar, has merged with VL Automotive, the company that plans to take bodies from the Fisker Karma and repurpose them with a V8 engine. That car will now be part of GTA's new WM Destino brand. That latter idea comes, in part, from former Chevy Volt booster Bob Lutz, who founded VL Automotive with Gilbert Villarreal, an automotive engineer and industrialist. Vilarreal will now become chief operating officer of WMGTA. In a statement, available below, Vilarreal said the merger will let WMGTA get busy making the Destino luxury and that, "I truly believe in the production of the GTA MyCar as a practical, electric transportation solution and an affordable fleet vehicle." The Destino, of course, is neither electric nor affordable. It is expected to cost around $180,000. WMGTA thus has two brands. The GTA division will make practical little EVs like the MyCar. The WM division, on the other hand, "manufactures and distributes energy-efficient super sports cars with internal combustion engine." Now tell us, did you see that coming? WM GREENTECH AUTOMOTIVE CORP. MERGES WITH LUXURY SPORTS CAR MANUFACTURER VL AUTOMOTIVE McLean, Virginia – May 5, 2014 - GreenTech Automotive Corp (GTA), a Virginia-based wholly owned subsidiary of WM GreenTech Automotive Corp. (WMGTA), today announced the recent merger of VL Automotive, an innovative luxury sports car manufacturing company based in Detroit, Michigan. VL Automotive will merge with GTA, a wholly owned subsidiary of WMGTA, which also has a wholly owned subsidiary that produces electric vehicles. After the merger, WMGTA now has its global engineering headquarters in Detroit, Michigan, manufacturing in Tunica, Mississippi, and U.S. corporate headquarters in McLean, Virginia. VL Automotive was founded by Robert A. Lutz, former Chairman of General Motors, and Gilbert Villarreal, automotive engineer and industrialist. Villarreal will join GTA's executive team as its Chief Operating Officer. Before joining GTA, Villarreal served in various engineering leadership positions at the United States Marine Corps, the Boeing Company and General Motors. "This merger will enable WMGTA to ramp up production of the Destino luxury sports sedan while strengthening its electric vehicle division. WMGTA has proven its practical business strategy and sensible approach to product development.

Former Fisker CEO has some advice for Tesla Motors

Former Fisker Automotive CEO and ex-Chevrolet Volt vehicle-line director Tony Posawatz has some words of caution for Tesla Motors. The long-time automaker executive questions the California automaker's long-term viability – and gives some praise – in a talk with Benzinga, which you can listen to below. While the all-wheel-drive D that Tesla unveiled earlier this month in Southern California wowed a packed crowd, Posawatz (starting at around minute 4:45 in the interview) says Tesla would've been better off taking the resources it expended toward that Model S upgrade and directed them towards speeding up the development of a more affordable plug-in. Perhaps a number of investors agreed, since the company's stock fell the day after the D was announced. Posawatz says Tesla has been over-reliant on the sale of ZEV credits. Posawatz also says that Tesla has been over-reliant on the sale of zero-emissions vehicle credits in California for its earnings and questions whether the automaker will ever work at a large enough scale to sufficiently drive down costs and make consistent profits. Tesla CEO Elon Musk would take issue with this characterization. Posawatz first made his mark in the plug-in vehicle world when he was the vehicle-line director at General Motors for the Volt extended-range plug-in from 2006 to 2012. Later that year, he joined extended-range plug-in maker Fisker Automotive as its CEO, though quit that job during the summer of 2013 as the company was descending into insolvency. He joined the Electrification Coalition this past March. News Source: Benzinga Green Chevrolet Fisker Tesla Electric PHEV Tony Posawatz