2023 Fisker Ocean Extreme Awd on 2040-cars

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Fisker teases $40,000 electric crossover with 300 miles of range

Henrik Fisker has been at the drawing board for some time, and we've enjoyed following along. We don't know what to do with this latest one, though, because we know almost nothing about it. Fisker, Inc., Henrik's electric vehicle company, promised "a teaser picture and some tech details" on a new EV priced "close" to $40,000. We have the teaser pic, but the tech details are mostly the same EV future-tech buzz every non-traditional player loads up on. It is a crossover, it looks like a Fisker, and it has a front-mounted radar unit behind glass. Those are the exterior concretes. As for the rest of the look, it's "Dramatically sculpted" with "futuristic, elegant muscular look" and there are "captivating design touches that have been traditionally reserved for supercars," By pressing a button, the roof opens in some way to create "an extended open-air atmosphere." An "enhanced +80 KWh lithium-ion battery pack" will provide power, not the solid-state batteries we know Fisker's working on and thought would make their first appearance here. The EMotion sedan will debut the solid-state units. Sounds like the standard version will use a single electric motor, but optional all-wheel drive puts another motor on the front axle. An optional wheel spans 22 inches, but we don't know what size the stock rims are. There's a luxurious, "vastly spacious interior" with "a modern aesthetic and high-quality materials." A "large heads-up display and unique, intuitive user interface... will control some of the latest emerging in-vehicle technologies." All of which could mean anything, so ends up meaning practically nothing. Closer to firm ground, this will be the first of three affordable EV models coming in well below the $129,000 EMotion flagship electric sedan. Fisker, Inc. says the crossover's price will come in below $40,000. The target range is 300 miles when this as-yet-unnamed SUV goes on sale in the second half of 2021. That's a long way off to be shooting for 300 miles. Come 2.5 years, 300 miles could be the baseline distance to be taken seriously. The Tesla Model Y is already there and the Germans are loading their EV cannons with compact offerings right now, led by Volkswagen's ID onslaught. Fisker won't open dealerships, planning to sell direct to consumers and service owners with a "nationwide concierge service model." More details to come, hopefully ones with more specific detailing. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party.

Recharge Wrap-up: VW CEO mulls battery factory, voters approve $201B in transportation funding

Volkswagen Group CEO Matthias Muller says that it would "make sense" for the automaker to begin producing its own batteries. As the company moves toward electrification, Muller says it would be a smart move to build a battery factory. "If more than a quarter of our cars are to be electronic vehicles in the foreseeable future then we are going to need approximately 3 million batteries a year," he says. Volkswagen has agreed to cut 30,000 jobs in its restructuring, while committing to creating 9,000 jobs in Germany through battery manufacturing and mobility services. Read more at Automotive News Europe. Election results show a desire for transportation funding. Earlier this month, voters in 22 states approved ballot measures adding up to $201 billion in funding for transportation projects, according to the American Road & Transportation Builders Association. California passed 15 transportation measures, including one in Los Angeles worth $120 billion for roads, bridges, and transit. The state of Washington secured $54 billion for light rail and buses. Atlanta approved about $4 billion for road and transit projects. Illinois and New Jersey passed measures to prevent the diversion of transportation user fee revenue to other industries. Read more from ITS International. The US Department of Energy (DOE) must hand over confidential documents about Fisker's bankruptcy. A Delaware federal judge ordered the DOE to give the documents – which concern a presentation by Fisker to the DOE in which it falsely claimed to meet milestones set forth in a government loan – to lawyers in a case in which investors claim Fisker lied to them about financial troubles. While the DOE has given over documents already, they were incomplete and heavily redacted. "I understand that such disclosures may have a negative impact on future DOE analyses," says US District Judge Sue Robinson. "but conclude nonetheless that under the circumstances at bar – the public money at stake, the Congressional hearings, and the fact that Fisker Automotive is now a defunct company – the balance of interests favors plaintiffs." Read more at Law360. Related Gallery Volkswagen I.D.

Fisker Ocean takes to L.A. Auto Show

Fisker has brought the new Ocean EV to the L.A. Auto Show, with a public preview at Manhattan Beach and a presence at the show itself. You can watch the public show reveal above, and see more shots from the show floor below. Fisker says the Ocean will start at $37,499 before incentives. That entry model would be the Sport trim with a single, 275-horsepower motor driving the front wheels and 250 miles of estimated range. It also has a 0-60 time of 6.9 seconds. Moving up to the Ultra version at $49,999 gets dual-motor all-wheel drive, 540 hp, 340 miles of range and a 0-60 time of 3.9 seconds. The $68,999 Extreme trim gets AWD, 550 hp, 350+ miles of driving range and a 3.6-second 0-60 sprint. Fisker Ocean View 5 Photos Fisker also touted the previously announced lease program where customers can choose the length of the lease with a monthly price as low as $379 a month. The lease fleet would be in service for twelve years before being completely recycled by Fisker. The electric ute will feature eco-friendly materials (recycled fishing nets and T-shirts, for instance), a solar roof that can open in a "California Mode," a multi-link rear suspension to help bolster its sporting chops and an aerodynamic system that aims to balance minimizing drag with optimized cooling. We've also already seen a 'Force E' package that would turn the Ocean into a more rugged off-roader for interested fleets.   > More L.A. Auto Show coverage   Today, Fisker also showed the Ocean's rotating infotainment screen, which can be oriented in portrait or landscape mode. At a sneak preview near the company HQ in Manhattan Beach, Henrik Fisker said the company logo is inspired by an ocean sunset. "That's where the orange and blue come from," he said, "with the two vertical lines symbolizing thee designer's pencil and the engineer's ruler — the tools of our trade. My inspiration for the logo happened on a day very much like this one." The new affordable EV crossover is scheduled to begin production a year from today at Magna-Steyr's Graz, Austria factory, though Henrik Fisker said the company is moving fast and could possibly deliver units before then. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.