2023 Fisker Ocean Extreme Sport Utility 4d on 2040-cars

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Over 40,000 customers reportedly cancel their Fisker Ocean reservation

Fisker's ongoing financial troubles have reportedly scared off a substantial number of the buyers who reserved the electric Ocean crossover with a refundable deposit. The company has lost more than 40,000 reservations that it will need to reimburse, according to a recent report. Citing leaked data and internal metrics, Business Insider wrote that Fisker received between 70 and 80 cancellations per day "in a recent seven-day average." The total number of canceled reservations stands at over 40,000, the report said, which represents a huge chunk of the reported 70,000-plus reservations the firm has collected since it opened the order book in November 2019. Fisker hasn't commented on the report. If this is accurate, the cancellations compound Fisker's problems in several ways. First, the brand's sales forecast has seemingly fallen by over 50%, meaning its revenue forecast has inevitably dropped by the same number. This comes at a time Fisker needs to generate more sales in order to stay afloat; it recently paused production of the Ocean to save money, and it's sitting on a massive inventory of unsold cars. Second, Fisker will need to refund the deposit it collected from every reservation holder who cancels, according to Business Insider and the brand's terms and conditions. It costs $250 to reserve one example of the Ocean and $100 for each additional reservation; both sums are refundable. Fisker keeps the $25 processing fee that's added to every reservation, however. The publication estimates Fisker owes its customer base about $9 million. It adds that "a few thousand" customers have separately canceled an order, though the $5,000 deposit on those isn't fully refundable. It's not far-fetched to assume some of the customers who reportedly canceled a reservation realized they can get a new Ocean right away for much cheaper than initially advertised — Fisker slashed the price of its leftover 2023 models by up to $24,000 in March 2024 to trim its inventory of unsold cars and generate cash. Other customers might have simply lost faith in a company teetering on the brink of bankruptcy. While the Ocean, which is built by Magna in Austria, is the only Fisker model that has reached production, the company has shown three other electric cars that it began taking reservations for and ostensibly planned to sooner or later build. There's a pickup called Alaska, a city car named PEAR, and a four-door convertible known as the Ronin.

Fisker brings new Ronin, Alaska, Pear, and Ocean Force E to 'Product Vision Day'

With the Fisker Ocean reaching customers and a so-far successful first wave of media drives, company CEO Henrik Fisker took the stage in Huntington Beach, California last night to go over the products that are part of Fisker, Inc's second chapter. These are the Pear city car, which Fisker expects to be the company's best-seller; the Ronin four-door convertible flagship, produced in limited numbers; the Alaska pickup, built on an extended version of the Ocean's platform; and the Force E off-road package for the Ocean, available as a factory option or a dealer-installed kit after purchase. The CTO was also there to discuss the new Blade processing platform that will make all of the company's in-car tech dreams come true and debut with the Pear. We'll start with the Pear. It's built on a new SLV1 platform, an acronym Fisker said stood for "simple, versatile, and volume." We're not sure what the L is for, perhaps light, based on the claim the Pear uses 35% fewer parts than an equivalent city car. Engineers achieved this with measures like producing a single symmetrical armrest piece that fits all four doors. Parked on stage next to an Ocean, the Pear is clearly smaller, but it doesn't look at all small. We'll need to see it in the open with other objects for reference to understand the sizing. There were neat design elements like the giant windshield, the concave hatch glass attached at the top to the spoiler, a flash glass panel arcing over the roof at the rear three-quarter, and a taillight that formed an oval around the backlight. The hero car also had a roof full of solar panels.  The way the CEO talked about Pear features, the target audience of urban dwellers moves in packs that need places to store lots of stuff and maybe sleep. "Everything in the dash is about storage," he said, revealing an instrument panel with a central screen surrounded by recesses, some of the recesses topped by rubber straps that secure goods. He didn't demonstrate the front trunk, which he called the front boot in UK English, then shortened to "froot." He did demonstrate the Houdini trunk. When an owner wants to load the rear bay, the hatch glass disappears into the lower metal portion of the hatch, then that lower potion slides down into the bumper. A neat piece that doesn't need room in a tight parking spot, takes a lot longer than opening a hatch, though.

VL Automotive hints at Fisker-based Destino convertible for Detroit

Last year around this time, we were prepping to see the first iteration of the VL Destino; a Fisker Karma with a Corvette ZR1 heart transplant. Now, with the 2014 Detroit Auto Show looming just over the horizon, there are fresh hints that the Destino is due for a sequel. VL Automotive – co-founded by Gilbert Villarreal and Bob Lutz – has revealed a few sketches of a convertible version of the Destino, this time wearing a high-zoot cabin courtesy of the auto-leather specialists at Katzkin. The interiors company was charged with crafting the custom cockpit for the original VL Destino, as well, and from what we can see in these concept drawings, the tailoring here shows real, hidebound promise. Quick studies will note that the vehicle in the images above only has two doors, while the standard Karma was only ever built with four. It's possible this is a ground-up concept, but it seems every bit as likely that the showcar's execution has been informed by the never-was Karma S folding hardtop convertible. Either way, just as striking is the removal of the former Fisker's roof. The twin cowls at the rear of the passenger compartment seem to meet up beautifully with a chrome accent piece, but of course, details like those will be won or lost in the final execution. We can't wait to see it. Any other significant changes to the VL Destino concept figure to be unleashed in Detroit, as the press release below focuses mainly on the interior work. AUTOMOTIVE LEATHER LEADER KATZKIN PARTNERS WITH VL AUTOMOTIVE TO CREATE EXCLUSIVE LUXURY PERFORMANCE CAR EXPERIENCE Katzkin Senior Advisor Bob Lutz Debuts All-New Concept Destino Featuring a Custom Katzkin Interior at the 2014 Detroit Auto Show MONTEBELLO, Calif., January 10, 2014 / PRNewswire / - Katzkin, the global leader in automotive interior transformation, continues its design mantra and enters into the ultra-premium sports car arena by partnering with VL Automotive, co-founded by Gilbert Villarreal and Bob Lutz. VL's newest concept Destino luxury performance vehicle will debut at the 2014 North American International Auto Show in Detroit at Cobo Center, January 13-26, 2014. Based on an award-winning design by Henrik Fisker, restyled by Bob Lutz, and powered by the Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 powertrain, the Destino sedan was first shown at the 2013 North American International Auto Show.