The Fisker car brand is being relaunched by its original founder, Henrik Fisker, who aims to launch two new fully-electric cars, starting from the second half of 2017.
Henrik Fisker founded Fisker Automotive back in 2007. The company’s one production model was the Fisker Karma, a petrol-electric plug-in hybrid luxury saloon which was seen as an alternative to offerings from the likes of Tesla.
The Karma did not last on the production line for long though, as problems related to the costs of recalls and repairs ended up crippling the Fisker company. Fisker eventually filed for bankruptcy near the end of 2013 and what remained of it were bought by the Chinese company Wanxiang Group in early 2014.
It was revealed earlier this year that the Karma will re-enter production under its new owners, but will be sold under the name Karma Revero now.
Despite losing his original company, Henrik Fisker is now back with a new car company, and this time he’s focusing on fully-electric cars, which will make his models even more of a direct rival to Tesla.
Radical new battery technology for Fisker cars
Henrik Fisker’s new company, which has Fisker Inc. as its full name, will start off with a premium vehicle which is described as a “spiritual successor” to the Karma. A bolder statement made is that the new car will have battery technology “that will deliver the world’s longest electric range of any production car previously developed”.
The other car planned by the returning Fisker brand is a mass-market, more affordable electric car that will cost considerably less than its premium counterpart.
The new premium Fisker will be powered by a patented battery that will be developed by Fisker Nanotech, a separate company to the car maker but under the same ownership.
Henrik Fisker said: “If the electric car is to succeed as a mass market vehicle, we need a radical new battery technology and battery pack integration – and our vehicles will have just that.
“With our game-changing battery technology, now is the time to develop more affordable, mass-market vehicles.”