There may still be life left in Fisker yet. Bob Lutz's VL Automotive, makers of the V-8-powered version of the Fisker Karma , is reportedly looking into buying Fisker out of bankruptcy, with the help of a Chinese auto parts supplier.
Reutersreports that Lutz's VL Automotive and Chinese part supplier Wanxiang Group made a $20 million offer to buy Fisker. Lutz's proposal to buy the troubled automaker is one of two known offers; billionaire Richard Li and a team of international investors are also said to be in talks to buy the company.
The VL Automotive Destino, which first debuted at this year's Detroit auto show, is essentially a really elaborate LS-swap. VL takes out the Chevrolet-based plug-in hybrid powertrain from the Karma and swaps in a Cadillac CTS-V-sourced 6.2-liter supercharged LSA V-8 and a six-speed manual or automatic transmission. The new powertrain should give the Destino 556 hp and 551 lb-ft of torque; a stock Karma makes 403 hp and 959 lb-ft of torque. Lutz, who recently said the Karma "is quite possibly the most beautiful four-door sedan ever," changes very little visually in the Fisker to VL conversion, with the front grille and exhaust pipes being the most obvious differences.
Lutz recently said that VL has received interest from "hundreds" of current Karma owners who don't want to wind up with un-repairable vehicles and VW Phaeton-like resale values should Fisker disappear.
VL Automotive's partner in the offer to buy Fisker, Wanxiang, also has a vested interest in Fisker - it bought battery maker A123 (now named B456) back in January. A123 was Fisker's battery supplier.
Fisker recently cut over 75 percent of its staff and missed a scheduled payment on a Department of Energy Loan while founder Henrik Fisker resigned from the company. While the company has yet to officially file for bankruptcy, it has hired bankruptcy lawyers.
Source: Reuters
I generally like writing—especially when it’s about cars—but I hate writing about myself. So instead of blathering on about where I was born (New York City, in case you were wondering) or what type of cars I like (all of ’em, as long as it has a certain sense of soul or purpose), I’ll answer the one question I probably get most, right after what’s your favorite car (see above): How’d you get that job? Luck. Well, mostly. Hard work, too. Lots of it. I sort of fell into my major of journalism/mass communication at St. Bonaventure University and generally liked it a lot. In order to complete my degree senior year, we had to spend our last two semesters on some sort of project. Seeing as I loved cars and already spent a good portion of my time reading about cars on sites such as Motor Trend, I opted to create a car blog. I started a Tumblr, came up with a car-related name (The Stig’s American Cousin), signed up for media access on a bunch of manufacturer’s websites, and started writing. I did everything from cover new trim levels to reviewing my friends’ cars. I even wrote a really bad April Fool’s Day post about the next Subaru Impreza WRX being Toyota-Corolla-based. It was fun, and because it was fun, it never felt like work. Sometime after my blog had gotten off the ground, I noticed that Motor Trend was hiring for what’s now our Daily News Team. I sent in my résumé and a link to my blog. I got the job, and two weeks after graduation I made the move from New York to California. I’ve been happily plugging away at a keyboard—and driving some seriously awesome hardware—ever since.
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