Fisker Shows Off Ocean EV SUV, Launching In 2022 For Less Than $30G

Fisker Inc. chairman and CEO Henrik Fisker yesterday took the wraps off the Ocean, its all-electric SUV, forecasting production of more than one million vehicles though a worldwide manufacturing strategy between 2022 and 2027. The starting retail price of $37,499 -- $29,999 after tax credits -- will be cheaper than any Tesla currently on the market. 

“Fisker calls the Ocean ‘the world’s most sustainable vehicle,’ with its full-length solar roof, recycled carpeting, vegan interior and ‘eco-suede' interior textiles. The company says it will also ‘utilize discarded rubber waste generated during tire manufacturing that will no longer be dumped in landfills,’ though it's unclear exactly what that entails,” CNET’s Steven Ewing writes.

advertisement

advertisement

“Exact performance details are still TBD, but Fisker says the Ocean will be powered by an approximately 80-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack. The company is targeting an electric driving range of somewhere between 250 and 300 miles,” Ewing continues.

“If you'd prefer to lease the Ocean, you can pay $379 per month (plus $2,999 down before delivery) with maintenance and service included. There’s also a ‘$0 drive off’ option if you're qualified and make a $2,999 down payment. Fisker is promising to make much of the usual financial and service drudgery available though its mobile app, including making payments, scheduling maintenance (Fisker will pick up and drop off your car) and signing up for insurance,” Jon Fingas writes for Engadget.

“For reference, as of this writing, a base Tesla Model 3 Standard Range costs $535 per month for a 10,000-mile per year lease, with a $1,230 initial payment,” CNET’s Ewing reports.

“Whereas other automakers try to hide the various sensors and radar units used for adaptive cruise control, forward collision-warning systems, and the like, the Ocean features a radar sensor prominently at the peak of its nose; it’s the little tablike thing below the hood ornament. Still, aside from its full-bodied shape and radar flourish, the Ocean is vaguely derivative in appearance. Combine that with how few mainstream buyers will recognize Henrik Fisker's signatures or know who or what a Fisker is, and we imagine Fisker, Inc.  will need to spend plenty of time and money on marketing,” Alexander Stoklosa writes  for Motor Trend.

Henrik Fisker “started Fisker Inc. in 2016, three years after his first company -- Fisker Automotive -- went bankrupt, thanks to the failure of his hybrid sports car known as Karma. The Karma was ultimately revived by a Chinese company after Fisker Automotive’s bankruptcy auction; that company is now called Karma Automotive, and the car is called the Revero,” Sean O’Kane reports  for The Verve.

Among the standard frills that will be standard in the Ocean is what the press release describes as “a Karaoke feature through a heads-up display --  synched with the Fisker Flexee app for a fun in-vehicle family experience.”

Fisker and friends demonstrated the karaoke feature during the reveal before the opening of the Consumer Electronics Show in Los Angeles, where it will be displayed. He posted a 45-second clip of the experience on his Twitter account with the caveat emptor: “WARNING! Raw uncut! Real footage!”

I suspect the snippet will not be not be part of the long-term marketing effort. On the other hand, it’s worthy competition to the Tesla Model 3’s fart mode.

“Fisker Inc. believes that the industry should stop looking at innovation superficially and start taking responsibility for its products, end-to-end – giving customers the opportunity to contribute to a more sustainable future,” it states in a preamble to a list of several of its ecologically friendly features.

Consumers not swayed by the environmental rationale for e-vehicles may be more attentive to the economic argument.

“Oil prices surged and stock markets in Asia and Europe fell on Monday, as the impact of the American killing of a powerful Iranian general on Friday ricocheted around the world,” Alexandra Stevenson reports  for The New York Times.

“The price of Brent oil, the international benchmark, jumped above $70 in futures trading as markets digested a steady flow of news over the weekend. It fell back below that level, to $69.92 a barrel, when markets opened in Europe, though the price was still about 5% higher than before the killing last week.”

1 comment about "Fisker Shows Off Ocean EV SUV, Launching In 2022 For Less Than $30G".
Check to receive email when comments are posted.
  1. R MARK REASBECK from www.USAonly.US , January 6, 2020 at 9:31 p.m.

    Gonna buy 2 of them , use them as roller skates

Next story loading loading..