Fisker Automotive announced that it is teaming up with Valmet Automotive in
Finland to build its plug-in Karma hybrid sports sedan. Valmet has experience
with sports cars; Motor Trend
reports that Fisker is the manufacturer
for several Porsche models including the Cayman and Boxster.
Fisker Automotive says that the Karma will have an all electric range of 50
miles and that its full range will be 350 miles. Over its entire gasoline
assisted 350 mile range, Fisker claims that the Karma can achieve a fuel
economy rating of 100 MPG.
The Karma is a high-end hybrid sedan and Fisker expects to sell 15,000 of
the cars annually, with more than half of the sales coming from Europe. That
makes a European manufacturer for the Karma a good fit. Fisker does say that it
has an American
manufacturing facility it plans to use for future models.
Much like the Tesla Roadster that went
into production in March, the Karma is an attractive hybrid with
performance roots. Fisker says that the Karma can reach a top speed of 125 mph
and can hit 60 mph in under six seconds.
Motor Trend says that it is estimated that 800 orders for the Karma
have already been placed overseas and that 44 distributors have signed up here
in America to sell the car. The Karma is expected to hit dealerships in America
in Q4 2009 as a 2010 model and be available in Europe in early 2010.
DailyTech reported in January 2008 that the price
for the Karma will be $80,000.
