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The Fisker Automtive Plug-In Hybrid Karma
Much has been said about Fisker and his wide grinning Karma plug-in hybrid, and the startup is shaking the industry in a way unlike others.
The gist is that developing a car is resource intensive and can gobble up billions of dollars in research and production. In Henrik Fisker's case, he sought to lower costs by outsourcing as much as possible the construction of his Karma. Fisker Automotive is taking advantage of a life time chance when the entire automobile industry is in an upheaval trying to reinvent itself.
A Cemetery Of Startups. If the automobile industry is littered with defunct startups, Fisker intends to stay clear of that path. Chances are, the company could well succeed. Well backed by close to $200 million from venture company Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, as well as the Qatar Investment Authority, the new Karma should begin production in November 2009. According to GreenTechMedia, Fisker says consumers can expect cars to be sold around May-June 2010. Fisker expects to sell 15,000 of the $80,000 series plug-in hybrids, PHEV a year in the beginning, with a goal of 100,000 annually. So far, about 1,300 have been pre-sold.
The Karma interior.
What Is Different With Fisker? Unlike say the ill-fated Tucker that gamble an all or lose approach to designing cars from scratch then building them, and other known car companies that are no longer around, Fisker chooses to approach the business more as Apple and Nike does, that of re-branding and working on the design part leaving the manufacturing aspects to specialized entities. The Fisker company focuses their attention on capital efficiency.
Stay tuned for part II
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