We are LIVE.

Live transcript from the Boxwood Automotive Plant, Delaware. Vice President Joe Biden and Fisker Automotive CEO Henrik Fisker speak.

10:37  Introductions, including Vice President Biden and Henrik Fisker.

10:40 First Speaker, Car Czar Ed Montgomery. He gets his largest applause when he says “This plant will allow us to export electric cars to other countries.”

10:43 Next Speaker, Rep. Mike Castle- He thanks Mr. Fisker for his company’s diligence in selecting the Boxwood plant.

10:48 Sen. Ted Kaufman- Miss quotes Jerry Maguire by asking “Where’s the Money?”, He’s proud to see that Delaware is leading the way for more green jobs in the US.

10:50 Sen. Tom Carper- “Hands that built Pontiac Solstice can build Ninas.”

10:59 Gov. Jack Markell- He says, “I can think of no better partner to reopen this plant than Fisker Automotive. ” There is still a lot more work to be done in order to bring the potential of Fisker Automotive into successful reality. He presents a gift to Henrik Fisker and Barney Koehler, a jacket with the UAW logo and Fisker logo on it.

11:11 Henrik Fisker, CEO Fisker Automotive- He starts by giving an overview of Fisker Automotive. ‘We have always planned to use the development of the Fisker Karma to bring down the price of the drivetrain for Project Nina.” Originally this was going to start in another 3 years, thanks to the loan this project starts today. ‘We plan to export at least 50% of the cars manufactured in this plant.”  Fisker choose this plant for several reasons. First, the skilled workers in the area. Second, the amazing reception they received from the governor and the other state officials. They really showed that they wanted Fisker to work with them. Delaware showed that they could do business in a fast and efficient way. Third, the plant has great facilities from the assembly line to the paint shop and more.

11:20 Dave Meyers, UAW- Thanks several people and then introduces “Our Joe.”

11:22 Vice President Joe Biden- He talks about the plant closing and how hard that was on the community and the individual workers and their families. The doubters were wrong about our ability to manufacture cars for the world. “I believe we can lead the world in automobile manufacturing for the next century.” “It’s a bad bet to bet against America!” The cars that we build here are truly going to be the cars of the future. Biden then goes on to mention his favorite quote from Henrik Fisker, “It’s not enough to build an electric car, it’s got to have muscle and it’s got to have looks.” From investments in battery technology to charging stations we are placing a bet on the future.  “Today’s announcement is the first sign that this bet is starting to pay off.”

Comment on this post in our forums

Fisker Automotive CEO Henrik Fisker is a noted car designer. And now he’s trying his hand at running the whole show: his company plans to bring the plug-in hybrid Karma to the market next June.

Additional information can be found in this companion article.

[Source:AutoWeek]

Comment on this post in our forums

There are a couple new items that have come out of the speech. However, most of it is just confirmation of information and a continued commitment to the consistent messages we have all come to know.  It does sound like there have been a couple of new dealers added to the network.

We have selected 45 premium retailers in the U.S. market to sell this vehicle. Our dealers all own multiple dealerships.

More about this soon.

As for the consistent message:

Our Karma, we hope will take about 3% of the plug-in hybrid market. Our car will be delivered starting next June. We have pre-sold 1,500 cars so far. Our customers come from premium brands mainly — 60%. Mainly BMW and Mercedes. 3% are former Prius owners.

No surprises here, but always good to hear the message reinforced.

He did talk a bit about Project Nina.

Goal will be to manufacture 100,000 vehicles per year. We plan to export more than 50% of these vehicles. This will leverage 62% of the design and engineering of the initial Karma K1 platform.

All the work that has gone into the Karma should really pay off with the development of Nina.

We are starting with a $80,000 car, going down to a $40,000 model, but hopefully we will go down more than that in the future eventually. We hope to become a large and significant player in the world as we build a brand that is a pure green brand.

What a great mantra for the New American Car Company.

[Source:  PaulAllen.net Picture: CarandDriver.com]

Comment on this post in our forums

Fisker Automotive is an American car company based in Irvine, California.  The company’s goals are to help restore the U.S. as a leader in the global auto industry and to eliminate America’s dependence on foreign oil.

These DOE funds will help Fisker Automotive create or save at least 5,000 U.S. jobs, bring to market affordable, American-made plug-in hybrid vehicles and save more than 821 million gallons of gasoline (43.2 million barrels of oil) by 2016.

No DOE funding will be used for overseas operations.

Through private funding, and at no cost to taxpayers, the company has already supported hundreds of American jobs by partnering with major auto suppliers to develop the world’s first production plug-in hybrid car, the Fisker Karma.

This will put the American auto industry ahead of foreign competition.  The Karma has been designed and engineered in the U.S. with the majority (65% by cost) of its parts sourced from American suppliers. Fisker Automotive searched for a U.S. plant to assemble the Karma, but none were willing or able to build the 15,000 of these advanced vehicles per year Fisker required.

The low-volume Karma will therefore be assembled in Finland by Valmet Automotive, one of the most respected contract auto builders in the world.

The next generation Karma will be built entirely in the U.S.  The Karma is a technology leader necessary to reduce costs for Project NINA, the development of a more affordable, family-oriented plug-in hybrid vehicle to be made in America at a retooled assembly plant in 2012. The resulting vehicle will sell for about $39,900 after federal tax credits.

Engineering on Project NINA has already begun.

Fisker Automotive expects to export half its vehicles, the most of any American car company.

As reported by the DOE, $169.3 million of the loan will be used by Fisker Automotive as the company works with primarily U.S. suppliers to complete engineering work on the Karma.  This work will be conducted in Pontiac, Michigan and Irvine, California.  The remaining $359.36 million will support Project NINA and its manufacture of 75,000-100,000 plug-in hybrids per year at a retooled U.S. assembly plant, beginning in 2012.  The DOE loan is conditional. In order to receive the funds Fisker Automotive must meet very specific milestones. Money is disbursed in small amounts only if the company successfully reaches these milestones.

The funds will be repaid, with interest, to the American taxpayer.

Some have asked questions about the cost of the cars.

Any new technology is expensive. Televisions, cell phones, refrigerators and even cars themselves were once too expensive for most. In time, however, costs come down. The same will happen with Fisker’s plug in hybrid electric vehicles.  The DOE loan to Fisker Automotive represents just two percent of the agency’s $25B Advanced Technologies Manufacturing Loan Program (ATVMLP), created by Congress in November 2008 to help promote the development of energy-efficient, advancedtechnology vehicles.

American cars have long been underrepresented in the global marketplace, especially those in premium segments. The U.S. used to be known for building the most exciting and desirable cars in the world. It is time America is again at the forefront, and gives buyers the choice to purchase a desirable environmentally friendly car.  When it comes to cars, an environmental strategy is no longer an option, it is a necessity.  With the help of the Department of Energy, Fisker Automotive is taking action and making an investment in the future. We are immensely proud of what we are doing, and that we are doing it here in America.

It is unfortunate how false information can be disseminated and it is our intention to correct as much of it as possible.

Henrik Fisker, CEO

[Source: Fisker Automotive Picture: Car and Driver]

Comment on this post in our forums

At its global headquarters in Irvine, California, Fisker Automotive is abuzz with activity. Designers, engineers, clay modelers dedicate their talents and tools to bring the world’s first luxury plug-in hybrid, the Fisker Karma, to life.

[Source: MotorWeek]

Comment on this post in our forums

The title of the original article is “Fisker CEO has plans for smaller electric car in 2010.” I’m not sure that got it quite right. None the less there is some interesting information here. First, we hear that there is a plan for yet another vehicle to be built on the Karma platform. No official  word has been given however, speculation is that it could be some sort of  crossover vehicle or a two door coup. Beyond that more information is given about a higher volume, lower priced car.

Pontiac {Michigan} will be at the center of the action, according to the head of Fisker Automotive, as he plots the company’s strategy for moving into the less-expensive end of the vehicle market.

Henrik Fisker, founder and chief executive officer of Fisker Automotive, said that now is “the most dramatic change in the history of cars. It’s the first time in 30 or 40 years where new start-up car companies have a real chance. They really haven’t had any chance in the last 30 or 40 years because they would just come up with another gasoline-powered car and nobody needs that.”

Fisker is preparing to launch a new plug-in hybrid early in 2010.

“What you’re seeing now is these start-up companies like Fisker Automotive — we have the technology — that we’re actually more experienced than the big car companies,” Fisker said, whose new automotive company is based in Irvine, Calif. Fisker established a technical center in Pontiac last fall.

“You can compare that to guys that started Google, or Apple with iPhone. You have these things happening when you have a dramatic new technology. You find people are willing to try new technology or even a new design,” Fisker said.

Fisker has already lined up dealers to sell the four-door Fisker Karma in early 2010, but he has more ambitious plans — including a lower-priced vehicle that uses the same plug-in hybrid technology.

“We’re first doing the four-door and then we’re doing the convertible and then we’re planning some third derivative off the Karma platform. Then we’re planning a high-volume vehicle for a lower price. We’ve applied for a Department of Energy grant. If that loan comes through, we’ll have this vehicle on the road in 29 months,” he said.

[Source: The Oakland Press]

Comment on this post in our forums

“We’re setting up to do all the interface with all our suppliers (in Pontiac) and we’re gearing it up to start work on the next project, which will be a much higher-volume car and will have different construction than the Karma. We will use our learnings on how to integrate the technology.”

Last month, Fisker Automotive received an additional $85 million in venture capital funding for the development and manufacturing of its plug-in hybrid automobiles. That represented the largest injection of capital into Fisker since its founding in August 2007.

The investment by Eco-Drive and Kleiner Perkins, one of Silicon Valley’s leading venture capital firms, “validates our vision of joining together the advances in technology for plug-in hybrid powertrains with the eco-chic beauty and eco-conscious comfort of the Fisker Karma,” Fisker said.

The Fisker plug-in hybrid has been honored in the Conde Nast Traveler Innovation and Design Awards 2009. The award celebrates excellence in 10 categories — from sustainability to transport. Online voters selected the Karma over 15 other category entrants, including the Honda FCX Clarity and Nissan Cube.

[Source: The Oakland Press]

Comment on this post in our forums

For the dozens of folks in attendance who saw the car live for the first time, there was a collective gasp of excitement for the car’s sleek lines and luxurious, leather-clad interior.

And this wasn’t just a static display. As the photo-hungry crowd still busily snapped away, Fisker quietly — no, silently — slipped away down the road, in a 400-horsepower luxury beast that he hopes will change the way we see green. Stay tuned for how this electrifying race plays out.

Attendees at the Orange County Forum Luncheon get their First Taste of Karma

Of course not one to give up an opportunity Henrik also made time to talk about future production plans and that oh so meaningful DOE loan. As important as a successful launch of the Karma is to Fisker, having the cash to quickly ramp up development of a low cost model is even more.

While speaking at an Orange County Forum luncheon Wednesday in Irvine, Fisker not only showed off a running version of the Karma in person, but also spoke about the ideology of his company and even shed a little — but only a little — more info about another car that the company has in the works.

He said his private company has already received “well over $100 million” in venture capital, and hopes it can obtain a Department of Energy loan to spur production of its next car, which Fisker aims to sell in the $40,000 range.

Fisker declined to reveal what kind of car this lower-cost, higher-volume one would be, but the goal is to eventually make 100,000 units a year, and — unlike the Finnish-built Karma — for them to be made in the United States.

{Read Full Story}

[Source: OC Register]

Comment on this post in our forums