Henrik Fisker, founder and chairman of Fisker Automotive has left the company that bears his name following a dispute with his management team, Auto Express has learned.
An official statement confirmed: "The main reasons for his resignation are several major disagreements that Henrik Fisker has with the Fisker Automotive executive management on the business strategy."
The news comes following a less-than-smooth start for the company, which began selling its only model – the plug-in hybrid Karma – in 2012. Since then it’s sold less than 2,000 models, which have been dogged with reliability issues. Its battery manufacturer A123 also went bust, meaning no Karmas have been built since July.
It’s been fighting legal battles on several fronts, too, most significantly with the US Government who decided to withhold a $529 million Advanced Vehicle Technology loan, following slower-than-expected sales. The cumulative effect of these issues meant the company’s second, smaller model – the Atlantic - has been postponed indefinitely, as has a Shooting Brake version of the Karma, called the Surf.
There’s still hope for expanding the Fisker line-up and turning a profit, though. Reports suggest that a takeover of the ailing company isn’t far away, and Chinese manufacturer Geely – who already own Volvo – are the current front runners.
The official statement said: “Given the confidential nature of this matter, at this point in our process we can only confirm that the company has received detailed proposals from multiple parties in different continents which are now being evaluated by the company and its advisors.”
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I hope the Chinese take it on. Its the only car to ever break down on a Consumer Reports test which is some kind of record, particularly for a $100k vehicle. A classic money pit green scheme gone wrong.