CEO of Electric Vehicle Startup Fisker Inc Reveals New Details About the Upcoming Ocean SUV

author: Manish Kharinta   

The Fisker Ocean SUV.

In Jan. 2020, electric vehicle startup Fisker Inc. disclosed pricing information for its upcoming Ocean SUV. Just ahead of CES 2020 in Las Vegas, Fisker Inc, founder and chairman and CEO Henrik Fisker also disclosed some impressive performance figures of its "sustainable" Ocean SUV, which generated a lot of excitement.

Now, some new information pertaining to the performance of the upcoming Ocean EV has surfaced, which indicates that the Ocean will probably deliver even better performance than Mr. Fisker's previous claims.

The American car designer and entrepreneur Mr Fisker made the announcements on his Twitter profile. Fisker said the company, which bears his name, will share more details about the upcoming Ocean SUV in November. 

Fisker previously announced that Ocean's most powerful variant will produce 302 horsepower, but now the Fisker CEO has confirmed that the all-electric SUV will be available with a more powerful, 545+ horsepower option. The extra power is delivered via a dual-motor drivetrain.

Mr Fisker claimed last year that the Ocean will be able to accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in just 2.9 seconds. The company's ambitious claims now seem a lot more plausible considering that Ocean will have more than 545 HP at its disposal as an available option.

The company Chairman also revealed that the electric Ocean SUV will come equipped with a silicon carbide inverter and a unique clutch, which will improve the SUV's range and performance.

To put things in perspective, if the Fisker Ocean manages to achieve its proposed performance figures, then the electric SUV will be faster to the 60 mph mark than the Porsche Taycan 4S electric sedan, which costs more than $100,000. 

The Fisker Ocean's entry-level variant will get a single motor powertrain, which will deliver 250 miles of minimum range. The car will come equipped with a solar panel roof which Mr. Fisker claims will deliver an additional 1,000 miles of range over the course of a year.

The Fisker Ocean will also get an 80 kWh lithium-ion battery pack and a state-of-the-art radar interface to support autonomous driving capabilities. 

Mr. Fisker also claims that Ocean's overall design enhances the SUV's safety by improving stability. 

The Ocean rides on 22-inch wheels and can be equipped with Fisker's Force-E off-road package, which includes off-road tires, suspension upgrades and a wide range of off-road-capable equipment. 

Last October Fisker announced that Magna International will supply the EV platform and its subsidiary Magna Steyr in Austria will build the Ocean SUV. It will be Magna's first contract manufacturing deal with an EV startup.

As part of the deal, Magna will receive warrants to purchase a stake of up to 6% in Fisker, giving the EV startup an overall valuation of roughly $3 billion, Mr. Fisker told Reuters last year.

In February, Fisker announced it entered into a seperate MOU with Apple Inc's contract manufacturer Foxconn for a project to develop what the company calls a "breakthrough electric vehicle." The proposed collaboration is codenamed ‘Project PEAR' (Personal Electric Automotive Revolution) with projected annual volumes of more than 250,000 units. Production of the new EV is planned for Q4 2023.

Prices for the Fisker Ocean will start at just $37,499. It will also be eligible for the Federal EV tax credit of $7,500, which further discounts the price down to $29,999.

Deliveries of battery-powered Fisker Ocean are expected to start in late 2022.

Manish Kharinta

Manish Kharinta is a automotive writer based in the Los Angeles area. He has worked for automotive industry websites TheSmokingClutch.com, CarDekho.com and CarBikeindia.com. His experience ranges from covering auto shows, to car reviews and breaking automotive news. Manish aims to bring forth his unique perspective on automotive design and technological innovations in the automotive industry.