Photo: Georgie Moore/Fisker
Automotive startups – and also some large carmakers – often make promises they do not keep. Robotaxis, new products, and, above all, deadlines. Finding a company that meets goals on time is rare – even when it establishes itself. When Fisker said Ocean’s start of production (SOP) would be on November 17, some doubted it. Yet, that was precisely what happened.
To be fair, it was Magna Steyr who fulfilled the promise to start manufacturing the Ocean on November 17. The pictures the company released show Henrik Fisker was there to witness the first new car with his name since the Karma, a vehicle that was as striking as it was troublesome. Its design was so good that it survived the company and the brand, being currently available as the Karma GS-6 and GSe-6. Fisker almost postponed production because the software was not ready yet, but decided to fix that with over-the-air (OTA) updates.
The Fisker Ocean is produced in Graz, Austria, at the same plant that manufactures iconic vehicles such as the Mercedes-Benz G-Class, BMW Z4, Toyota Supra, and Jaguar I-Pace. Fisker did not disclose how many will be made until the end of 2022, but it expects Magna Steyr to make 300 in Q1 2023, 8,000 in Q2 2023, more than 15,000 in the following quarter, and Q4 2023 with more than 19,000 EVs.
That would allow it to sell 42,400 units of the Ocean next year. So far, the company has more than 63,000 reservation holders. That number should improve when people start seeing the Fisker Ocean on the streets and asking their owners where they bought them. The more cautious customers may also feel encouraged to finally order the SUV after seeing it was not vaporware – another risk involving automotive startups.
The Fisker Ocean development took only two years, which is quite fast considering the three or more years a car project demands to reach production lines. Hopefully, that will not mean the Ocean was not sufficiently tested to prevent its early adopters from having issues. Hiring a manufacturing contractor that can provide a platform for your projects certainly speeds up things. Foxconn now wants to offer the same services in the U.S., and Fisker has already hired the Taiwanese company for the PEAR project.
The Fisker Ocean is produced in Graz, Austria, at the same plant that manufactures iconic vehicles such as the Mercedes-Benz G-Class, BMW Z4, Toyota Supra, and Jaguar I-Pace. Fisker did not disclose how many will be made until the end of 2022, but it expects Magna Steyr to make 300 in Q1 2023, 8,000 in Q2 2023, more than 15,000 in the following quarter, and Q4 2023 with more than 19,000 EVs.
That would allow it to sell 42,400 units of the Ocean next year. So far, the company has more than 63,000 reservation holders. That number should improve when people start seeing the Fisker Ocean on the streets and asking their owners where they bought them. The more cautious customers may also feel encouraged to finally order the SUV after seeing it was not vaporware – another risk involving automotive startups.
The Fisker Ocean development took only two years, which is quite fast considering the three or more years a car project demands to reach production lines. Hopefully, that will not mean the Ocean was not sufficiently tested to prevent its early adopters from having issues. Hiring a manufacturing contractor that can provide a platform for your projects certainly speeds up things. Foxconn now wants to offer the same services in the U.S., and Fisker has already hired the Taiwanese company for the PEAR project.
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