The Paris Show witnessed the unveiling of the final production version of the Fisker Karma range extended hybrid sports saloon. This was a long awaited car with the project being delayed on various counts by almost a year. The designer of the car is Henrik Fisker and in his interview with Autocar gave details of the vehicle’s specification, production and distribution. As per him the full production of the vehicle would start from early 2011 with Finland’s contract manufacturer Valmet who is the only global factory base.
There would be three variants of the car being built which are the saloon, ‘Sunset’ convertible and a third body style which as yet remains un-named. A total of 15,000 units would be manufactured of these three variants. There would be the Karma model which would have four-door and four-seat and be the coupe-cum-saloon model. This would be fitted with series ‘range-extended’ hybrid powertrain. Two electric motors would be mounted on the rear wheels and they would provide the peak power output of 398 bhp and 981 lb ft of torque.
The battery pack installed would be the 20 kWh lithium ion battery pack that would provide 50 miles of running with one charge and that too with zero carbon emission. There is a 2.0 liter Ecotec turbo petrol engine which acts as generator delivering 256 bhp. This engine is not linked to the cars wheel. The frame of the Karma is made up of aluminium and composite material and therefore the weight of the car is not expected to go beyond 2 tons. The top speed of the car in sport mode is 125 kmph with a 5.9 seconds timing for acceleration from 0 to 62 mph. The full range of the car is around 300 miles.
Source: 4wheelsnews
