Production of the Fisker Karma plug-in hybrid will resume next year, according to a new report.
The “new Fisker” is making preparations to restart production in California, a major milestone in its comeback from bankruptcy.
That includes hiring employees at both its new factory and its Orange County headquarters, as well as continuing development work on the Karma, reports The Orange County Register.
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The company now claims to have more than 200 employees at its headquarters in Costa Mesa, far from its pre-bankruptcy peak of 700, but more than the 20 it had on the payroll last year.
Fisker is also beginning work on the 555,670-square-foot production facility in Moreno Valley it announced last month.
Parts are reportedly being shipped from Valmet Automotive in Finland–where all Karmas have been built so far–and Fisker is looking to hire up to 150 workers for the California factory.
2012 Fisker Karma + Aero L-39 Albatros jet trainer, Hollister Municipal Airport, CA [by Refael Azi]It will also have to significantly update the Karma, which is now a very old design by car industry standards.
Engineers are reportedly using some of the 150 unsold Karmas in Fisker’s inventory for development work, to help keep costs down.
Fisker owner Wanxiang previously said it had identified 250 “bugs” in the design that needed to be fixed before production could resume.
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According to chief marketing officer James Taylor, the new Fisker will also purchase batteries from the same supplier as the old Fisker.
A123 Systems supplied battery packs for the 2012 Karma, but a recall that involved every single one made forced it into bankruptcy.
Both companies are now owned by Wanxiang, but A123 has appeared unwilling to return to the U.S. electric-car market.
2012 Fisker Karma + Aero L-39 Albatros jet trainer, Hollister Municipal Airport, CA [by Refael Azi]A123 CEO Jason Forcier has said that market won’t become viable for another 10 years, and has steered the company toward smaller batteries for engine stop-start systems.
Some inside Fisker also blamed the abrupt supply cutoff caused by A123’s bankruptcy for Fisker’s own fall.
MORE: A123 Says Start-Stop Batteries A Better Business Than Electric Cars
Whether A123 and Fisker have truly patched things up or not, the carmaker will have to continue working to rebuild its network of suppliers.
It will also have to reestablish a dealer network that dissipated in the wake of its 2013 bankruptcy.
[hat tip: Alex Pop]
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