Fisker has been going though some financial issues in the last few months and it wasn't actually clear if the company was going to make it. The American EV brand was created by car designer Henrik Fisker and has been trying to secure funding that would keep the business above water. In Q4 2023, Fisker reported a loss of $450 million (£355m) and has been struggling to shift examples of its only car, the Ocean SUV. Nissan was rumoured to invest in the company, but this never happened and it would have resulted in the Japanese company using some of the technology Fisker has developed to help it make an electric pick-up truck.
Once the talks with Nissan resulted in nothing, the stock price of Fisker collapsed and was eventually suspended. Production of the Ocean, which was contracted by Magna in Austria was also halted. Prices in the UK were also dropped by up to £15,000 and many examples on Autotrader are now for sale in the low £20,000 price range.
The main news is that Fisker has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, with the court handling its assets, selling off unsold cars, buildings and more.
What now?
The main issue is what happens to the cars after they are sold and in use by customers. Many of the issues with the Ocean are blamed on poor software and if there isn't a company around anymore to maintain those updates, customers are up a creek without a paddle. Modern cars have very complicated software with OTA updates, apps on the iPhone to support them and without maintenance and a company behind them, no matter the price cuts - that just isn't an appealing car for a lot of people.
