After Chinese auto parts manufacturer Wanxiang Group stepped in to seize the acquisition opportunity during the early-2014 bankruptcy auction for the U.S. vehicle brand Fisker Automotive, Reuters reported an exclusive development on Sunday after speaking with two unnamed sources.
According to the information that the news agency had become partial to, the Chinese firm's revival plan for the defunct Fisker Karma hybrid sports model will now occur in the middle of next year, while the "Fisker Automotive" name will be discarded in favor of "Elux."
Wanxiang, which had publicized its intention to undertake the Karma relaunch this year, did not respond to media requests for comment, but the anonymous sources broke down the anticipated changes in a fair amount of detail.
According to Reuters' unauthorized information, the revived Karma sports car, which runs on a gasoline-electric system, will no longer be assembled in Finland, but Wanxiang remains undecided about the final production location.
In terms of price, the hybrid will sell for a retail cost of close to $135,000, which is almost 20-percent higher than the price of the inaugural Karma model, before production was stopped around three years ago.
The news arrives after Cai Wei, from Jing-Jin Electric Technologies (Beijing) Co., an electric-car systems and components company, said in early February that the gap between Chinese companies and their overseas rivals is growing larger. Cai explained that most companies in the domestic sector spend less than 1 percent on research and development, compared to the 5-percent minimum level that exists internationally, while a lack of competitive suppliers is an additional problem.
In regard to the Fisker brand, Wanxiang is being closely watched over whether it will revise Karma's U.S.-designed battery pack. One of the sources said that Wanxiang is spending "millions" to update the car's outdated hardware so that it can readily compete with newer vehicles.