He’s responsible for some of the most beautiful sports car on the road – and for one of the most colossal automotive failures in recent years. Now Henrik Fisker is getting set to return to the supercar segment with the debut next month of his new Force 1.
The Danish designer isn’t saying much about the sports car he’ll unveil at the Detroit Auto Show next month, though he hints it was developed in cooperation with a well-known American race car driver, that it will use one of the world’s most powerful engines, and that it will be produced in Michigan.
“I believe there is room in the market for a daily driver that embodies all the attributes of the best track racing car, and the comfort of a luxurious sports car. Extreme power, great aesthetics and pristine handling make for a superior ride in Force 1, an American Super Car,” said the founder of the eponymous Henrik Fisker Design.
Perhaps best known for his work at Aston Martin, where he penned such acclaimed designs as the DB9 and V8 Vantage, Fisker went on to become a pioneer in the electric vehicle marker as co-founder of Fisker Automotive. But while the plug-in Karma received raves for its design, it was late to market and the company quickly ran into a series of problems, capped by its 2013 bankruptcy.
The remaining assets are now owned by China’s Wanxiang Group which is planning to relaunch under the name Karma Automotive.
(For more on the rebirth of the Fisker Karma, Click Here.)
After laying low for a year, Fisker reemerged in August 2014 with an extensively customized version of the Ford Mustang, the Rocket developed as part of a partnership with Los Angeles-based Galpin Motors. It’s unclear if that dealership, the world’s largest Ford retailer, is involved in the new Force 1 project.
(Click Here to check out Fisker’s Rocket Speedster.)
Fisker has released just one teaser image of the Force 1 so far, an overhead rendering that shows a long, creased hood with twin intake parts and dual vents. The slit-like headlights are likely to use the latest LED technology. Front and rear wheel arches flare dramatically out from the body, with its short rear deck and tapered back bumper.
Under the hood, Fisker suggests the Force 1 will be powered by the world’s most powerful naturally aspirated engine. That could suggest a large V-12, among the possibilities being rumored the 769-hp, 6.3-liter package in the Ferrari F12tdf. (The even more powerful engine in the LaFerrari gets a boost from a Formula One-style hybrid system.)
The engine will be offered with either a six-speed stick or automatic. The front-mounted engine will drive the rear wheels.
Fisker says he plans to sell just 50 copies of the Force 1 starting next April, and that it will be produced somewhere in Michigan. That would indicate a partnership, or at least a contract with, one of many tuner houses available in the state. Roush, for example, is providing the 100 bubble-shaped “Google Cars” used by that high-tech firm to develop its autonomous driving technology.
(Start-up Faraday Future going to Nevada to built its new electric vehicle. Click Here for more.)
