Fisker has been as fickle as a cat with its products in the auto industry. For what it’s worth, the company comes up with some really nice concepts that garner a lot of attention. But the concept-to-production model ratio does not induce enough faith in the brand. Such is the company’s reputation that no one really takes Fisker that seriously anymore. Recently, Henrik Fisker tweeted a teaser image that looks like a pickup truck. With a lot of products already announced but none of them making it to production, should we even be excited about the Fisker pickup truck?

Another Day, Another New Product

The company has had an electric sedan and an SUV in the pipeline for years now, but they are as mythical as a griffin. Well, that’s some exaggeration. Instead of focusing on the existing products and trying to get them to the production line, Fisker tweeted an image of a CGI-rendered pickup truck and captioned it, “ALL automotive segments have to be electrified! After our Fisker electric SUV, we have already decided on our next 2 EVs on the same platform! #fisker #EVs #ElectricVehicle #Automotive #sustainability #cool #FutureTech #Trending”.

Coming back to the image, it appears to be the tailgate of the truck. It has ‘FISKER’ lettering embossed on it along with the logo. The black borderline and back of the truck cab is also seen. This dual-tone appearance matches with that of Fisker’s upcoming SUV as well. The automaker or the founder did not reveal any more details about the truck. So, it looks like one of the two products that Fisker mentioned is the pickup truck. If that is the case, then it will most likely be a Rivian R1S/R1T kind-of-a-situation where the same platform is shared between the SUV and the truck.

Let’s Dive Into Fisker’s History

Henrik Fisker is not a new name in the automotive industry. This designer-turned-automaker is responsible for cars like the BMW Z8 and Aston Martin DB9. His first company, Fisker Automotive, created the ill-fated Karma which was one of the first luxury PHEVs to be introduced to the world. The Karma made its debut at the 2008 North American International Auto Show. The first deliveries were made in 2011, but in 2012, the company went into bankruptcy which resulted in the premature death of the Karma. A smaller version of the Karma, called the Atlantic, never made it to production and the bankruptcy meant that $168 million became bad debts. However, a Chinese company later took over the manufacturing facility in Delaware and the rights to the plug-in hybrid powertrain, and later launched the car under their brand, called the Karma Revero.

Where The Hell Is The EMotion EV Sedan?

Fast-forward to 2016, Henrik Fisker came back for his second stint as an automaker with a new company called Fisker Inc. The new automaker showed off the near-production version of the EMotion EV at the CES 2018. To brief you about how the EMotion sedan looked, this is how the company described it - “a large curved windscreen pushed forward, diving into an extremely low bonnet,” with the front fascia hugging the ground in order to help it cut through the atmosphere. In the back, there’s an “integrated spoiler and aggressive functional diffuser to aid aerodynamics.” This sedan came with an all-wheel-drive system and offered up to 400 miles on a single charge.

Fisker EMotion EV Specs

Top speed

161 mph

Range

400 miles

Drivetrain

all-wheel drive

Battery pack

Li-ion

Power

500 hp (est.)

Torque

700 lb-ft (est.)


However, the idea of an SUV tempted Fisker more. It looks like Fisker took this call seeing the way the sales of SUVs have picked up in recent years. The automaker announced a sub-$40,000 SUV that will be one of the three mass-market cars that his company, Fisker Inc., plans to build in the near future. The automaker is aiming for a 300-mile range and is planning to launch this unnamed SUV in the second half of 2021.

This SUV Would Have Made A Strong Impact For Fisker

Fisker has assured that the SUV will carry a price tag of less than $40,000. This primarily means that Fisker has his eyes set on the Tesla Model Y. The teaser for the SUV is actually a sketch design. But, given that the Karma's production version was very close to the concept revealed, something that even James May went on to acknowledge on Top Gear, we can expect the same to happen with this SUV too. The sketch revealed shows sleek LED headlights and a massive grille placed on the bumper.

In all honesty, the SUV looks great upfront and is one of the smartest-looking SUV faces that we have seen lately. It will carry an 80-kWh battery pack that will help the SUV travel 300 miles on a single charge. According to Fisker, a drivable prototype will be ready by the end of this year. The SUV would also feature an optional all-wheel-drive system. The Tesla Model Y, on the other hand, comes with a 230-mile range and a price tag of $39,000 for the entry-level variant.

The Big Three From EV Pickup Truck Segment Are In a Different League Of Their Own

Now, however, the company is again distracted. The electric pickup truck segment is arguably the hottest one right now. The three-way war between Tesla, Rivian, and Ford is spicing up with every announcement either of the company makes. I won’t be diving into the details, but the three Americans have set the bar way too high right now. If Fisker actually wants to make a mark, it needs to match Rivian R1T’s 400-mile range, Ford’s one million towing capacity, and Tesla’s sub-$50,000 prices. But, before all that, Fisker needs to come up with a product that will make it to production. If this also does not make it to production, Fisker is as good as being a paper-company, or even worse, a shelf-company albeit with some assets. Do you think we will be able to see this pickup truck in the market in the future? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below.