The first car from the California based carmaker Fisker Automotive, the Karma, was first unveiled in 2008, as a concept car, with its production scheduled to start in 2010. However, due to several factors, the production was delayed several times (there were times when the press actually doubted a production Karma will ever be delivered), with Fisker announcing the first units will come out of the Valmet production facility in Sweden in 2012.
In 2009, based on the Karma, the company unveiled a luxury convertible, the Fisker Karma Sunset (we still don’t know if it was just a concept car or if it will ever say daylight) and this year, at the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show, a new concept based on the Karma makes world debut, the Fisker Surf, a wagon version.
Well, it’s not a wagon actually, but more of a shooting break, because the Fisker Surf’s trunk was not created to compete against other luxury wagons like the Mercedes Benz E-Class T-Modell or the Audi A6 Avant, but only as a more practical version of the Karma sedan, which has a luggage space of only 200 liters: the Surf’s luggage space varies between 359 and 820 liters, more than enough for almost every rich person’s needs.
More than that, Fisker designers even dare challenging the recently launched Ferrari FF, saying that the Surf has two extra doors, which translates into a better access to the rear seats. But these are not all the advantages rear passengers have in the Surf, because they also get 0.3 inches more head space. According to Fisker, the Surf also competes against the FF at the total weight, which is around 4,400 pounds, only 77 pounds heavier than the Karma sedan.
As for the drivetrain, the Surf is built on the same platform from the Karma, so it is powered by the same 2.0-liter engine produced by GM combined with two electric motors powered by a lithium-ion battery pack. Compared to the Karma, the Surf has a new engine sound, the exhaust system being modified and also has several new features created specifically for the European market, like the more precise steering and the upgraded suspension system.
Fisker is hoping to sell around 3,500 Surfs each year in Europe, considering customers here are more likely to buy luxury wagons than in the United States. As for pricing, Fisker hasn’t revealed anything yet, but the company’s officials did point out that people interested in it might expect a price three times lower than the Ferrari FF’s, which would mean around $110,000-$120,000.