News that Fisker Group, the US electric car maker behind the Ocean SUV, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection won’t have surprised many owners of its vehicles, who have been monitoring the company’s troubles in recent months.
However, for those bold enough to seize the opportunity, this development opens up the prospect of bargains among the new and used examples available in the UK.
Fisker’s rise and fall
Launched in 2016, Fisker was haemorrhaging money by 2023 and subsequently found itself delisted from the New York Stock Exchange. More bad news arrived this March when Fisker announced that in order to stay in business it would reduce staff numbers, pause future model development and suspend current production by sub-contractor Magna Steyr at its factory in Austria. In April, the company warned it might have to apply for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, which it did on 17 June.
From launch, prices for the Fisker Ocean, the firm’s only model, ranged from £36,000 for the 73kWh, single-motor Sport, through £50,900 for the mid-price Ultra with all-wheel drive and a 113kWh battery, to £58,685 for the range-topping Ocean Extreme.
However, in April, as Fisker’s problems threatened to engulf it, the company slashed £14,000 from the Extreme’s price, £12,000 from the Ultra’s and £6000 from the Sport’s.
At the same time, it dropped a bombshell in the form of a statement explaining that after 5 April anyone purchasing an Ocean did so in the knowledge that the vehicle’s warranty and all claims they might have for its material defects were permanently unenforceable. The company then closed its Milton Keynes office, so all communications now go through the US head office.
Magna Steyr built around 10,000 vehicles before suspending production in April. By March this year, approximately 5000 cars remained unsold. Assuming a stockpile of spare parts and body panels existed to support production, it’s possible that they might be offered to the market by a third party if Fisker cannot be saved.
The availability of software updates is less certain. As for warranty cover, policies on used Oceans are available from warranty firms such as the RAC and Warrantywise.
The owner dilemma
Remarkably, throughout this turbulent period, UK car buyers have continued to purchase new and used Oceans. Among the online clubs supporting the model is Fisker Ocean Owners UK. Members have posted reports of software updates, some of them successful. Older posts reference cars being plagued with teething problems, some serious. Fisker’s two mobile technical teams attract praise but their future with the firm is unknown.
In spite of its problems, Fisker has appointed an agent in the south-east whose role is to demonstrate the cars and forward expressions of interest to the firm. In the four weeks since it acquired the agent, EV Experts – an EV dealer based in Guildford and Hook – claims to have hosted up to two Ocean test drives per day.