Fisker and Tesla Sedans Delayed While GM and Nissan Push Toward Production

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06-28-2010, 10:29 AM

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Fisker and Tesla Sedans Delayed While GM and Nissan Push Toward Production

Originally posted by Inside Line
"At this time last year, it looked like Fisker Automotive and Tesla Motors were going to beat the big guys to the punch when it came to getting electric cars on the market. Fisker had introduced its Karma sedan way back in early 2008 and was predicting the start of production by the end of 2009. Tesla unwrapped its Model S sedan in the spring of last year and said it expected to have it ready by the third quarter of 2011.
Meanwhile, GM was still talking about the Volt while Nissan had yet to introduce the electric vehicle it was promising for some time. Looked like a classic case of the young, innovative upstarts showing the old-tech guys how it gets done in the digital age. Well, it did, that is, until it didn't.

While Fisker and Tesla were promising the world, GM and Nissan were plugging away with the usual product development cycles they were used to completing. In the case of the Volt, GM knew it was going to be awhile, but eventually set a date for late 2010 as its hard launch. Nissan rolled out its Leaf electric sedan last summer and promised to have it in select markets in late 2010.

Well, here we are in the middle of 2010 and where do things stand? GM says it's still on track to launch the Volt this November while Nissan says it will have production ready versions of its Leaf hatchback on sale by the end of this year.

And what about Fisker and Tesla? Fisker's 2009 promise came and went without much notice while its delays in 2010 caught a few potential buyers by surprise. Now its promising a production version of the Fisker by early 2011.

Tesla has delivered a similar set of promises. First it was late 2011, then early 2012 and now mid-2012 for the Model S sedan. There's been no sign of any true prototypes of either the Karma or the model S either.

So while Fisker and Tesla may be media darlings of some sort, they both have a ways to go before becoming viable companies, a situation that will only get worse when they lose the "first to market" novelty that GM and Nissan are sure to get from their electric cars. Who would you bet your money on"