The Fisker Ocean Electric SUV Breaks Cover With A Revolving Infotainment Touchscreen

• To be produced at a carbon-neutral facility in Austria

• Its top-spec dual-motor variant will have a range above 350 miles (560km)

• First-edition models will be priced at the equivalent of Rs 50 lakh, lower variants to be less expensive 

• Production set to begin in late 2022 

Fisker has unveiled its upcoming electric vehicle (EV), the Ocean SUV, at the LA Motor Show 2021. You might remember this American carmaker from the Karma hybrid electric sports car. The Ocean is an all-electric SUV that will go into production by November 2022 at Magna-Steyr’s carbon-neutral facility in Graz, Austria. It’ll be priced at the equivalent of Rs 28 lakh to Rs 50 lakh in its home market. 

There will be three variants on offer -- Sport, Ultra and Extreme. The first 5,000 Ocean SUVs will be the special-edition Ocean One models with similar features and drivetrain as the top-spec Ocean Extreme variants. Interestingly, only the base model’s battery uses lithium-ion chemistry. It’s good for a 250-mile (400km) range. Higher-spec variants have a nickel manganese cobalt Hyper Range battery built by CATL. It gives the Ultra variant a 540km range, while the Extreme variant has a claimed range of more than 560km. 

Except for the base model, all Fisker Ocean SUV variants will get Fisker’s SolarSky roof that can provide up to 2500km of additional range per year of driving. With a 270PS electric motor, even the base Sport variant is no slouch -- the claimed 0-100kmph time is just 6.9 seconds. The top-spec SUV, meanwhile, has a pair of motors that together produce an estimated 550PS. That’s enough power for a 0-100kmph time of just 3.6 seconds -- quicker than many luxury sedans and sports cars! Top trim levels will come equipped with an off-road mode, while even the mid-spec Ultra variant will feature Smart Traction torque vectoring. 

Inside, the Fisker Ocean gets vegan leather seats and an interior made from recycled fishing nets and discarded T-shirts. It has a 17.1-inch infotainment screen that’s in a portrait configuration when you’re driving but can be rotated into a landscape orientation when the car is parked for an immersive viewing experience. With the Fisker Hypersound audio system, you’ll have 16 speakers, a large subwoofer and total output of 500 watts.

Production is set to begin in late November 2022, and an India launch is unlikely. But as a concept, the Fisker Ocean represents a shift in the way that we use our cars. The Ocean will be able to power not just its own motors, but even other EVs, the power grid, and your household circuit. That’s the sort of tech we wish to see in India someday. 

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