Electric-car maker Tesla Motors has filed suit against a competitor, claiming the company stole trade secrets and copied design ideas.
The lawsuit was filed Monday in San Mateo County Superior Court in California. Tesla hired Henrik Fisker, CEO of car design firm Fisker Coachbuild, last year to design the body of its all-electric WhiteStar sedan. In the suit, Tesla alleges that Fisker and Fisker Coachbuild Chief Operating Officer Bernhard Koehler accepted the contract "to gain access to confidential design information and trade secrets, then announced a competing vehicle," according to a New York Times article.
Last year, Tesla said it plans to come out with WhiteStar, an all-electric passenger sedan, in late 2009 or 2010. At the time, it said the price would range from $50,000 to $70,000.
The company, based in San Carlos, Calif., said in February that it plans to produce two types of its WhiteStar sedan--one being completely battery-powered, the other being a so-called range-extended vehicle, or REV, wherein a small gas motor recharges the battery as the car is driven.
Fisker, who last fall started Fisker Automotive--a green-leaning sports car company--recently announced an REV named Karma.
Tesla said it decided to scrap Fisker's design for the WhiteStar and began working on a new design when it found out he was going to be a competitor, according to the Times article.
"I think it's ironic that Fisker chose to name his car the Karma, when what he's done is very bad karma," said Adam C. Belsky, a lawyer at Gross, Belsky & Alonso who represents Tesla, told the Times.
The Times attempted to reach Fisker Automotive, but was unsuccessful. Someone who picked up the phone at the San Francisco law firm that is representing Fisker Coachbuild said it is "the firm's policy not to comment on litigation," according to the newspaper.
Last month, Tesla began commercial production of its all-electric Tesla Roadster, which costs $98,000. The company has dealerships in Los Angeles and Northern California. Production of the roadster had been delayed because of problems with the car's transmission, among other components. The company also had a change in top management last year.
Click here to see our photos
A new car company named Fisker showed off its luxury plug-in hybrid sports car and demonstrated its substantial financial backing by occupying some prime real estate on the floor of the 2008 Detroit Auto Show. The company follows in the wake of Tesla in its effort to develop a successful, high-end, eco-conscious sports car.
We wrote about Fisker Automotive's sporty plug-in hybrid last week and now here is a picture.
The company is planning to come to market in about 18 months with a high-performance, high-end plug-in hybrid sedan. The car will cost $80,000. It will go about 50 miles on a battery charge, which isn't far, but the car will also come with a built-in gas engine that exists primarily to charge the battery. With the charging capability, the car can go around 620 miles before conking, according to Henrik Fisker, the company's CEO.
How's this for a plug-in hybrid
(Credit: Fisker Automotive )With a range of hundreds of miles, the car will go farther than other electric cars coming to market. The new electric cars go only about 225 miles on a single charge at best. Granted, Fisker's car uses a little gas--something electric cars don't--but it won't burn much.. Long range and lower costs are the advantages plug-ins have over all-electrics. If Fisker hits its goals, it will have cars on the market in 2009.
Fisker also hopes to come out with SUVs and other types of cars. The drive train comes from Quantum Technologies, by the way. Quantum works with a number of companies and government agencies on alternative fuel vehicles. Initial production will be about 15,000 vehicles a year. It has received investment from Palo Alto Investors.
The company will show off a prototype in at the Detroit Auto Show in 2008.
In this day and age, it seems everybody has started an alternative car company. There is Tesla, Miles Automotive, Zap, Venture Vehicles. Everyone but my grandmother, and that's because we took her license away.
But Fisker does have something a lot of these other companies don't. Namely, experience in the auto industry. Henrik worked for years at Ford and BMW. He came up with the BMW Z8 and the Aston Martin DB9.
Fisker Automotive. Think of it as a marriage between the Chevy Volt and the Tesla Roadster.
The company is planning to come to market in about 18 months with a high-performance, high-end, plug-in hybrid sedan. The car will cost $80,000. It will go about 50 miles on a battery charge, which isn't far, but the car will also come with a built-in gas engine that exists primarily to charge the battery. With the charging capability, the car can go hundreds of miles, according to Henrik Fisker, the company's CEO.
With a range of hundreds of miles, the car will go farther than other electric cars coming to market. The new electric cars go only about 225 miles on a single charge at best. Granted, Fisker's car uses a little gas--something electric cars don't--but it won't burn much. This is how the Volt functions. General Motors, however, doesn't plan on coming out with the Volt until 2010. If Fisker hits its goals, it will have cars on the market in 2009. Fisker, though, is also aiming at the luxury end of the market with its alternative car, which makes it like Tesla. Its tag line is "Eco-chic."
Fisker also hopes to come out with SUVs and other types of cars. The drive train comes from Quantum Technologies, by the way. Quantum works with a number of companies and government agencies on alternative fuel vehicles. Initial production will be about 15,000 vehicles a year.
The company will show off a prototype at the Detroit Auto Show, according to the company's somewhat cryptic Web site.
In this day and age, it seems everybody has started an alternative car company. There is Tesla, Miles Automotive, Zap and Venture Vehicles. Everyone but my grandmother, and that's because we took her license away.
But Fisker does have something a lot of these other companies don't. Namely, experience in the auto industry. Henrik worked for years at Ford and BMW. He came up with the BMW Z8 and the Aston Martin DB9.
Thanks to Greg King of Wostec for pointing out the Fisker presentation at the Dow Jones Alternative Energy Innovations Conference taking place in Redwood City, Calif., this week.
- prev
- 1
- next
