Fisker Alaska EV Pickup Revealed. R1T Competition?

[DaveA]

If Ifs and buts were candy and nuts we'd all have a Merry Christmas. The fact of the matter is making EVs is hard. Making good ones is even harder, so hard even legacy auto is struggling to make it work. So until Fisker actually produces anything in any significant volume I don't really factor them into my rankings.

Oh yeah! Well…well…fine! ?. Sorry, lotta whiskey tonight.

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[Marchin_MTB]

It does have a cowboy hat holder built into the ceiling… other than that I don’t see anything novel about it.

 

[evhelphub]

Great looking truck! Skeptical of the price and capabilities.

 

[NineElectrics]

As soon as there is competition for the R1 Rivian is in trouble. If Alaska was available today and built my Magna Rivian would be toast.

I wonder if the Alaska will enter production before the R2s. I don't have an opinion, but if Fisker can be believed, the Alaska will arrive a year ahead of the R2s. If Fisker can be believed.

 

[NineElectrics]

It does have a cowboy hat holder built into the ceiling… other than that I don’t see anything novel about it.

This is what, the sixth electric truck announced? I suppose it's hard to come up with something new when you're number six...

 

[goldburger]

This is what, the sixth electric truck announced? I suppose it's hard to come up with something new when you're number six...

Just got an instagram ad for the Alpha Wolf— now that’s a good looking truck.

 

[moosetags]

The Alpha is a very nice looking truck. It is at the car show. The R1T is in my garage.

Brian

 

[Friscorays]

At first glance, this seems clever:

https://www.motortrend.com/uploads/2023/08/015-2025-Fisker-Alaska.jpg?w=438


....But Fisker has a lot more cumulative experience than RJ now.... And Rivian dithered around for years not producing anything, whereas Fisker was involved in Tesla and his own companies. He could very well not fail his way to success. I just don't see evidence that RJ is necessarily better, from afar.

Your giving credit to Fisker for hyping the Karma and then going into bankruptcy a little over two years after starting deliveries and at the same time discrediting R.J. for taking the time to actually develop a fully-baked product?

I own a vehicle supposedly designed by Fisker (although some say he took much more credit for the design than he was actually due) but see him as little more than a person who can draw a pretty picture and talk a good game when it comes to raising some money. So far, I have yet to see any evidence that he is capable of anything more.

 

[Dark-Fx]

I honestly think it’s a typo…under $200k was the initial talk. ?‍

Competitors (other than Tesla) have since announced pricing and vehicles above that level. Celestiq starts at $340k and you get much less performance and significantly less range. Polestar 6 is supposed to start at $200k and you don't have four doors, and again much less performance and range. I think the pricing is right, at $385k, but it also means I will never sit inside one.

 

[NineElectrics]

Your giving credit to Fisker for hyping the Karma and then going into bankruptcy a little over two years after starting deliveries and at the same time discrediting R.J. for taking the time to actually develop a fully-baked product?

I own a vehicle supposedly designed by Fisker (although some say he took much more credit for the design than he was actually due) but see him as little more than a person who can draw a pretty picture and talk a good game when it comes to raising some money. So far, I have yet to see any evidence that he is capable of anything more.

I take issue with your claim that Rivian's cars are fully baked. Mine certainly has a bunch of problems remaining. So many flaws I have seen even in VIN 15,000. One still can't even buy a spare tire. Setting that aside, though...

I'm giving credit to Fisker for working in the industry since 1989. That's 34 years. I'm not claiming that Fisker is going to dominate the industry, just that any claims by threatened Rivian fanboys that they're not going to produce cars, especially when using an experienced shop like Magna, are just wishful thinking. Now, that said, they missed guidance last quarter, producing only 1000 cars. But I remember when Rivian was producing similar numbers. And Fisker lost only $90 million during the quarter.

The losses are interesting; Fisker's losses are, proportionally to cars shipped, roughly how much Rivian is also currently losing on their fully baked products. Speculatating, that suggests the losses are due to severely negative gross margin and not staff. A hundred engineers at $400K each is only $10 million a quarter, 1% of Rivian's negative cash flow.

 

[Friscorays]

I take issue with your claim that Rivian's cars are fully baked. So many flaws, I have seen, even in VIN 15,000. One couldn't even buy a spare tire for years. Setting that aside, though...

I'll revise: Rivian's are fully baked as compared to anything you can currently get from Fisker. My R1S VIN is in 11k range and it has no issue that is related to being rushed to market. Main issues are related to an employee that wasn't paying enough attention to his air gun. Can't get a spare yet, but that is a supply issue not an RJ doesn't know what he is doing issue.

I would like both Fisker and Rivian to succeed but think it is a pretty safe bet that Fisker won't and that if Rivian doesn't succeed there is no chance that Fisker will.

 

[bd5400]

What's with that giant cupholder / water bottle? I mean, I know some people complain there are too few cupholders in the Rivian, but I don't imagine that's the solution they're looking for...

I’ve seen people complain that the R1T/R1S aren’t proper adventure vehicles because there is no cupholder that can hold a Nalgene. They were not being sarcastic. The Alaska appears to address that concern for anyone who is severely disappointed that there isn’t a Nalgene holder in an R1.

 

[Ryan1T]

I’ve seen people complain that the R1T/R1S aren’t proper adventure vehicles because there is no cupholder that can hold a Nalgene. They were not being sarcastic. The Alaska appears to address that concern for anyone who is severely disappointed that there isn’t a Nalgene holder in an R1.

I always have a nalgene (or more frequently a 40oz klean kanteen) on me too, but I guess I've never been in a car with a cupholder that could accommodate them, so I would not have guessed that was anyone's priority! The center floor area on the Riv does a good enough job keeping it from flying away on the corners for me.

 

[DaveA]

I'll revise: Rivian's are fully baked as compared to anything you can currently get from Fisker. My R1S VIN is in 11k range and it has no issue that is related to being rushed to market. Main issues are related to an employee that wasn't paying enough attention to his air gun. Can't get a spare yet, but that is a supply issue not an RJ doesn't know what he is doing issue.

I would like both Fisker and Rivian to succeed but think it is a pretty safe bet that Fisker won't and that if Rivian doesn't succeed there is no chance that Fisker will.

But isn't Fisker making a profit on its cars from the get-go, while Rivian is still losing money due to the pre-March '22 buyers? The good news is that while Magna employees are currently on a Summer break, the supplier that was holding back increased production for Fisker is banking parts. The ramp up for Q3 should be pretty great.

 

[godfodder0901]

I’ve seen people complain that the R1T/R1S aren’t proper adventure vehicles because there is no cupholder that can hold a Nalgene. They were not being sarcastic. The Alaska appears to address that concern for anyone who is severely disappointed that there isn’t a Nalgene holder in an R1.

I always have a nalgene (or more frequently a 40oz klean kanteen) on me too, but I guess I've never been in a car with a cupholder that could accommodate them, so I would not have guessed that was anyone's priority! The center floor area on the Riv does a good enough job keeping it from flying away on the corners for me.

I thought the door pockets were specifically designed to accommodate a Nalgene?

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