Fisker to use BMW engines
* Petrol-electric vehicle maker signs deal with BMW * Agreement for up to 100,000 engines per year * First BMW-engined Fisker on sale in 2013...
Fisker, the company behind the innovative petrol-electric Karma GT, has signed a deal with BMW under which the German car maker will supply turbocharged four-cylinder engines and other components for future Fisker models.
The first Fisker to get BMW power will be a new 3 Series-sized saloon, codenamed 'Project Nina', which goes on sale in 2013.
Like the Karma, this new model is an electric car that uses its petrol engine purely as a back-up generator for when the batteries run low. However, the Nina will cost about half as much as the 87,000 Karma and be offered in right-hand drive form the Karma is left-hand drive only.
Convertible and SUV versions of the Nina will follow, but Fisker isn't planning to put a BMW engine in the Karma until it brings out a heavily updated version in 2015.
Commenting on the deal, Fisker's CEO and executive design director, Henrik Fisker, said: 'The BMW engine was an obvious choice for us, because BMW is known for producing the best and most fuel-efficient petrol engines in the world.'
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