X

Fisker ready to pull the plug

A report by Reuters says that Fisker laid off 160 of its employees this morning, which seems to spell the end for the luxury plug-in hybrid manufacturer.

Wayne Cunningham Managing Editor / Roadshow
Wayne Cunningham reviews cars and writes about automotive technology for CNET's Roadshow. Prior to the automotive beat, he covered spyware, Web building technologies, and computer hardware. He began covering technology and the Web in 1994 as an editor of The Net magazine.
Wayne Cunningham
Wayne Cunningham/CNET

Fisker sent 160 of its employees home from its Anaheim, Calif., headquarters this morning, apparently decimating its workforce, according to a report by Reuters. The move seems to spell the end for the electric vehicle startup.

Reuter's report goes on to say that 53 executives remain on staff, tasked with selling the company's assets.

The company's sole product, the Karma, is a luxury plug-in hybrid with a base price of $103,000. The car uses an electric motor to power the rear wheels and includes an onboard gasoline engine to generate electricity, a drivetrain concept similar to that of the Chevrolet Volt.

Photos: Production Fisker Karma

See all photos

The Karma runs for 32 miles off of its lithium ion battery pack.

Heralding today's move, last month the company's founder, Henrik Fisker, resigned from his post as executive chairman.