Fisker starts pre-order process for Ocean One launch edition, asks for $5,000 down

Fisker has asked for an additional $5,000 from reservation-holders to lock in a spot for the $68,999 Ocean One launch edition with a likely delivery in 2023. 

With the $250 reservation fee plus the $5,000 “pre-order deposit,” prospective buyers have a place saved in line for the One launch edition—essentially the first-year version of the model, which is limited to 5,000 vehicles.

On Friday, timed exactly as prescribed in a March 31 business update, the company sent out requests to some of its earliest reservation-holders. 

Some of those, however, were reportedly upset that they hadn’t yet had the chance to see the model up close. Fiskerati, a fansite of those invested in the company, may have inadvertently confused the matter, citing Henrik Fisker in pointing out the $5,000 launch edition deposit as “only for those who are serious.”

According to Fisker Inc, this was incorrectly reported—or perhaps stated—although what the company described to Green Car Reports is an order deposit, not a pre-order deposit. This is not an extra $5,000 refundable deposit, it explained, but an actual down payment on the vehicle. It’s the beginning of a vehicle purchase process that will involve specific lenders and finance details soon. 

“The $5,000, which is just a down payment, is for customers/fans that specifically want to lock down” the launch edition vehicle, replied a Fisker spokesperson, and it does not apply to Fisker reservation holders overall—for any other model. 

It’s not unusual for automakers to ask buyers to firm up the commitment to purchase as the build date approaches. Magna is due to ramp up production of the Ocean starting in November, in Austria. 

Sometimes this packing order is set in advance by asking those who want the initial edition of a vehicle for a higher initial reservation deposit. For instance, that’s what Lucid Motors did with a system that collected deposits ranging from $7,500 for its first Air Dream Edition models down to just $300 for its later Air Pure. 

Fisker aims to deliver the Ocean One to the U.S., Canada, Austria, Denmark, Germany, Norway, and Sweden, all from November 2022 on, with the UK and France getting the launch version later next year. 

2023 Fisker Ocean pre-production at Magna Steyr plant in Graz, Austria

The start of production for the Ocean is still scheduled for November 2022, and Fisker confirmed to Green Car Reports that nothing has changed about the timeline for the Ocean Sport since that March update. However, in March the company declared it might sell out capacity through most of 2023 with “purchase orders of our premium models.” 

As of then, it expected to start production of the $37,499 Fisker Ocean Sport—set to feature more affordable LFP cells—in late 2023 with higher volumes to follow in 2024. 

Fisker said it plans not to raise prices in 2023 or 2024 until it reaches about the 40,000-vehicle mark. With that, a few of those expecting the entry model might squeak by before any price increases.