Karma Automotive, an electric automaker with roots in the failed Fisker Automotive, will unveil its first car, the Revero, this summer.
The luxury plug-in sedan is being produced at the company's Moreno Valley facility. No specific date or price point was provided by the company, and Karma did not respond to requests for photos of the Revero.
The Costa Mesa-based company also is expanding its supply chain, engineering and program management in Michigan.
"We have a very aggressive growth plan, and we want to ensure we have the best available people in the industry. Detroit is the home of some of the top technical resources and leading suppliers in the world," Darren Post, vice president of engineering, said in a statement.
Karma is expanding its resources at its Costa Mesa headquarters.
The company hired Dennis Dougherty as the company's president and chief operations officer Tuesday.
"Dennis brings with him extensive operations experience in the U.S., China and Mexico which will be invaluable as we launch the Revero and expand our global footprint," said Tom Corcoran, chief executive.
Fisker, which was founded in 2007, was funded in part with $528 million in U.S. Department of Energy loans. It sold 1,800 Karmas in the U.S. and Europe before battery problems, recalls and the bankruptcy of its battery supplier led to its bankruptcy in 2013.
Original production plans called for the sale of 10,000 Karmas annually — a target that was never met, despite high-profile sales to celebrities such as Justin Bieber and Leonardo DiCaprio.
The company was acquired by Chinese auto part company Wanxiang Group Corp. for roughly $150 million in 2014.
The new Karma has more than 600 people working in its Costa Mesa headquarters, Moreno Valley facility and Troy, Mich., locations.
What's still to be seen is how car buyers will welcome a luxury plug-in hybrid while gas prices remain low. U.S. sales of "green" cars in May plunged 32 percent from a year earlier to about 36,600 vehicles, according to AutoBlog.
Source: Karma's Revero electric car revs up for summer debut
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