By Andrew Wendler

Retirement means different things to different people; for auto-industry superhero Bob Lutz it means business as usual, keeping in the mix with not one, but two automotive startups. But as where VIA motors is taking GM trucks and vans and electrifying them for fleet customers, VL Automotive is taking Fisker Karma hybrids and transforming them to run on fossil-fueled GM horsepower.

Never one to waste time or mince words, Lutz has joined forces with Gilbert Villarreal, president of Auburn Hills–based automotive supplier the Concorde Group, to form VL Automotive. Together, they aim to “build an American-made sports sedan with advanced aesthetics that can beat the best from Italy and Germany while maintaining a high level of reliability.” (Last we checked the Fisker Karma body was assembled in Finland, so unless they’re secretly planning to assemble the bodies here, they may need to amend the “American-made” part.) If all goes according to the dynamic duo’s plan, restyled Fisker Karmas with a GM-sourced V-8 under the hood will be rolling off the line of their assembly plant by late 2013.

Dubbed the Destino, VL Automotive has made a few cosmetic changes to the Karma, the most obvious being a completely new hood, new front and rear fasciae, a new decklid spoiler, and the replacement of the solar panel roof with a traditional piece. Not only do the changes improve the car’s visual appeal, but, according to company spokesman Tom Sundberg, also were required to meet the exclusive contract VL Automotive hammered out with Fisker.

The conversion uses the entire Corvette powertrain: Available with a choice in V-8 powerplats—the 6.2-liter LT1 or the supercharged 6.2-liter LS9—coupled to a rear transaxle via a torque-tube setup, the Destino utilizes some of the newfound, battery-vacated space to house an entirely new rear subframe assembly (required to support the transaxle). The LT1-powered car is rated at 450 horsepower and the LS9-motivated Destino at 638 horsepower; transmission options are limited to a four-speed automatic or a six-speed manual. “When we get it dialed in, we’d like to be able to say it’s a 200-mph supercar,” said Sundberg.

Don Runkle, current EcoMotors CEO and former chief engineer for Chevrolet, who was on hand for VL’s press conference in Detroit offered C/D a few succinct words regarding the recent efforts of Lutz and Co.: “When I was at GM, we always asked ourselves, ‘Should we build a four-door Corvette?’ To me, that’s what it looks like they’ve done. And it’s got the right-size battery for a high-performance car, which is zero.”

The two cars on display in Detroit are the first examples assembled from the first eight Karmas purchased by VL (the remaining vehicles are being used for development and marketing purposes). VL figures the first 20 or so will be built from decontented Karmas, but is in the process of negotiating terms for a supply of gliders—Karmas with no powertrain installed—direct from Fisker. This must be music to the ears of Fisker, who halted production last fall because of the bankruptcy of its battery supplier.

• Road Test: 2012 Fisker Karma EcoChic
• Comparison Test: 2012 Chevrolet Volt vs. 2012 Fisker Karma EcoSport
• Feature: Henrik Fisker: The Man Behind the 2010 Fisker Karma

Pricing, as you might expect, is yet to be announced although we’re hearing that it will cost somewhere around the $180,000 range. One of the vehicles VL placed on its stand already has been sold to the owner of an unnamed company that is supplying VL Automotive with components for the Destino.

Destino essentially means “destiny” in Spanish, and as far as VL is concerned, it’s inevitable that a car as stunning as the Karma would eventually have a powertrain that can back up its looks. Sounds like fate to us.

Source: FULL ARTICLE at Car & Driver