Henrik Fisker once imagined building not just another car company, but a transformative electric vehicle empire that would carry his name and rival the best in the industry. At the heart of this bold aspiration stood the Ocean SUV, designed to be the flagship product that would drive the brand into mainstream recognition. Yet almost immediately after the Ocean finally reached customers in 2023, early signs of trouble began to emerge, undermining the ambitious narrative on which the company’s future had been built.

Production numbers, which are the lifeblood of any automaker’s credibility, began to miss targets repeatedly. Fisker was forced to reduce its manufacturing goals several times, each cut further eroding investor confidence and raising questions about the company’s financial health. Alongside these curtailed expectations came disappointing sales performance, which failed to meet even the company’s lowered benchmarks. The result was workforce reductions that chipped away at organizational morale. Compounding these challenges, the Ocean SUV was quickly associated not with innovation and sleek design, but with alarming reliability issues. Reports surfaced of faulty software and mechanical components that left some vehicles inoperable. Customers complained of unreliable braking, abrupt losses of power, and even issues as fundamental as malfunctioning door mechanisms — flaws so serious that they led federal safety regulators to open multiple investigations. Eventually, the automaker chose to halt production altogether, citing the urgent need to secure additional funding to remain viable.

All of these cascading difficulties culminated in Fisker’s filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, an unmistakable symbol of an enterprise that had stumbled under the weight of its own ambitions. What follows is a detailed chronology of events, outlining the decline from promising beginnings to insolvency:

**2023**
*July 7* — Fisker fell short of its second-quarter production target. It managed to produce just 1,022 Ocean SUVs, hundreds fewer than the promised 1,400–1,700 units, setting an early tone of underperformance that foreshadowed later disappointments.
*July 10* — In an effort to sustain operations, Fisker announced the sale of $340 million in convertible notes, expecting nearly $297 million in net proceeds. The funds were supposed to strengthen corporate operations, fund a new battery pack production line, and support long-term development of additional vehicles.
*December 1* — The company drastically reduced its annual production guidance, lowering projections to roughly 10,000 vehicles for 2023 — only a quarter of the optimistic forecast it had given the year before. This move was meant to conserve $300 million in working capital, but it also highlighted how far reality had fallen from lofty expectations.

**2024**
*January 1* — Despite its public pledge to deliver 300 vehicles per day worldwide, Fisker routinely fell far short. In North America, its largest market, internal goals had been scaled down to 100–200 sales per day, yet actual results were often no more than a few dozen units.
*January 15* — The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) launched an investigation into the Ocean SUV after nearly twenty owners reported severe issues such as brake loss, defective gear shifters, jammed doors, and even hoods flying open at highway speeds.
*February 9* — Customers had by then reported over one hundred instances of sudden power loss. Though Fisker attempted to mitigate these issues through software updates, further complaints included key fob malfunctions, faulty seat sensors, and unexpectedly disengaging braking systems.
*February 16* — A second NHTSA probe was opened after reports that vehicles rolled away unattended, one of which caused injury.
*February 29* — Fisker announced layoffs affecting 15% of its workforce, revealing at the same time that its available cash reserves were insufficient to guarantee survival for the following year.
*March 18* — The company said it would pause production of the Ocean SUV for six weeks due to rapidly dwindling finances. Only $121 million in cash remained, with $32 million of that being restricted, while outstanding debts continued mounting.
*March 25* — Negotiations for a potential investment with another major automaker, widely believed to be Nissan, collapsed, placing a much-needed $150 million convertible note deal in jeopardy. On the same day, the New York Stock Exchange suspended trading of Fisker shares, citing extremely low stock value.
*March 27* — An internal audit revealed deep flaws in Fisker’s financial controls. At one point the company lost track of millions in customer payments, including deposits and full vehicle payments, with some customers reportedly receiving cars without the company collecting any money.
*April 29* — Another round of layoffs stripped the company of more staff in a desperate attempt to conserve resources, even as bankruptcy became an increasingly likely outcome.
*May 3* — Fisker failed to pay the engineering firm that developed critical future models such as the affordable Pear EV and its Alaska pickup, prompting disputes over withheld intellectual property.
*May 10* — A fourth NHTSA investigation targeted the Ocean, this time focused on reports of its Automatic Emergency Braking system engaging randomly in the absence of obstacles.
*May 29* — Hundreds more employees were laid off by the end of May, slashing the workforce down to only about 150 people.
*May 31* — Analysts increasingly pointed to the Ocean SUV as the root of Fisker’s downfall, describing the vehicle as plagued by defects, while also criticizing leadership missteps and a lack of robust company infrastructure.
*June 12* — The Ocean SUV was recalled for noncompliant dashboard warning lights, which at times displayed incorrect colors or font sizes, failing to meet federal safety standards.
*June 18* — Fisker officially filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, admitting defeat after months of failed rescue negotiations. Court filings estimated up to $1 billion in assets against up to $500 million in liabilities.
*June 21* — Bankruptcy filings revealed the company had recognized potential financial distress as early as August 2023, long before collapse became public. Separate filings also indicated disputes already erupting over the handling of assets and creditor claims.
*July 3* — Fisker sought approval to liquidate more than 3,200 SUVs at heavily discounted prices of roughly $14,000 per vehicle.
*July 9* — Henrik Fisker and co-founder Geeta Gupta-Fisker reduced their salaries to symbolic $1 amounts as part of austerity moves during bankruptcy proceedings.
*July 15* — The U.S. Trustee’s Office objected to Fisker’s proposed sale deal, underscoring the contentious nature of the ongoing bankruptcy.
*July 16* — A judge ultimately authorized the sale of more than 3,000 vehicles for approximately $46 million, paving the way for the startup’s asset liquidation process to advance.
*July 29* — A critical debate arose about whether Fisker’s largest secured lender, Heights Capital Management, should be prioritized in recouping funds, a dispute that could shift the case from Chapter 11 restructuring to Chapter 7 liquidation.
*September 18* — Fisker oscillated on its handling of recall costs, initially indicating owners would have to pay labor charges before reversing course and announcing that all recall work would be covered in full.
*October 4* — The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission disclosed an investigation into whether Fisker had violated securities laws, noting that it had already issued subpoenas demanding documentation.
*October 5* — The company’s final headquarters in California was abandoned in chaos, littered with hazardous waste and even full-size clay models.
*October 7* — The Department of Justice informed the court that Fisker’s earlier attempt to transfer recall costs onto owners was unlawful.
*October 8* — A major deal to sell remaining vehicles was jeopardized after Fisker admitted uncertainty about transferring necessary vehicle data to an independent system; however, the issue was later resolved.
*October 16* — Fisker’s liquidation plan received court approval. The company agreed to fully cover recall costs and a trustee was appointed to oversee further sales of assets, including manufacturing equipment in Austria valued at nearly $1 billion.

**2025**
Even as the corporate entity wound down, personal efforts by Henrik Fisker and Geeta Gupta-Fisker also came to an end. Their philanthropic foundation, established in 2021 with the intention of advancing causes in healthcare, sustainability, mobility, and education, was quietly wound down after minimal activity. Public filings later revealed the nonprofit had distributed less than $100,000 before being closed in 2025.

Taken as a whole, Fisker’s story illustrates the hazards of great ambition untempered by execution. The Ocean SUV remains emblematic of the tension between bold vision and flawed delivery, and the company’s collapse stands as a cautionary tale for every entrepreneur hoping to break into industries where precision, discipline, and reliability are non-negotiable.

Sourse: https://techcrunch.com/2025/08/30/the-fall-of-ev-startup-fisker-a-comprehensive-timeline/