The Supercharged V8-Powered VLF Destino Is What The Fisker Karma Should Have Been

Jun. 09, 2016 12:36 PM ET by Jay Traugott / 29 Comments

And deliveries have officially begun.

Over three years after former GM Vice President Bob Lutz revealed his retirement project, the VLF Destino, at Detroit, deliveries of the supercharged V8-powered sedan have begun. According to The Detroit News, the 84-year-old Lutz was the first to take delivery of the car that was once a Fisker Karma. When Fisker went belly up, Lutz stepped in with business partner Gilbert Villarreal and bought many of the remaining unsold Karmas and removed their hybrid powertrains.

In their places lies the C6 Corvette ZR-1's 6.2-liter V8 with 638 hp. Ironically, Henrik Fisker was recently brought on board as a partner in the new but small car company, hence the name change from VL to VLF. Tipping the scales at 4,300 lbs. the VLF Destino can sprint from 0-60 mph in only 3.9 seconds. Top speed is a reported 200 mph. With a sticker price of $229,000 a piece, production will be limited to only a few dozen per year. Word has it that a "well-known celebrity," who may or may not be Carlos Santana, has placed an order (he already owns a Fisker Karma). VLF Motor's most recent creation was the Force 1, a heavily reskinned Dodge Viper with a total of 745 hp.