What's the news?
You want controversy? We've got controversy. Henrik Fisker is the one-time head of design at Aston Martin, who bravely struck out on his own to make a hybrid plugin super-saloon called the Fisker Karma. In spite of some good early publicity, the car failed to sell and Fisker had to wind the project up.
Fisker then created the Thunderbolt, a re-bodied Aston Martin Vanquish, which got right up the noses of Aston's corporate lawyers, before hooking up with 'Maximum' Bob Lutz, the cavalier former senior Ford, Chrysler and General Motors executive who essentially created great cars like the original Dodge Viper but then spoiled it all by becoming something of a strident climate change denier.
This roiling cloud of talent, chutzpah and legal explosiveness has now combined with race-car driver Ben Keating (a multiple National Champion in the Dodge Viper Cup before teaming up with Bill Riley and Riley Motorsports to be the only American sports car to compete in the GTD class of the Tudor United Sportscar Championship) to create the VLF Force 1. And wouldn't you know it, Aston Martin launched a lawsuit to try and prevent the car's reveal because it said the design was too close to its own work on the DB10 Bond car.
The launch went ahead and, frankly, now that it has you can see that the Force 1 is not especially Aston-y. It should be incredibly fast-y though, because beneath the somewhat mad carbon fibre bodywork lies the 745hp naturally aspirated V10 engine from the current Chrysler Viper, along with hugely complicated computer-controlled suspension (racing driver Keating's influence is said to have played a part here) and the option of either a six-speed manual or a dual-clutch paddle shift gearbox.
VLF claims that the 1,500kg Force 1 can accelerate from 0-100km/h in less than 3.5 seconds and that it will run on to a top speed on the naughty side of 350km/h.
"What inspired me most about building this partnership with Ben is that he is the most passionate Viper racer in the world and understands performance metrics in cars, both on the track and on the road, better than anyone I've ever met," said Fisker. "He's developed a unique active suspension for superior handling and ride, which is seamlessly integrated into the Force 1, enhancing performance whether on track and or road,"
"To work with Henrik as one of the world's best designers to create a super exciting, wide curvy body for this amazing car is the opportunity of a lifetime," Keating said. "Plus, it's the perfect vehicle to showcase many of the incredible performance features we've been working on for years. It really is the chance to start with an amazing initial platform to develop an incredible American super car with exceptional design and performance"
It'll cost about €250,000 (before taxes, natch) and just 50 are planned for production in Fisker's factory in Auburn Hills, Michigan.