New Fisker is dead and gone, but years before its founder killed his latest company, he also managed to bankrupt Old Fisker. Much like with the Ocean, the Fisker Karma was already in production when the company went under, meaning a few people actually already owned them. The car was relaunched as the Karma Revero, and almost unbelievably, not only did a few people buy them, but one of them is now selling their 2018 Karma Revero on Cars & Bids.
Amazingly, the most obscure plug-in hybrid you can find in the U.S. already has a handful of bids and has already passed the $15,000 mark. The fact that you’ve probably never seen a Karma Revero at a car show, much less driving down the street would suggest few, if any people actually wanted one, but clearly, some people do. I’ve also heard rumors that some people think it’s an absolutely gorgeous design, which cannot be true but persist nevertheless.
You know, if you just skip the question of reliability or where to get anything other than the engine serviced, it really doesn’t look like a bad purchase on paper. For what will probably be about the price of a nice Honda Civic, you get that Corona Red paint, 22-inch wheels, a turbocharged GM four-cylinder, Brembo brakes, a limited-slip differential, a solar roof, and heated leather front and rear seats. Oh, and that engine is part of a plug-in hybrid system that uses two electric motors and makes 981 lb-ft of torque. Not bad for a car that’s also rated at 60 MPGe. The Honda Civic certainly can’t match any of that.
Amazingly, NHTSA has received no complaints about the 2018 Revero, although it has been subject to four recalls. Presumably, that’s because so few people bought them, but you never know. Maybe this largely unknown PHEV is secretly one of the best used deals you could get, and nobody knows about it. Only one way to find out, though.