Driver's Notebook: About Face
October 1, 2007
Henrik Fisker, the Danish designer responsible for the BMW Z8 and the Aston Martin DB9, launched his
eponymous Fisker Coachbuild with a simple concept: He would design unique bodies
for existing sports cars. Thus, the Mercedes-Benz SL65 and BMW M6 became blank
canvases for Fisker’s artistry.
The Tramonto (The Robb Report Collection, February 2007) arguably improves the already
svelte Mercedes SL, but with the Latigo, Fisker transformed the lumpy BMW 6
Series into one of the most seductive shapes on the road. Beginning with
Fisker’s signature face—narrow, slanting headlight covers
peering over a broad mesh-grille—the Latigo’s carbon-fiber coachwork sweeps over
a long hood and powerful fender arches to an elegantly curved rear deck. "My
goal was to make it look like an understated spacecraft," says Fisker. "I wanted
to visually take weight out of the [6 Series dimensions]—it is wider, but a
half-inch shorter and 1-inch lower. I also slimmed up the C-pillar and did a
complete new rear with slim LED taillights." Fisker integrated the bumpers and
added an inch of flare to the rear fenders. "The Latigo buyer is more into
performance," he explains.
"I saw the prototype and it was the most beautiful car I’d ever
seen," says Marc Jones, an investment banker and owner of Latigo #001. "I went
up to Henrik and said, ‘I’m your first customer.’" Though not a BMW enthusiast,
he immediately ordered an M6 and began the process of selecting specifications.
Jones, who will use the Latigo as a daily driver, claims the car suits his
needs. "There are no comparable options," he says.
Unlike the Tramonto, which is built in Turin, Italy, the
Latigo’s final assembly takes place just south of Los Angeles in Irvine, Calif.
But work on Jones’s car began with the engine at Racing Dynamics, an Italian
tuner that specializes in BMW engines. "We prefer to leave it up to the customer
to do the tuning," says Fisker. "We’re the coachbuilding experts."
Racing Dynamics massaged 648 hp and an 8,250-rpm redline from
the 5-liter V-10, all delivered via BMW’s 7-speed Sequential Manual Gearbox
(SMG). Fisker added three-piece forged alloy 20-inch wheels of his own design—9
inches wide in front and 10 inches at the rear. The brakes, more than capable of
handling the Latigo’s 648 hp, are the stock M6 units. Other than springs that
shave an inch off ride height, the suspension also remains as BMW intended.
Interior changes included reskinning all soft surfaces in
Alcantara and fine, furniture-grade Italian leather. Metal trim is milled
aluminum. Jones requested that the wood trim in #001 be redone in piano-black
finish, a change Fisker good-naturedly wishes he had devised himself.
With the fifth of seven factory shift programs dialed in, the
transmission snaps upward through the gears with light pressure on a
leather-and-aluminum handle, and it downshifts with a burbling blip of the
throttle; absent is the odd jerkiness of previous-generation SMGs. The Racing
Dynamics sport exhaust delivers a pleasant, non-intrusive rumble at cruising
speed that escalates—in unison with rpm—to the captivating howl of a Formula One
racer. The Latigo matches a Lamborghini or Ferrari in audacious performance. But
just as quickly as it twists the tachometer’s needle on Malibu’s canyon roads,
it can drop back to 2,000 rpm at 65 mph in sixth gear, for a placid cruise along
Pacific Coast Highway.
Latigo buyers have a menu of options, starting with engine selections: The CS
V8 Coupe ($199,000) and CS V8 Con-vertible ($204,000) are based on the
BMW 6 Series, and are powered by a 360 hp V-8; the CS V10 Coupe ($244,000) and
CS V10 Convertible ($249,000) use the M6’s standard 500 hp V-10 engine; the CS
V10 Coupe HP ($299,000) and CS V10 Convertible HP ($304,000), meanwhile, are
powered by an M6 with 648 hp. For speed freaks with the non-HP Latigo versions,
Fisker offers an optional Performance Plus Package (PPP) that sports a 548 hp
engine for an additional $14,600 or a 580-hp powerplant for $24,200. Engine work
is performed by premiere BMW engine tuners, such as Dinan or Italy’s Racing
Dynamics. Then, there is Fisker’s infinite range of bespoke touches—interior and
exterior—ensuring that no two cars are alike.
Fisker will produce a limited run of 150 Latigos, ensuring that
exclusivity is built right in. The build process normally takes about four
weeks, and there is currently a four-month backlog. Having experienced the
Latigo firsthand, it is definitely worth the wait.
Fisker Coachbuild
www.fiskercb.com
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