Fisker Automotive has named Tony Posawatz its new CEO and President. He replaces Tom LaSorda, who took the job only in February.

In a surprise move, Fisker Automotive has named Tony Posawatz its new CEO and President. He replaces Tom LaSorda, who took the job only in February. Posawatz is an industry veteran with a very fitting technical background. He recently retired after 32 years at GM, where he spent four years in executive positions on the team that developed the Chevy Volt.

Company co-founder Henrik Fisker said the change is “a continuing strengthening of the management team.” It’s a good time for some strengthening, as the 2012 Fisker Karma’s debut on the market hasn’t gone so smoothly. In January, the company recalled the Karma to fix problems with the software controls, and more recently, A123 Systems had to replace the battery packs in hundreds of Karmas, which almost sank Fisker’s battery supplier.

And now we learn that a Karma has caught fire for the second time within three months, which may or may not turn out to be a serious technical issue, but which is certain to cause a hurricane of negative publicity. Once that fire is put out, Fisker needs to turn its attention to the Atlantic, the company’s next vehicle, which it hopes to sell in enough volume to make the company profitable.

Auto consultant and EV advocate Chelsea Sexton sees the addition of Posawatz as a huge plus for Fisker. “He loves this sort of underdog challenge, and the potential to do cool stuff. Tony’s industry respect, experience, and connection to top talent in the electric-car world will help Fisker more than dollars would at this point. People will go to work for Tony who would never join Fisker on their own. His first priority needs to be recruiting that talent and cultivating the stakeholder relationships that have long been lacking with Fisker.” She suggested that other members of the Volt development team might join Posawatz.

Source: Fisker, Green Car Reports