After a delay of five years, electric car start-up Faraday Future has finally kickstarted production of the FF 99 Futurist. The start has been postponed several times over financing hiccups. But as the company raised a multi-million dollar investment, first customers can expect their cars later this month.

As for many start-ups in the zero-emission automotive industry, it’s been an uncomfortably rocky road for Faraday Future. Nevertheless, the prototype of the model that went into production was unveiled in January 2017.

According to the original road map, the production start was planned for the year after. It’s been a long time coming. And even now, there’s no info on how high the output will be in the coming months. Of the 14 000 pre-orders registered, only 300 payments were made.

Top EV start-up

The growing pains of the company, which is based in California and has Chinese roots, were triggered by a path of continuous financing and management problems. However, the company was initially regarded as one of the top EV start-ups. However, with financing falling through, the company has been sacking people, cutting salaries, finding new funds, and limping from one reboot to another.

The ongoing problems culminated in a power struggle in the board room late last year. After that, a group around founder YT, the customer of the first FF99 rolling off the assembly line and who was on a governmental debt blacklist in China a few years ago, took over control with success. The board managed to find the 135 million dollars of investment to get production up and running.

The milestone for the company was documented in the live-streaming event at the FF Factory in Hanford, California. Faraday also unveiled a three-step plan for its future. First, of course, getting the deliveries out has a top priority.

After that, “the Phase 2 goal is to introduce future models with an explosive growth in smart device sales, and to create a mobility ecosystem with a rapid increase in eco revenues”. Finally, the company wants to focus on growing its revenue from internet apps, software, and sharing.

No seat-belt certification

The FF 91 is a crossover designed to break new boundaries in the ultra-luxury EV market. The car is more than five meters long and has all-wheel drive coming from three electric motors.

The 300 reservations paid for apply to the Alliance version, featuring special colors and wheel rims. With facial recognition, a retractable LiDAR sensor, a battery pack of 130 kWh, and a 0-100 mph in 2,4 seconds, the car brims with promise. But some key safety components like seat belts and airbags haven’t been certified yet.

The FF 91 isn’t available in Europe. Instead, Faraday will start regionally rolling out the car in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York. China is next on the list. There’s no announced pricing yet.