The EV Startups
Once Tesla proved people would buy expensive electric cars, a wave of newcomers lined up to follow. Three of them took very different roads: one collapsed within about a year of its first deliveries, one built its own factory and survived on deep-pocketed backers, and one had a giant parent company and still got squeezed. We part out all three.
- 1Fisker OceanBuilt 2022–2024 · up to 550 hp · about 11,000 built
- 2Rivian R1S (Gen 1)2022–2024 · up to 835 hp · Normal, Illinois
- 3Polestar 22021–2025 in the U.S. · 408 hp at launch · Volvo/Geely
The theme: chasing Tesla
Building a car company from nothing is brutally expensive, and these three show the range of ways to try. Fisker outsourced manufacturing to keep costs down. Rivian spent billions on its own plant. Polestar leaned on Volvo's engineering and Geely's money. What they have in common now is an owner base that needs parts, and for the Ocean in particular, used OEM parts have become a lifeline. (We part out plenty of Teslas, too.)
Fisker Ocean
Built November 2022 – March 2024
The Ocean was designer Henrik Fisker's second shot at a car company, after the Karma. To keep costs down, Fisker didn't build the Ocean itself: Magna Steyr assembled it in Graz, Austria. The car was full of clever ideas, including the SolarSky solar roof, a big center screen that rotates between portrait and landscape, and a "California Mode" that drops all the windows at once. The top Extreme and One trims claimed 550 hp and up to 360 miles of EPA range.
The trouble was software. Early cars had bugs and recalls, deliveries were slow, and the money ran out. Fisker Group filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Delaware on June 17, 2024, and a liquidation plan was approved that fall. Roughly 11,000 Oceans had been built. A leasing company bought about 3,000 leftover cars, many headed for rideshare service, and owners were left supporting their cars largely on their own.
Owner's notes: NHTSA investigated the Ocean for partial loss of regenerative braking and for doors that wouldn't open, and Fisker issued recalls for both, along with a software recall for loss of drive power. With the company gone, check which recalls were completed before you buy. New parts supply is the real risk, so match part numbers carefully, especially on control modules and tail lights, and expect donor parts to be the most dependable source.
Watch it
The Ocean's quirks, explained. Video: Doug DeMuro on YouTube
Almost a year of owning an Ocean. Video: Edmunds Cars on YouTube
Rivian R1S (Gen 1)
2022–2024
Rivian took the hard road: its own factory, in a former Mitsubishi plant in Normal, Illinois. The R1S, a three-row, seven-seat SUV, started reaching customers in late August 2022. It was built to be used, with air suspension that lifts it to nearly 15 inches of clearance, a deep wading rating, and a camping mode. The Quad-Motor version made 835 hp, and MotorTrend ran it to 60 mph in 3.1 seconds, which is ridiculous for a family SUV.
What kept Rivian alive was capital. Amazon was a major early backer, and in June 2024 Volkswagen committed up to $5 billion in a software joint venture. Rivian moved to a heavily updated second-generation R1 in mid-2024, which matters a lot for parts: Gen 1 (2022–2024) and Gen 2 electronics are different, even when the trucks look alike.
Owner's notes: In January 2026 Rivian recalled R1 vehicles over rear toe links that could separate if serviced with an older procedure, so check that work; we stock Rivian suspension and steering parts from donor trucks. Gen 1 trucks are known for 12-volt auxiliary battery failures that can cause no-starts. Phone-as-key connections can be unreliable. And always match the Rivian part number (they start with "PT") before buying modules and electronics.
Watch it
The R1S as an electric SUV benchmark. Video: Doug DeMuro on YouTube
A full R1S review. Video: Marques Brownlee on YouTube
Polestar 2
2021–2025 in the U.S.
Polestar began as Volvo's performance arm and was spun off as a standalone EV brand owned by Volvo and its Chinese parent, Geely. The Polestar 2, built in Luqiao, China, was its first mass-production car and the first car with Google's Android Automotive built in. The launch version had two motors, 408 hp and 233 miles of EPA range. Later updates added single-motor versions, and for 2024 the base car switched to rear-wheel drive with up to 320 miles of range.
Polestar had what Fisker lacked, a large parent company, and Geely kept lending it money. But politics caught up. U.S. rules on connected-vehicle technology from China mean that, according to June 2026 reports, Polestar can't sell new cars in the U.S. after the 2026 model year, though it plans to keep servicing the cars already here.
Owner's notes: A 2024 recall covered more than 25,000 cars whose rearview camera image may not display, fixed by an over-the-air update. Earlier recalls addressed loss of power from software and inverter faults. Owners also report 12-volt battery warnings and infotainment freezes. For anything electronic, confirm the part number and model year before ordering; body parts like doors and bumpers are listed with their factory color name.
Watch it
The 2021 Polestar 2 road test. Video: MotorWeek on YouTube
A 2023 Polestar 2 review. Video: TheStraightPipes on YouTube
By the numbers: best EPA range
Best EPA-rated range for each model's longest-range version.
Where the startups went next
Rivian is still building: its smaller, cheaper R2 began deliveries in 2026. Polestar is pulling back from new-car sales in the U.S. Fisker is gone. For owners, the takeaway is the same across all three: these are young, low-volume cars, and when a collision or a failed module hits, a part from a donor vehicle is often faster to get than anything new.
EV startup parts at J&J
We were one of the first yards to part out Oceans and Rivians, and every listing shows the donor's model and year. Browse Fisker Ocean parts, Rivian parts and Polestar 2 parts.