VL is both buying unsold Karma chassis and offering to convert owners' cars, replacing key body panels and shoehorning in either the 450-horsepower, direct-injection LT1 from the new Stingray or the 638hp supercharged LS9 from the ZR1. Lutz promises the result will be smooth and refined, not raw and ragged, when it hits the market in the middle of next year with a price tag hovering around the $200,000 mark.

Leave it to Bob Lutz to take an (almost) dead-company's products and breathe new life into them. After grabbing our attention with a Corvette ZR1 V8-powered Fisker Karma saloon at the 2013 Detroit auto show, VL Automotive, co-founded by Gilbert Villarreal and Bob Lutz, will debut a new conceptual convertible version of the car at the 2014 Detroit motor Show next week.

Few details have been shared about the Destino Convertible, but the design of both the two-door exterior and four-passenger interior seem to be closely related to the sedan and consequently, the Fisker Karma.

If you're wondering about the "Katzkin" name in the photos, the interior specialist is one of VL Automotive's main partners and helped dress the cabin, something that Lutz pointed out in his comments.

“A beautifully designed car like the Destino deserves an exceptional interior,” said Bob Lutz, former General Motors vice chairman and currently a senior advisor to Katzkin. “By providing a fully customized Katzkin interior, we bring a custom-tailored design to the vehicle and its owner.”

We'll soon know more about the Destino Convertible concept and whether it will be powered by the Corvette ZR1's 638hp supercharged V8 or another powertrain.

VL Automotive Introduces Destino Concept at Detroit Auto Show

DETROIT, Mich., Jan. 14, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- VL Automotive of Auburn Hills, Michigan, held the world premiere of its Destino two-door hard top convertible touring coupe Concept at the 2014 North American International Auto Show today. The Destino Red concept, based on the Fisker Karma chassis and re-designed by former General Motors vice chairman Bob Lutz, now joins the Destino sedan he and VL Automotive co-founder Gilbert Villarreal introduced last year.

The Destino is powered by a Chevrolet Corvette LT1 or LS9 V8 engine mated to a six-speed automatic transmission. Bespoke color choices and interiors by Katzkin complement the world-class mechanicals to deliver on the promise of a unique and elegant road machine.

"We had hoped to be in retail production by now, but a five-month interruption was caused by the reorganization and restructuring of Fisker Automotive which is a major supplier of some structural components and some body panels," Villarreal explained. "Pending resolution of the bankruptcy proceedings, we will continue to negotiate for those parts in tandem with development of VL Automotive's own fabricating operations which make front and rear facias, roofs, trunks and hoods."

Lutz said international reaction to Destino has been all he could have imagined. "We have received hundreds of inquiries and orders from customers and dealers in the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Asia," said Lutz. "We have also been pleasantly surprised by the number of Fisker owners inquiring about conversions. Gilbert and I are preparing for that work, too."

VL-Automotive, half-owned by former General Motors executive Bob Lutz, wants to buy unsold plug-in hybrid Karma cars made by bankrupt Fisker and turn them into conventional supercars.

The idea is that the electric hardware will be ripped out of the originals, and replaced by a 6.2 liter, supercharged V-8 gas engine with 636 hp and a six-speed automatic transmission.

The engines are Corvette V-8s, which means the cars could be maintained at GM dealerships.

The original Karmas were limited to 135 mph, and the new version is much faster, not least because removing the electrical equipment cuts 1,100 lbs from the weight. The new cars will need to have uprated tires and suspension tweaks. About 60 percent of the exterior body will be replaced, including the solar panel.

The new car, called the VL Destino, will cost $200,000. The most expensive Fisker Karma cost from around $116,000.

VL-Automotive said there are about 1,800 Fisker Karmas in existence, and the company hopes to convert between 200 and 300 a year.

Ever the salesman, Bob Lutz told a press conference at the Detroit auto show that nine cars were sold so far today.

Will the conversion be available to Tesla Model S owners?

“Yes,” Lutz said.