We've written before about the schedule for the 2011 Fisker Karma, which (like many other electric cars) has slipped a bit since the car was first unveiled.

Now Fisker's newest dealer, located in none other than LA's epicenter of green consciousness--namely Santa Monica, California--says that the dealership will have cars available for deposit-holders to drive in late November, right after this year's Los Angeles Auto Show.

Mike Sullivan of Fisker Santa Monica also says the company will start taking detailed orders at the show itself. Fisker will have full mockups of the final production interior, so buyers and shoppers can see exactly what they are ordering or considering.

Production, he says, will begin in the first quarter of 2011, with deliveries to paying customers starting in March or April.

The Fisker Karma concept was first shown at the 2008 Detroit Auto Show. The striking shape has stayed pretty much the same while Fisker designed and engineered the mechanicals . A last-minute switch in cell suppliers for the lithium-ion battery pack didn't help the tight schedule.

The 2011 Karma sedan is claimed to travel 50 miles solely on electric power from a 22-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack. After that, it will do a further 250 miles on electricity provided by a range-extending 2.0-liter GM Ecotec direct-injected four-cylinder engine.

Two 150-kilowatt electric motors drive the rear wheels of the plug-in luxury sports sedan. Fisker Automotive says the 0-to-62-mph time is roughly 6 seconds, and top speed will exceed 125 miles per hour.

Still, with production scheduled to begin in less than six months, no one outside the company has driven a Karma that we know of. No one except royalty, anyhow: His Royal Highness Frederik, Crown Prince of Denmark. got to drive a prototype last December.

Fisker assures us that journalists will get a chance behind the wheel before customers. So based on Sullivan's schedule, we'll be looking for our test drives in October. Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight?

The short video below comes to us courtesy of WebRidesTV, which has produced hundreds of snappy little segments on various cars. Check it out, and then, tell us if you believe Sullivan.

Will first Karma deliveries actually start early next year as he says? Leave us your thoughts in the comments below.

[WebRidesTV]