[texas mongrel]

got invited to a cocktail reception to view the Fisker Karma. What a beautifully-built vehicle, commanding presence thanks to the huge 22" wheels and good looking - much nicer than the photos.
However, the best part of the evening was when we drove up to the front door of the place where the event was being held: there was a Ferrari 430 parked right in front, but as soon as the valet saw us in the Mac, he ran up and said "don't worry, I'll move the Ferrari". He then proceeded to take the 430 and drove it into a multi-story parking lot, so we could put our car in pride of place right outside the entrance.
Take that, prancing pony!

 

[roundincircles]

What tip did you entice him with

 

[falb]

NIce work!

Please don't by a Fisker. They may kill your whole family. And I don't like electric car subsidies or government loans.

http://spectator.org/archives/2012/02/14/why-is-the-government-subsidiz

http://www.autoweek.com/article/20120508/CARNEWS/120509860?utm_source=DailyDrive20120508&utm_medium=enewsletter&utm_term=article1&utm_content=20120508-Official_claims_Fisker_Karma_to_blame_in_Texas_house_fire&utm_campaign=awdailydrive

 

[bruce]

got invited to a cocktail reception to view the Fisker Karma. What a beautifully-built vehicle, commanding presence thanks to the huge 22" wheels and good looking - much nicer than the photos.
However, the best part of the evening was when we drove up to the front door of the place where the event was being held: there was a Ferrari 430 parked right in front, but as soon as the valet saw us in the Mac, he ran up and said "don't worry, I'll move the Ferrari". He then proceeded to take the 430 and drove it into a multi-story parking lot, so we could put our car in pride of place right outside the entrance.
Take that, prancing pony!

Valet parking with taste 430is so yesterday

 

[RDH]

got invited to a cocktail reception to view the Fisker Karma. What a beautifully-built vehicle, commanding presence thanks to the huge 22" wheels and good looking - much nicer than the photos.
However, the best part of the evening was when we drove up to the front door of the place where the event was being held: there was a Ferrari 430 parked right in front, but as soon as the valet saw us in the Mac, he ran up and said "don't worry, I'll move the Ferrari". He then proceeded to take the 430 and drove it into a multi-story parking lot, so we could put our car in pride of place right outside the entrance.
Take that, prancing pony!

Classic...to funny......I to love the looks of the Fisker but keep hearing nothing but negatives/problems with the car...recalls on the battery etc...

 

[6th element]

Classic...to funny......I to love the looks of the Fisker but keep hearing nothing but negatives/problems with the car...recalls on the battery etc...

I like it a lot, too. Hope he is able to sort the issues and make it a success.

 

[Ritesh]

That autoweek link shows that the Fisker burned down the house and a supercharged NSX!!!! On top of that... Fisker is not taking responsibility for the fire. Lawyers are getting involved!!

 

[6th element]

That autoweek link shows that the Fisker burned down the house and a supercharged NSX!!!! On top of that... Fisker is not taking responsibility for the fire. Lawyers are getting involved!!

I'm sure they want to figure out exactly how the fire started, before taking responsibility. Could be the battery pack, could be the guy left his cigarette on the seat. Look how long it took Ferrari to admit the 458 fires were not driver error. In fact, if I remember correctly, they did say they were driver error for quite a while.

 

[texas mongrel]

funny, the day after I went to the Fisker event, I read the story of the Houston Fisker burning to the ground due to a bum battery pack, and then last night I drove by one on the freeway getting loaded ont a tow truck.

 

[HRH]

I'm glad I stumbled upon this thread. I was going to pick up a white one. I think I will wait till they work out the issues that the car has.

Come on... Can't compare the 430 to the McLaren! Lmao!

 

[HRH]

Just read the Autoweek article and I'm not impressed with how Fisker handled the matter. They just lost a serious buyer.

 

[dennis]

funny, the day after I went to the Fisker event, I read the story of the Houston Fisker burning to the ground due to a bum battery pack, and then last night I drove by one on the freeway getting loaded ont a tow truck.

With all of the exaggeration about electric car failures fanned by the right wing press that hates the DOE loans taken by these companies, it is helpful to get the facts. In the specific case of the single Fisker car fire, reliable sources such as AutoWeek reported that the battery pack was NOT the cause of the fire. The battery was still intact and the car was not being charged when the fire started. Cause of the fire is still under investigation. Also interesting that the owner of the car/house is a convicted felon. I'm hoping we'll get a definitive statement on what caused the fire sometime in the future.

I have 3500 miles on my Fisker Karma. It is my daily driver. I've never had a single issue with the battery or drivetrain. They were plagued with electronic gremlins early on (sound familiar, Mac owners?), but a software release 6 weeks ago fixed most of them.

The Karma is both beautiful and functional. It elicits just as much interest from strangers as the Mac, which is a lot!

 

[falb]

The Fisker is interesting for sure, and certainly doesnt need my tax dollars ($7,500 tax credit!!) to get off the ground if it made any economic sense to build a new $100k sedan with batteries. This is what is the fanning the flames; Fisker trying to blame the owner.


This was the Autoweek bit.

Page EquityD E S
<Menu> to Return
98) Op BFW May 08 2012 13:01:38
Fisker Electric Car Said to Cause Texas House Fire: Autoweek 91) ☆
By Jay Miller
May 8 (Bloomberg) -- Fisker Karma allegedly started fire at
house in Texas, Autoweek reports, citing Fort Bend County chief
fire investigator Robert Baker.
• Cause of fire not yet known, electrical panel in garage being investigated by
officials, Fisker tells Autoweek
• Li-ion battery wasn’t being charged, is intact: Fisker
• Car was in flames <3 mins. after driver parked car in garage: Baker
• Car was bought after recall, <60 days old: Baker
Story: http://bit.ly/IJ0Yut


This is NOT the right wing press. _read this
http://news.consumerreports.org/cars/2012/03/consumer-reports-is-not-the-only-fisker-owner-to-experience-bad-karma.html

 

[falb]

Sorry fisker but this is a POS.

http://news.consumerreports.org/cars/2012/03/video-bad-karma-our-fisker-karma-plug-in-hybrid-breaks-down.html

We buy about 80 cars a year and this is the first time in memory that we have had a car that is undriveable before it has finished our check-in process.

 

[dennis]

Sorry fisker but this is a POS.

http://news.consumerreports.org/cars/2012/03/video-bad-karma-our-fisker-karma-plug-in-hybrid-breaks-down.html

We buy about 80 cars a year and this is the first time in memory that we have had a car that is undriveable before it has finished our check-in process.

Owning an early one, I know a LOT about this, not just randon quotes from the press. The failure of the Consumer Reports car was diagnosed by Fisker engineers as a failure in the A123-supplied battery. A123 determined that they had a manufacturing tolerance issue at one of their plants and took a $55M charge to replace all Karma batteries over the next 12 months. It was not a safety issue, and the infant mortality rate for the failure seen by Consumer Reports was determined to be less than 5%. Fisker extended the warranty on the entire car to 5 years and 60,000 miles when they announced the battery replacement program.

I've owned 7 cars where I put down a deposit before the car was being manufactured. ALL of them had teething problems, including the 12C. So if the Karma is a POS, so is my 2000 M5 that broke a camshaft at 1300 miles, all 2006 M5's with the VANOS oil pump issue, all x35 BMW N54 motors with the high pressure fuel pump failures, etc.

Early adopters have to expect problems with first example new models. I certainly did. Fisker is just getting more scrutiny because it is an electric car and they availed themself to the DOE loan money that was made available. As a case in point, there was more coverage in the non-automotive press on the single Fisker fire that all of the Ferrari 458 fires combined.

 

[falb]

I am glad you like your car. You are right, calling it a POS is too harsh. I hate the government involvement in the "green" economy. It is BS. I hate that my tax dollars are paying for crappy loans for crappy business models and I particularly hate paying rebates for overpriced green machines. The reviews for the Fisker Karma performance are overwhelmingly poor. The car is extra heavy at 5400 lbs, slow, cramped quarters, and underwhelming gas mileage - the product of bad government

 

[dennis]

I am glad you like your car. You are right, calling it a POS is too harsh. I hate the government involvement in the "green" economy. It is BS. I hate that my tax dollars are paying for crappy loans for crappy business models and I particularly hate paying rebates for overpriced green machines. The reviews for the Fisker Karma performance are overwhelmingly poor. The car is extra heavy at 5400 lbs, slow, cramped quarters, and underwhelming gas mileage - the product of bad government

And I hate the government giving my tax $$ as incentives to oil companies who make billions in profits every quarter. I've used 65 gallons of gas for 3500 miles in my Karma, hardly underwhelming. And the electricity to charge it comes from solar panels (also subsidized by tax incentives).

We all are entitled to our differing political opinions and choices in cars. At least we can agree that the 12C is AWESOME.