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1 researchok  Fri, Oct 21, 2011 11:59:15am

Tempest in a teapot.

If that.

Maybe some rules need to be rewritten but it seems nothing illegal or untoward has gone on.

Fisker is no GE.

2 lawhawk  Fri, Oct 21, 2011 12:34:38pm

Perhaps a bigger issue with the Karma isn't where it's being built, but that the EPA rated the Karma as 20mpg on gas, and 52mpge on the electric portion. Combined, it would give potentially less than a Prius - at several times the cost (base price of a Karma is $95,900).

Yet, I think Fisker's on to something here (and they're going to be opening a showroom along the busy Rt. 17 corridor in Bergen Cty NJ). They are gearing towards the high end because the high end of the market are the early adopters. Tesla did the same thing with their roadster, and other niche players are doing similar because they don't have the deep pockets to do a full scale production run that could compete with a Toyota or Nissan or GM line product at the moment.

It's a different strategy than what can be employed by Toyota, Nissan, or even GM - who each can somewhat absorb first and second generation EV or hybrid losses to perfect and improve the technologies. 1G tech is about proof of concept, and whether customers will flock to it.

But as will all things electric and hybrid - the real issue to improve performance isn't the gas engine or even the software limitations on batteries. It's the battery itself that will determine the shape of things to come.

Higher efficiency batteries can mean either lighter batteries for same output, or more output for the same weight. Those are design philosophies at work, to say nothing of the plug-in varieties that will reduce range anxiety issues (think Leaf vs. Volt vs. non-plug-in Prius).

3 RogueOne  Sat, Oct 22, 2011 3:09:47am

re: #2 lawhawk

$529 million to subsidize a foreign-built 20 MPG luxury vehicle that costs close to 6 figures and only the 1% can afford? I don't think Fisker is on to anything other than the government gravy train.

4 lawhawk  Sat, Oct 22, 2011 7:25:41am

re: #3 RogueOne

The Karma is the first vehicle - it's the Fisker flagship. Their ultimate goal is to have a series of car that is mass-produced, including the Nina. That car is expected to be in the BMW 3 series price range. It's still high end, but would be in the 40-50k range (less once you factor in the various fed/state incentives).


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