The Fisker Karma - I am totally puzzled...

I truly believe the only way to answer this question would push the thread into P&R

Jedi

 

ok now i am puzzled too. those numbers seem impossible!?

 

it's a beautiful looking car, but a tank ....over weight, under powered, not fuel efficient, and way way over budget ...to bad really!

 

See...that's what I don't get. I normally see beauty in cars, but the Fisker? Not at all. I can't even force my self to like it. It's terrible looking.

If I were to go 'hybrid/electric', my first choice would be a Tesla Model S.

 

Great review here by an owner. Some honest Loves and Hates here. Some of his comments are pretty brutal.

It's a really long review but one of the most complete I've ever seen of an auto before.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WnYuO0bGSTc[/ame]

 

It was pushed out to meet government regulated financial issues. Hence all the negativity and poor building. Its a pretty good looking car but it pretty much stops there

 

There ya go.

Jedi

 

Justin Beiber drives one.

 

And that sums it up

 

Haha!!

 

Leonardo DiCaprio, another entertainer that's convinced that (i), the sky is falling and, (ii), that the rest of us just don't have what it takes to take note and act to prevent our own demise, (ii) has signed on as spokesman . . .

Nothing against anyone but I hope Fisker and the like die out soon.

 

i like the fisker karma looks & interior, but that's it ....the tesla i dont like in any fashion, a wonderful light weight lotus ruined by weight, batterys! and made ugly IMO

 

+1 but i'm just disappointed by fisker product, they have literally been given $ to do a great job, and the result is an edsel ....if only they focused on the styling, and made it a conventional car with 1/2 the weight!

 

Reminds me a little bit of DeLorean.

 

One Big A__ Mistake America

 

Google Tesla Model S, actually I'll do it for you, here.

This is not the same as the Tesla Roadster which shares the same Lotus platform. I'm also not a big fan of the Roadster, but when comparing the Model S vs. Karma, the Model S gets more points.

 

I have followed the Karma for almost 5 years now.

When I first heard of the concept I loved it (and I like the looks).

Initially it was advertised as a $75k gas electric hybrid where the gasoline engine doesn't have direct wheel connection (think Diesel electric train).

Mileage on battery alone was supposed to be 100 miles with sports car performance ~5 sec 0-60 mph.

I put money down right there and then.

What they sold was a fat pig in a ballerina dress.

Now the car with taxes is about $120k.

0-60 above 6 seconds

Battery only range less than 50 miles

The GM engine drones like a lawn mower and the car weighs >5,250 pounds.

I was very, very disappointed. Other than the original look (I still like that), Fisker did not deliver on the early promises...

Got my money back...


Kai

 

agree with chp
can you say DeLorean?

 

I am a believer in small focused engineering teams doing amazing things on small budgets. That said, when you look at all the things that it takes to design and develop an automobile to the level of sophistication that we expect in a Ford Focus, let alone our expectations we would have for a car with a price tag near or above $100k, it is no surprise that the Fisker doesn't live up to expectations.

And lots of enthusiasts that moan that the big auto makers are dumb, incompetent, and can’t do anything right, just don’t have a clue as to how hard it is to design, develop, build and market and automobile that can meet the expectations that Fisker set. The simple fact is that a small company doesn’t have the facilities for comprehensive testing that a GM, Ford or Chrysler have. The folks who say that you can do it all on the computers nowadays, are wrong. You can simulate everything that you know to simulate, but the real world is a tougher environment than any computer can think of. Having the time, resources and facilities to do all that is something that Fisker simply doesn’t have.

 

+1
that pretty much sums it up
The road to successfully mass producing a vehicle is lined with the carcasses of well intentioned individuals/companies. Way too much $$ is required to do it well and correctly.

 

One of my buddies traded his M3 for a Fisker. He likes the car a lot. It has had some software issues, but any time there is a problem the dealer shows up at the office with a Jag for him to drive while they update the software.

I have driven the car. It is interesting but not for me. I prefer lezz whiz bang gizmo stuff in cars.

It gets about 40 miles on a full charge.

His other cars are a Scud, Gallardo and a 599 - so I guess he can get his fix with the weekend toy

 

eh, its only just okay looking, masi like, not distinct like the fisker is at least ....and weight shown as 4700lbs ...so actual production weight is likely to be more, like the fisker ended up being

 

do you think fisker has perhaps tried to bite off to much?
i mean could they have reduced problems and costs potentially by using some more existing systems, than trying to create everything themselves (sans engine of course)?