Consumer magazine testing reveals Fisker teething problems

Press releases abounded as Californian PHEV maker Fisker bestowed gifts of its gorgeous Karma plug-in hybrid sedan first on Leonardo di Caprio, then on Justin Bieber. Then Connecticut-based consumer advocate magazine Consumer Reports sent a couple of its people into to a nearby Fisker dealer undercover, paying around US$100K for a Karma, which they took back to the mag’s grounds for testing. Resulting in this...

“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.”

It embroils the Californian maker in the classic startup enterprise’s marketing nightmare – the realisation that all-new doesn’t mean all-great from the outset.

Consumer Reports shadow-shops for products, buying them at full price through retail channels, just like a real buyer. It’s left Fisker reeling, although, not surprisingly, the company and its dealer jumped fast to diagnose and fix the problem.

David Champion, senior director for the magazine's automotive test centre, told Reuters that engineers had just begun calibrating the Karma's speed with a 65mph run down the magazine's test track when a light on the dashboard came on.

They managed to finish the speed test, even as the light stayed on. But after they parked it, they couldn’t get it started again.

Champion conceded no all-new product is exempt from teething problems. But “it’s a little disconcerting that you pay that amount of money for a car and it lasts basically 180 miles before going wrong,” he said.

The dealer collected the Karma on a flatbed truck and took it away for investigation by Fisker engineers. Within a couple of days it was back with Consumer Reports and ready for retesting.

“The dealer’s repair invoice says the problem was ‘duplicated repeatedly’, the magazine reported. “A fault was found in the battery and inverter cable. Both were replaced as a unit. In other words, we now have a brand-new lithium-ion drive battery pack provided under warranty, though likely costing as much as a small, fuel-efficient car.”

This isn’t a first for Fisker. Last December, it was forced to recall 239 Karmas to deal with a coolant fluid leak causing short circuits in the battery pack. And with delays to market and sales failing to fulfil expectation, the company cut power-pack orders on short notice, causing battery supplier A123 to reduced its full-year revenue forecasts.

In January, it brought Karma sales to a standstill for four days while it tracked down an operating system glitch that set off false warnings and froze navigation systems.

In February, founding CEO Henrik Fisker was replaced by former Chrysler boss Tom LaSorda, as the company brought production to a standstill while it renegotiates its $529 million loan from the US Department of Energy.

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