Fisker Karma

  • 2009 Fisker Karma

    When the EPA's official MPG figures were released for the 2012 Fisker Karma a few days ago, we can't have been the only ones a little disappointed with the 20 MPG figure on gasoline and 52 MPG equivalent in EV mode. There were even suggestions the low 20 MPG rating on gasoline could hurt the DoE car loan program that helps fund the development of low energy vehicles. Fisker appears to be worried potential customers would be disappointed too and has quickly responded to the sticker rating on its Facebook page. "We do not believe that the label communicates the entire story", explains Fisker...

  • Prince Albert of Monaco and Henrik Fisker drive Fisker Karma on Monaco Grand Prix circuit, May 2011
    Could Fisker Karma's Low MPGs Hurt DoE Car-Tech Loan Program?

    Fisker Automotive may have sensed that the 20-mpg EPA rating on their 2012 Karma electric sport sedan was not good news. The company simply omitted the statistic from their press release announcing that the EPA had legally certified the Karma--meaning it can now be sold to retail buyers. Fisker...

  • Prince Albert of Monaco and Henrik Fisker drive Fisker Karma on Monaco Grand Prix circuit, May 2011
    2012 Fisker Karma: 20 MPG On Gasoline, 32-Mi Electric Range

    It's been a long and painful year for Fisker Automotive, with deliveries of its 2012 Karma extended-range electric sport sedan repeatedly delayed from the original target of May. Now, with certification earlier this week from the Environmental Protection Agency that the car complies with emissions...

  • 2012 Fisker Karma on Two and a Half Men
    2012 Fisker Karma Lands A Role On 'Two And A Half Men'

    CBS raised a lot of eyebrows earlier this year when it canned the human trainwreck known as Charlie Sheen from its hit sitcom, Two and a Half Men, replacing him with the younger, saner Ashton Kutcher. But little did we know that producers were adding another supporting role to the show, in the form...

  • Fisker Surf concept teaser image
    Fisker Surf Concept: Preview Of Plug-In Karma Shooting Brake

    With Fisker just starting to deliver its first Karma plug-in hybrid sports sedans--no, still not a single road test by any journalist--attention now turns toward the Frankfurt Motor Show. Next week, the company will pull the covers off a concept for what it says will be the next model in the Fisker...

  • Ray Lane takes delivery of the first Fisker Karma
    Aug Electric-Car Sales: Nissan Leaf Rises, Chevy Volt Creeps Back

    New-car sales overall weren't great in August. The economy continues to be shaky, consumer confidence is down, and Hurricane Irene kept buyers away from dealerships. But electric-car sales last month improved on July's numbers, although they were far from their spring heights due to continued...

  • Ryan Reynolds Nissan Leaf Spokesperson

    It was a slow month for electric-car sales, with just over 1,000 Nissan Leaf and Chevrolet Volt vehicles together delivered during July. Nissan delivered 931 Leaf battery-electric cars, a decline from June's 1,708, and Chevrolet--which is suffering from a now-ended four-week summer shutdown for retooling at its Detroit-Hamtramck plant--sold a mere 125 Volts. That brings the 2011 Leaf total to 4,806, and the number of Volts sold to 2,870 (plus another 326 Volts and 19 Leafs in December 2010). One warning: Be on the lookout for silly, misleading articles that claim electric-car demand is...

  • First factory-built Fisker Karma live photos
    Fisker Karma Electric-Car Charging Stations Have EV1 Roots

    When you buy an electric car, you will most likely need a charging station. As buyers start to bring home plug-in cars, they will also expect their dealer to help them acquire and install a 240-Volt charging station (technically known as an EVSE, though few people call them that). Startup Fisker...

  • Prince Albert of Monaco and Henrik Fisker drive Fisker Karma on Monaco Grand Prix circuit, May 2011
    Fisker To Hire 120 At Delaware Plant For 'Project Nina' Second Model

    Although its much-delayed first model, the 2011 Karma plug-in hybrid luxury sports sedan, hasn't quite reached dealers yet, Fisker Automotive is powering ahead. The company announced today that it would post job listings for what will be roughly 120 positions at its Wilmington, Delaware, assembly...

  • First factory-built Fisker Karma live photos
    2011 Fisker Karma Plug-In Hybrid: Sales Now To Start In July

    Much attention and too little perspective has been focused on the monthly sales reports for the Chevy Volt and Nissan Leaf, the first mass-market plug-in electric cars. But electric-car fans still eagerly await the always-imminent arrival of another production car with a plug, the 2011 Fisker Karma...

  • Prince Albert of Monaco and Henrik Fisker drive Fisker Karma on Monaco Grand Prix circuit, May 2011
    Fisker Karma In Monaco: Winner Of Owner Royalty Award?

    According to startup plug-in hybrid maker Fisker Automotive, production of its 2011 Fisker Karma luxury sports sedan recently started in Finland. The company says it is focusing on delivering cars to dealers, so aside from giving a very small handful of journalists some quick driving time within...

  • Fisker Karma
    Luxury Hybrid Maker Fisker Automotive Raises Extra $100 Million

    Fisker Automotive, which manufactures luxury plug-in electric hybrid cars, has raised an extra $100 million in its third round of funding to help fund production of its luxury sedan and a second, cheaper electric car that is geared toward more mainstream hybrid electric car buyers. The 2011 Fisker...

  • 2011 Fisker Karma

    These are exciting times to be a car shopper, as the choices in every possible category just keep getting better and more fuel-efficient. The options for ecologically sensitive hybrid buyers have taken a major step forward with the introduction of the 2011 Chevrolet Volt and the imminent arrival of the 2011 Fisker Karma. Both of these cars are range-extended electric cars, whose wheels are turned solely by one or more electric motors. (There's a minor exception for the Volt, but it's not worth covering here.) Then, by June 2012, the Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid will also arrive on the open...

  • First factory-built Fisker Karma live photos
    Electric-Car Range Extender Engines: OK Now, Can Do Better

    Electric cars like the 2011 Chevrolet Volt and 2011 Fisker Karma get around the problem of range anxiety the old-fashioned way: They use gasoline engines. They do it because the battery systems of pure electric vehicles are large, heavy, and expensive, but the range they produce is still...

  • First factory-built Fisker Karma live photos
    2011 Fisker Karma Production Begins In Finland, U.S. Deliveries In April

    The best-looking (for now, anyway) electric-powered vehicle on the market is finally, well, on the market--or nearly so. Fisker's Karma extended-range EV entered production at Valmet's plant in Finland today. U.S. deliveries of the car are expected to begin next month. That jibes surprisingly well...

  • 2011 Coda Sedan advertisement
    Electric Car Startups To Square Off Against Big Auto Competition

    Competition is heating up in the electric car sector, and the next few years will be a challenging testing ground for startups looking to gain a foothold among consumers as more and more major automakers launch electric and hybrid cars. Some startups have lofty ambitions. Electric car startup Coda...

  • Fisker Karma
    Fisker To Release Karma Hybrid (Finally), With Extra $150M, Possible IPO

    After several rounds of delays and price increases, electric car startup Fisker says it will start production next month for the Karma, a luxury plug-in hybrid priced at $95,900. The company raised $150 million earlier this month at a $600 million valuation, and its backers include storied venture...

  • First factory-built Fisker Karma live photos
    2011 Fisker Karma 'Final Pricing' Goes Up Again, To $95,900

    The 2011 Fisker Karma is still on track to reach U.S. dealers in March or April, according to the company. But there's one new piece of info: The price of the extended-range electric sports sedan has gone up. Again. Originally announced in 2008 at a price of $80,000, the Karma fairly quickly went...

  • 2009 Fisker Karma

    For next month's Detroit Auto Show, we're making our list and checking it twice. But it turns out that one notable name in green cars is giving the country's largest auto show a miss. Fisker Automotive confirmed to GreenCarReports yesterday that it won't be present at the 2011 Detroit Auto Show, even though its first 2011 Karma range-extended electric vehicles are scheduled to arrive at U.S. dealers in March or April. Next up: Geneva in March The company's next appearance, said spokesman Russell Datz, will be the Geneva Motor Show in March. Fisker had previously showed what it called the...

  • 2011 Coda Sedan electric car, 'All Electric' badge, 2010 Los Angeles Auto Show
    Naming Electric Cars And Companies: Is Anything Good Left?

    Naming new car models is always tough. The latest head-scratcher is GM's decision to rebrand the replacement for its Aveo subcompact as the 2012 Chevrolet Sonic, a name better associated in the U.S. with hedgehogs or hamburgers. But that's nothing compared to the challenge of naming electric-car...

  • 2012 Range Rover Evoque
    2010 Paris Motor Show: Green Car Roundup of Production Models

    The fall's first big European auto show, the 2010 Paris Motor Show, officially kicks off on Thursday, which is when all the press conferences happen. But the industry has been leaking out selected images, teasers, and occasionally full details on the concepts and production cars that will appear...

  • 2010 Fisker Karma S Concept
    Waiting For Fisker: First Factory-Built 2011 Karma At Paris Motor Show

    It's been a year of press announcements but no cars from Fisker Automotive. Now the company says that the first factory-built 2011 Fisker Karma will debut at the 2010 Paris Motor Show, to be held at the end of the month. That may allow Fisker to keep its promise to deliver a handful of production...

  • 2011 Coda Sedan prototype - charging socket
    Electric Car Buying Guide

    We've been watching it roll closer for years, and now it's all but here: A new era of electric cars. Just three or four months from now, the first highway-capable electric vehicles sold in volume by global automakers will appear in showrooms in California and other regions. By the end of 2011...

  • 2011 Fisker Karma plug-in sports sedan at Fisker Santa Monica, July 2010, from WebRidesTV
    Fisker Dealer: Karma Plug-In Sedan Deliveries Start March or April

    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...

News First Drives Electric Cars Hybrids Guides Green Life