It’s a time-honored adage: “there’s no such thing as bad publicity”. However, Henrik Fisker may beg to differ as his company’s Karma sedan has been making the headlines for a variety of problems ever since its delayed launch.
Now, a former Fisker employee claims to know the root of the company’s issues with the Karma. The unnamed whistleblower told GiGaom that as the project was behind schedule, Fisker decided to roll out the hybrid before it was actually ready in order to meet the deadlines dictated by the Department of Energy-provided US$529 million loan.
Said employee now works for Coda, another electric car company (with this information, we assume it shouldn’t be too difficult to find out who he or she is).
The employee alleges that it wasn’t unusual for early models to face technical issues. Yet, despite not being ready, the first model rolled off the Valmet assembly line last March.
In May, the DOE froze the loan citing Congress scrutiny to protect taxpayers’ money after the bankruptcy of three recipients: solar-panel manufacturer Solyndra, battery supplier for EVs Ener1 Inc and energy-storage company Beacon Power.
This has forced Fisker to halt work on its ex-GM Delaware plant (the Karma is assembled in Finland) and as a result, put the more affordable Nina hybrid on ice as it will also be built in the same factory.
A Fisker spokesperson contacted by website GiGaom had this to say: “Quality and customer satisfaction are the top priority for Fisker Automotive. With any new technology, there will be unanticipated bugs and we have demonstrated the ability to quickly resolve them on a case-by-case basis. In addition, Fisker’s 24 hour VIP call centers and comprehensive vehicle warranty are also designed to give our customers complete peace of mind.”
It’s not the first or the last time that a brand-new model is facing reliability issues and is recalled. Even the biggest automakers can make mistakes that cost billions in recalls and fines.
Therefore, another possible explanation is that a new company launching its first-ever model, which also happens to be technologically advanced vehicle, is likely to face some issues that need ironing out. It remains to be seen whether the proverb concerning publicity will prove to be right in Fisker’s case.
Story References: GiGaom via Jalopnik
