Investor information on the mostly-mysterious Fisker Atlantic is shedding a little light on what’s actually going on with the controversial company’s second car. 

Information in the documents confirm that the car will cost between $50,000 and $60,000, slotting it to compete with cars like a higher-end BMW 335i or Audi S4. The Atlantic will also aim for around 300 hp and will use a specially-tuned BMW turbocharged four-cylinder engine.

Battery size and range weren’t included in the document, but it seems A123 will continue to supply them. Given that company’s financial problems after supplying faulty batteries for the Karma and the resulting production slowdown, the next bit of news isn’t really surprising.

It seems production, which was originally expected to be underway this year with cars being made available for 2013, will be delayed. That slowdown comes in part because of delayed confirmation that the automaker will, in fact, be able to use the Wilmington, Del. plant it had planned to retool.

Delays in battery production would obviously hamper overall assembly too, so as long as A123 has problems it seems Fisker will probably suffer too. The latest information suggests that production of a prototype will be delayed until mid 2013, pushing actual production back until 2014, meaning the Atlantic isn’t likely to arrive as anything earlier than a 2015 model.

Watch AutoGuide’s video of the first look at the Fisker Atlantic here. 

[Source: Inside EVs]

In the least surprising announcement of the year, Fisker is denying that the accusations leveled at the Karma supposedly responsible for a garage fire in Sugar Land, Texas are accurate. 

Last week a blaze sparked in the garage of a Texas Fikser Karma owner which authorities blamed for the blaze. Without wasting any time, the automaker dispatched a squadron of engineers to inspect the aftermath, hoping to clear itself of any wrongdoing.

Regardless of what actually happened, it seems obvious that the company is unlikely to accept blame for the incident, at least without a fight.

Given the hubbub that had the Chevrolet Volt on the ropes over the last few months after a few of the cars spontaneously combusted, it’s understandable that Fisker would be quick to jump in a find a way to ditch the blame.

“It is irresponsible and ill-informed for technology pundits to suggest otherwise in order to secure media attention for unfounded claims,” Paul Boskovitch, Fisker director of powertrain, said to Automotive News.

The response was prompted after the outlet ran a story including an interview with EV expert Jon Bereisa, who was one of the architects behind the Volt, saying the Karma’s tight engine compartment could cause a “thermal condition.”

“Our technologies and engine design have been fully tested and certified at the highest level,” Boskovitch said.

[Source: Automotive News]

When a Texas home was scorched earlier this week, authorities blamed the Fisker Karma for starting the fire in the garage. At the time it seemed clear that the car did start the fire, but how that happened was less obvious.

The company, however, was quick to point out that it wasn’t a battery fire. Jon Bereisa, CEO of consultancy company Auto Lectrification, spoke with Automotive News and said that it was more likely to have been caused by the cramped engine compartment.

“That engine is shoehorned into that bay, because they had to use a larger engine, because it was too heavy a car. As a result, there’s no room for exhaust routing and heat shielding to route the heat away,” Bereisa said.

With such tight quarters, he said an oil or coolant leak could easily start a fire, which is probably what happened. Jeremy Gutierrez, the car’s owner, said he smelled rubber when the fire started, something that would align with a fire in the engine bay and not the batteries.

Fisker has since deployed a group of engineers to investigate and reach a conclusion, maintaining only that the battery was not at fault. Given the controversy that quickly enveloped the Chevrolet Volt after it caught fire, it’s understandable that Fisker is approaching the situation with caution.

In the Volt’s case, fires started after the units in question suffered severe crashes and coolant leaked onto the battery pack. The liquid crystalized and then caught fire, leading to the hazard behind the controversy.

[Source: Automotive News]

A crime of opportunity, or was a Fisker Karma really to blame for the fire in a Texas home?

The Fisker Karma has been under fire for a while with a recent recall last year on a potential battery fire risk issue. Now we’ll give this owner the benefit of the doubt but the timing is a little bit fishy that a Karma is being blamed for causing a house fire.

The story is that the owner purchased a post-recall Karma in April and had parked it in its garage when less than three minutes later the car was up in flames. It is being reported that the vehicle was not plugged in at the time and the Karma’s battery is fully intact.

Authorities are currently saying that the Karma was indeed the source of the fire but the cause is still unknown at the time. Fort Bend County, Texas chief fire investigator Robert Baker said that the vehicle still had paper tags on it, so it couldn’t have been older than 60 days. No injuries were reported as a result of the accident though the house suffered serious damage.

Accompanying the Karma in the garage was a Mercedes-Benz SUV and an Acura NSX, so it may be a little hard to believe the owner was looking for a quick cash out opportunity. Nevertheless, the fire is being heavily investigated since pointing blame specifically at Fisker could have major consequences to the American automaker.

“I’ve worked homicide scenes with less secrecy,” Baker said. “There have to be about 15 engineers down here working on this one.”

Fisker added in a press release that it was aware of the investigation and has not ruled out the possibility of fraud or malicious intent. Even more interesting is that fireworks were found in the garage in or around the vehicle and an electrical panel is being examined by investigators and fire department officials.

The electrical panel is probably a smokescreen to divert blame to the home, especially since the fire chief is confident the source of the blaze was from the vehicle. We’ll be sure to follow the outcome of this story, especially if Fisker is to blame – it could be a big nail in the coffin for the troubled American electric automaker.

[Source: Autoweek]

A series of very public Li-ion defect related incidents have caused the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) decision to hold a meeting with automakers and battery suppliers with regards to the safety of the new technology.

“The purpose of this symposium is to bring together relevant stakeholders to share information on the status of safety activities related to the use of Li-ion batteries in vehicles designed for on-road use,” NHTSA explained.

Public concerns were raised last year when a Chevrolet Volt plug-in electric vehicle had ignited following a NHTSA crash test. Then, the reliability of battery packs were put into question when a brand-new Fisker Karma EV had inexplicably stopped working during testing with Consumer Reports. In more recent news, a prototype battery extreme testing related explosion occurred at the Warren, Michigan GM Technical Center laboratory, injuring five employees.

Investigations on the Volt have found that GM’s electric vehicle is no more of a fire risk than cars with conventional gasoline engines. The Fisker defect was caused by faulty calibration of battery supplier A123′s battery welding process. Finally, the GM Tech Center incident was caused by a prototype and certainly not intended for production. None of these incidents indicate that Li-ion batteries are particularly unsafe, but amid the negative publicity, the public and the administration are struggling to understand the nature of the technology.

What’s more, supporters of the electric vehicle blame the safety issues surrounding Li-ion batteries as the cause of the lackluster sales numbers of electric cars. Both the Chevy Volt and Nissan Leaf missed the 10,000 unit sales target last year.

NHTSA is looking to clear the air when it conducts the safety meeting on May 18 in Washington, D.C.

The debut of the Fisker Atlantic may have silenced critics for some time, but it appears that the American automaker isn’t doing as well as they want us to believe.

The former General Motors plant in Delaware was acquired by Fisker in order to build its vehicles in America, but recently reports came in that production at Delaware wasn’t guaranteed. Now it appears that Fisker has laid off another dozen employees at the plant, making us believe that the Atlantic production will never take place there.

One of those employees that was laid off is Jeff Garland, who used to serve as community affairs and business development in Delaware. He was quoted as saying that the plant is “absolutely empty”, which makes sense considering Fisker had not installed its machined after taking out the old GM equipment. Chances are now that they probably never will.

“I think what happened was the budget numbers are so tight right now and they’re working so hard to preserve as much cash as they can that something had to give. We’re not making a car in Wilmington right now, so given that situation it was an obvious place to make a cut,” Garland said.

Fisker has had a rough last few minutes. Most recently, another recall was issued on its Fisker Karma for a battery glitch that surfaced as a result of a Consumer Reports test. Much of the skepticism on the future of Fisker comes from the fact that the automaker wasn’t able to secure the rest of its Department of Energy loan.

The continued layoffs doesn’t mean that Fisker is going under. Clearly the American automaker is working its hardest to survive, finding a way to produce its Atlantic in a cost-efficient manner. Hopefully what it showed off is enough to entice investors.

[Source: Delaware Online]

Ford recently announced the EPA fuel efficiency rating for its electric Focus model. Since it doesn’t burn any gasoline, the number isn’t in miles per gallon (MPG), but was given as miles per gallon gasoline equivalent, or MPGe. A new term to the automotive lexicon, it’s worth exploring exactly what MPGe means and how an MPGe rating is determined, especially as the number of electric cars and plug-in electric hybrids on the roads continues to increase.

Why use MPGe?

In order to compare the fuel efficiency of various vehicles, MPGe had to be introduced. The rating first came into use with the fully electric Nissan Leaf and the Chevrolet Volt, which offers a plug-in option to deliver anywhere from 25 to 40 miles of electric range before the gasoline engine kicks in to charge the car’s batteries, which continue to power the electric motor and the wheels.

Since electric vehicles don’t use gas, the traditional miles per gallon measurement wouldn’t make much sense. The most appropriate measurement would be Kilowatt Hours (kWh) since that’s the way electricity usage in houses is measured. However, using kWh makes it difficult to compare electric cars to non-electric cars. That’s why MPGe was created, to be able to compare the fuel efficiency of electric cars to other vehicles. MPGe is also an appropriate unit of measurement for other alternate fuels, like hydrogen, or compressed natural gas.

How do we get MPGe numbers?

In order to compare gas and electricity consumption, a common unit that measures energy is required. Burning one gallon of gasoline creates 115,000 BTU. The electrical equal to this is 33.7 kWh. Therefore, the distance an electric vehicle can travel on 33.7 kWh of electricity is comparable to how far a conventional internal combustion vehicle can travel on one gallon of gasoline.

Comparing MPGe of electric vehicles.

Comparing the MPGe of Electric vehicles is possible, so let’s take a look at how they stack up. For the Volt, Fisker Karma and Prius PHEV keep in mind that these vehicles are equipped with a gas powered range extender. This means we can use gas MPG numbers for part of the EPA rating.

Fisker, only gave us one MPGe number, the combined one. Tesla would not give us MPGe numbers of their roadster, or upcoming Model S, or Model X vehicles.

Where does MPGe fall apart?

The major problem with MPGe is that it doesn’t say exactly what electric car owners need to know. Range is probably the most important number that electric car buyers will want to look at. While range is present on the EPA sticker label, it’s just not as prominent as MPGe. As you can see in the chart above, MPGe has no relationship on range. Electric vehicles really depend on battery size to determine range, so that would be another key specification prospective buyers should take a look at.

As more and more electric vehicles come onto the market, this should start to overshadow the MPG numbers. Additionally, MPG numbers are losing trust with consumers. Some manufacturers are using the more generous (by roughly 25%) CAFE numbers instead of actual EPA test numbers which can further mislead customers.

With electric vehicles only making up 1% of the total cars purchased, the MPGe number plays a greater role, helping consumers to compare with conventional cars. As more electric vehicles enter the market, MPGe numbers will be less relevant, and buyers can look range as a defining factor in buying their cars.

Over the past few years Lexus has been referred to as a Japanese Buick, with the number one reason being the ES front-drive luxury sedan – a car that drew direct comparisons with the not-quite-Cadillac GM premium brand. To erase those comparos the new 2013 ES gets a more stylish exterior with a GS-themed front nose and a profile more like the flagship LS.

Swapping its Camry underpinnings for an Avalon platform it has, however, grown even more in size – a notable Buick trait. Plus, to challenge the eAssist mild-hybrid LaCrosse, there’s finally now an ES300h hybrid system getting 39 mpg average.

The Fisker Atlantic debuted at the New York Auto Show this week shedding light that the once mythical Project Nina was indeed a reality. And while it was believed that the Atlantic would be produced at its Wilmington, Delaware facility, Fisker’s CEO announced that “the whole plan has changed.”

Tom LaSorda, Fisker CEO, said that a decision on where the Atlantic will be produced won’t come until the end of summer, possibly putting another delay on the launch of the smaller electric sedan. With the turmoil that Fisker recently has gone through with its DOE loan, it’s no surprise that the American automaker is considering alternative options for production that could perhaps save manufacturing costs.

Even though the Delaware plant, a former General Motors assembly plant, is Fisker’s primary location, LaSorda did elaborate that there are other options available and that the automaker would do what’s best for the company and its shareholders. If Wilmington does become the Atlantic’s production destination, LaSorda said the plant could be ready to go “really quickly.”

At the New York Auto Show, Fisker announced that it had raised $132 million in private capital in the month of March and has not taken any DOE funds since May of last year.

“We are looking at other strategic partnerships. Everything is possible. We will make this car with or without the DOE,” said Fisker Executive Chairman Henrik Fisker.

GALLERY: Fisker Atlantic

[Source: Automotive News]

Originally code named Project Nina, Fisker Automotive unveiled its newest model on the eve of the 2012 NY Auto Show. Now called the Atlantic, it may be a concept car, but according to company co-founder Henrik Fisker it’s 90 of what the production car will be.

Fisker didn’t provide a timeline on when it hopes the car will make it to market and based on the numerous delays the brand’s first car, the Karma, took to launch, it could still be a while. Few exact details are know about the car, but at its reveal Henrik Fisker did provide some insight, as well as plenty of info on exactly just what its main competitors will be.

GALLERY: Fisker Atlantic Concept

For more on the Atlantic, watch the video below:

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With plenty of recent bad press, upstart environmental automaker Fisker focused on the positives and began a new chapter in the company’s history with the launch of a new concept car on the eve of the New York Auto Show.

Called the Atlantic, it’s a significantly smaller vehicle than the Karma, and targeted as a green alternative to cars like the BMW 3 Series and Audi A5. In fact, Henrik Fisker says the Atlantic will be priced similar to those two cars (at the high end) and deliver performance on par as well. It will do this with a “next-generation” gasoline range extended electric powerplant says company co-founder and chief designer Henrik Fisker. That engine will be a BMW-sourced 2.0-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder with an additional electric motor and lithium-ion battery pack.

Giving a walk-around of the car, Fisker commented on how spacious the interior is (equal to its rivals), as well as how large the trunk is. “It’s got quite a large trunk as the next generation powertrain is a lot smaller,” said Fisker.

A stunning new vehicle with rear door handles that are hidden to give a coupe-like profile, Fisker says the car is 90 percent developed and that while a concept the Atlantic is, “a promise of what we will deliver.”

GALLERY: Fisker Atlantic Concept

Watch AutoGuide’s first look video of the Fisker Atlantic below:

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No folks, this isn’t an April Fools Joke. A pair of images of the Fisker Atlantic fully revealed has leaked and here is the previously called “Project Nina” in its fully glory.

The Atlantic is believed to be the first of three models under the Project Nina umbrella, and according to previous reports will be powered by a BMW-sourced 2.0L turbocharged four-cylinder engine. No specifics have been released on its electric motor.

We’re just a matter of days away now from the official reveal at the New York Auto Show, where Fisker also plans to update everyone on how the business is operating during the last shaky months.

GALLERY: Fisker Atlantic

[Source: Autoforum.cz]