Delivery dates confirmed - sort of

Soflauthor said:

Brian: My guess is that Karmas will be in such short supply that demos will be hard to find in the early months, once production actually starts in earnest.

We may have to trust the reviews of the automotive writers, once they get to test drive the car (still waiting ...) or postpone taking delivery until there are demo models to test drive.

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Production will ramp up quickly to more than a thousand cars per month! (They will be producing in 1,5 months time what Tesla has produced up till now: 1500 cars). Valmet has a lot of experience and very well trained employees, so this should not be a problem. So it is unlikely that cars will be in short supply for test drives.

What I do think is that Fisker would have wanted some more time. It takes established car companies three years to develop a car, and they usually start with an older model and existing technology. Fisker had to build a company and a car from scratch, using new technology, and still managed to do it in three years. But it has been a stretch, that is clear. The testing program with the pre-production cars produced at the end of last year is very close to the start of full-scale production, too close if you ask me. But I heard no major problems turned up, and that the few small problems that did were ironed out.

Another sign that it has been a stretch, is the fact that dealers and press will be getting their cars almost at the same time as the first customers. Other car companies first serve dealers and press, and a few months later start actual deliveries. Fisker doesn't have the time for this, because there is so much pressure (also from us) to deliver. They simply cannot afford to annouce another major delay. So they won't. But as a consequence everyone - dealers, press, customers - gets served at the same time.

On another tack: Just took a look at Tesla S sedan. Impressive as a alpha prototype, and if Fisker doesn't get cars on the road soon, I think it might bleed some support from Fisker (yes, I know they're different technologies, but a 300 mile-range EV gets my attention). I've waited 2.5 years for the Karma, maybe another 18 months for the S is something to think about.

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The Tesla S is an impressive car, at least in pictures. But the video of the alpha protoype on a rural road I saw a few days ago was less impressive. In my opinion it looks too much like a Japanese luxury car - Lexus, Infiniti - and doesn't distinguish itself as the revolutionary car it is. On the other hand, not everyone wants to stick out like you will in a Karma.

The Tesla S also has a big price advantage over the Karma. The problem however with waiting for the Tesla S (or Fisker Nina) is that there can also be delays. Tesla is not immune to this, as we saw with the Roadster. And there are already a few thousand reservations, so even if production starts on time, it will take longer before you actually get your car. You might look at another 2,5 years of waiting.

Dutch said:

The Tesla S also has a big price advantage over the Karma. The problem however with waiting for the Tesla S (or Fisker Nina) is that there can also be delays there. Tesla is not immune to this, as we saw with the Roadster. And there are already a few thousand reservations, so even if production starts on time, it will take longer before you actually get your car. You might look at another 2,5 years of waiting.

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I have a lot of issues with the Tesla Model S:

1. Tesla has very few dealerships, and zero here in Texas, so good luck getting it serviced.

2. To me it looks like a nice Ford Taurus with a touch of Infinity... Visually boring. Nice, but uninspiring.

3. I don't like Tesla's business model, and I seriously doubt they will survive because of it. I think Fisker has a better chance of still being around when it comes time to replace the battery.

4. Tesla's have all the expensive circuitry in the charging umbilical whereas Fisker puts the expensive parts in the car. If I'm charging a Tesla at a public or unsecure charging station someone could very easily just steal the $1200 cord. The Fisker is basically just a cheap $40 cord from Home Depot so nobody is going to swipe it.

5. Even at 300 miles, that's lousy round-trip range here in Texas where everything is pretty far. And if you drive the car like a normal person you'll get far less mileage not to mention the battery degrades quite a bit every year. I prefer a hybrid electric over pure electric.

-Brian

I agree with you that hybrid electric beats pure electric. With the Tesla S, even if you choose the bigger battery, there will always be range anxiety, or at least a chance of getting stranded with an empty battery. You will need a second car for longer trips, or be prepared to make long recharging stops. The Karma will never have this problem. And you will still be able to drive pure electric 70-90% of the time, depending on your personal situation.

And I think the Karma is a more beautiful and unique car on the road. Fisker is the first car company with a designer as CEO (instead of a bean counter), and it shows.

The Karma is not cheap. But for those who cannot afford it: wait for the cheaper 'Nina' which, if we have to believe the rumors, will be at least as stunning.

But I do wish Tesla good luck, because they have the same goal as Fisker: to rid the world of its oil addiction (actually, this week I ordered 11.500 Wp of solar panels to be put on the roof of the company I run with my brothers. I will be using the sun to charge my Karma!)