[FiskerZee]

Hi chaps;

I couldn't find anywhere on the forum whether we are supposed to run the ICE at least some of the time? For example, what happens if we run the car purely on electric for a whole year without turning on the ICE? Will it be prone to ceasing? Gas engines are supposed to be run some of the time, so what is the expert recommendation on how to treat the ICE? Switch it on for a thousand or so miles a year? Mote, less? Or any other suggestion? In my case, I can run on electric indefinitely because of my driving profile. Should I run the ICE once in a while? How often? Thanks.

 

[fiskerjim]

I run mine by going distances that use up my electric reserve. I also "paddle" it on at different times. I do this to use up some of the gas so that I don't get a "stale gas" situation and also to activate the ICE system. I feel the exercise is good for it. You will notice that the ICE will occasionally come on when you start it after it has been sitting for a while (e.g., 2 weeks or more). This happens randomly. I would like to see some feedback from some of our experts on this forum about running the HV battery to zero. I think there is a feeling that "rechargeable batteries" do better by not fully discharging.

 

[FiskerZee]

Thanks very much for the advice on ICE. I will run it from now on as the gas in there must already be getting stale. I also read that the battery should not be run to zero. Let's see what others say.

 

[LonePalmBJ]

The Karma will automatically run the ICE periodically if you don't for emissions testing reasons, to circulate fluids and to keep your gas from getting stale. There's nothing you need to do, but if someday you're in Stealth and suddenly the ICE starts don't be surprised.

As for the battery, "0 Miles Range" is actually a 15% full battery, and "50 Miles Range" is actually an ~85% full battery. The system automatically buffers charge and discharge so that from a user perspective you should feel comfortable using the whole battery and "running it to zero" without worry about battery degredation. If anything, it's probably too conservative.

It is possible to run your battery to absolute zero under rare conditions (at zero miles remaining and no fuel in gas tank and forcing the car to restart into stealth, for example) which is an astoundingly bad idea. You're better off calling it a day and getting a flatbed tow then trying to force a couple more miles out of a spent system and running the risk of permanent damage to your battery capacity.

-Brent

I'm not an expert, just a longtime owner and Karma nerd, so I can't guarantee all of the above but it is what I believe to be true.

 

[Fabulist]

Thanks very much for the advice on ICE. I will run it from now on as the gas in there must already be getting stale. I also read that the battery should not be run to zero. Let's see what others say.

You don't need to manage the ICE. It takes care of itself automatically. Fisker released an introductory video in 2012 that covers a lot of useful basic information. It would be worth watching for a new owner. Here is the link:

Another very good use of the ICE is for cabin heating. It's not a big issue at the moment, but it will eventually get cold enough that you may want to heat the cabin. Doing this in Stealth mode uses a lot of electric power. Running the ICE for a few minutes, on the other hand, heats up the engine coolant very quickly and allows the HVAC to extract heat for the cabin without using up a chunk of stored power in the HV battery.

 

[FiskerZee]

Gents;

That's why I love this forum. Everyone is so friendly and helpful. Thanks very much for all this very useful information. It is highly appreciated. I shall watch the video right away.

 

[JCMorrill]

Didn't see that anybody else mentioned it, but if you are going weeks to months without intentionally or consciously using the ICE, be sure to put in Sta-bil each time you fuel up to keep your gas from getting too stale. 4 oz. for a fill up or 2 oz. for a half tank. I just keep a bottle in my garage for my one gas top off every 6 weeks or so.

 

[FiskerZee]

Thanks. I will also do that. It's easy enough to do.

 

[fiskerjim]

Great feedback as ever.

 

[Fabulist]

Didn't see that anybody else mentioned it, but if you are going weeks to months without intentionally or consciously using the ICE, be sure to put in Sta-bil each time you fuel up to keep your gas from getting too stale. 4 oz. for a fill up or 2 oz. for a half tank. I just keep a bottle in my garage for my one gas top off every 6 weeks or so.

While there is probably no harm in doing this, it may not be necessary. In normal day-to-day service, the Karma turns the ICE on often enough (once every week to every two weeks) that this may not be needed. Even when storing the Karma, a few months may not be long enough to create problems. My Karma was in storage for over 4 months, and then took another two months to burn through that tank, without any issues.

Obviously, YMMV, so you need to exercise the level of prudence that works for you.

 

[FiskerZee]

Thanks very much for this advise also.

 

[JCMorrill]

I've had a lot of motorcycles that didn't make a 4-5 month storage of gas and needed serious (though not relevant to our motors) carb repairs. But, the gas went bad. I think 50 cents worth of Sta-bil is cheap insurance.

 

[FiskerZee]

I agree. It does not do any harm. I put it in my Aston Martin over winter, and it's perfectly OK when I fire her up in the spring.