[Eric Karma]

It has come to my attention that silicone should be placed in certain ares in the region of the windshield base, to prevent water leakage into the electrics below. Any expert advice as to where to place the silicone? Photos would be great. Thanks.

 

[karmaman]

I used marine silicone for better strength and then gorilla tape over it as added protection. See attached pics, hope it helps.

 

[karmaman]

These were taken as I did the work. I went along the windshield further..

 

[doug]

What's the problem here? The windshield wasn't sealed properly at the factory?

 

[Harleyguy]

What's the problem here? The windshield wasn't sealed properly at the factory?

Not the windshield the area around the pollen filter housing and the cables and hood release cable that go through the upper firewall . Just need to seal around those areas . Need to remove cowling in order to gain access .

 

[Stefan]

Is this precaution or a real issue?


Stefan
German Karma Forum
www.karma-forum.de

 

[Ira]

Is this precaution or a real issue?


Stefan
German Karma Forum
www.karma-forum.de

Stefan, it's both. I saw something posted on the Buzz (sometime back) about the possibility of water leaking into the electronics when the car was being washed. So I'm going to do this using high-temp RTV, the same thing I use on the firewall of my airplane.

BTW: Is there some way of searching on keywords within the posts? Memory is the second thing to go.

 

[Harleyguy]

If anyone does this while the cowling is off look at the lowest point the water drains down too . At the bottom their is a drain hole in the sheet metal make sure nothing is causing the hole to be plugged up . I've seen leafs and other stuff clog that drain . You can take your garden hose and clean it out . Sorry I don't have any pictures but its pretty easy to spot .

 

[ejo3rd]

With all of the "turn the hose clamp this way" and " put the silicon here" its starting to feel like we have $100K kit cars with crappy instructions for the initial build. Thank god for Harleyguy and Lormax!

 

[8AVGMPG]

With all of the "turn the hose clamp this way" and " put the silicon here" its starting to feel like we have $100K kit cars with crappy instructions for the initial build. Thank god for Harleyguy and Lormax!

i know you're probably joking but...

 

[ejo3rd]

Not really....

 

[Stefan]

I could understand it, if this would have been the first car in this factory... but Valmet did build other cars before.... :-( :-(


Stefan
German Karma Forum
www.karma-forum.de

 

[Dutch]

This happened to my car (when I still had it). Water came in and fried the motor of one of the ventilator fans. And the carpet on the passenger side was soaked. My car was always parked on a small hill (inclined), so that may have added to the problem. It would be wise to put some silicone as a preventive measure.

 

[Harleyguy]

Every car manufacturer has some sort of service fix or recall . I believe Jeep has one right now that includes cars from 1993- 2004 over 2.7 million cars . Their isn't one company that runs trouble free .

 

[Arch fisker]

I am sure that all of the complainers about small issues like hose clamp orientations have never developed race cars or any other unique construct that has thousands of interrelated parts. I wish I could be so good that I never ever made a mistake in designing one of the houses I do for a living. Even the space shuttle had leaks. I would give Fisker a break, and pass along thanks to the buys like Harley and others that have identified areas that can be improved. Think of the future of Fisker like open source programming, we are all in it together and can all contribute to the continued improvement and success of the Marque.

 

[karmaman]

Couldn't have said it any better arch.

 

[ejo3rd]

Well Arch I can cut a break to anyone for a mistake, but this is getting ridiculous. When I gave Fisker my money I was not developing a race car or the space shuttle, I was buying a consumer product that should be ready for use by the general public. I’ve been involved in multimillion dollar design & construction projects at a large university medical center so I know mistakes happen. I also use highly complex equipment to treat cancer patients with radiation so I understand how difficult it is to design devices and systems with thousands of interrelated parts. The fact that we now have no warranty makes all of the problems very frustrating. As you mentioned, thanks to Lormax and Harleyguy for their support.

So as a complainer about small issues I’ll list them for you, hopefully your list is shorter;

HV battery recall for hose clamps installed wrong at the factory
Trunk lid contacting rear bumper and wearing paint off bumper
Front fascia lifting near headlights
Interior dash panel (knee bolster) falling off
Car would not charge when brought home from dealer after delivery
Door seals falling off leading edge of front door
Wind noise issues
Instrument panel blackouts while driving
Windshield cowl wrinkled and not lying flat against glass
Bad air conditioner control module
12V battery recall/replacement
Fan replacement recall
Brake squeal issues
Traction motor/spline/RDM issues
Cracked muffler
Missing fuses
Black “beauty strip” on sides of solar roof lifting at both ends
New hose clamp issue
New cowl “water leak” issue

I’m sure I missed a few, this was done from memory.

 

[Arch fisker]

I cant argue that you have had problems, but judging from your #49 SE number, you were an early adopter and you knew that you were buying a brand new car with absolutely no track record or years of testing behind it. If you wanted a car with absolutely no issues, buy something that has been out forever, not a car that has less that 2500 units made.

I could probably have a similar list of problems from my Audi or Mercedes, with lots of recalls and issues. I guess I have a higher level of tolerance for the prototype natures of the car.

 

[SoCalGuy]

I cant argue that you have had problems, but judging from your #49 SE number, you were an early adopter and you knew that you were buying a brand new car with absolutely no track record or years of testing behind it. If you wanted a car with absolutely no issues, buy something that has been out forever, not a car that has less that 2500 units made.

I could probably have a similar list of problems from my Audi or Mercedes, with lots of recalls and issues. I guess I have a higher level of tolerance for the prototype natures of the car.

I think the point is that we can tolerate and deal with nuisances like crackly bluetooth or temperamental infotainment, but none of us really expected durability/driveability issues like having an RDM that eats away at itself and will eventually fail or an engine component that will slowly eat away and destroy the electrical subsystems. The powertrain is really my biggest worry - that is, the RDM/TMs.

PS - Ed, you also forgot the autofold mirrors that burnt out their motors, the lack of cabin preconditioning, easy exit/entry that doesn't quite work, the loss o radio presets, a solar screen which was just a graphic, etc.

 

[Ira]

So as a complainer about small issues I’ll list them for you, hopefully your list is shorter;

HV battery recall for hose clamps installed wrong at the factory
Trunk lid contacting rear bumper and wearing paint off bumper
Front fascia lifting near headlights
Interior dash panel (knee bolster) falling off
Car would not charge when brought home from dealer after delivery
Door seals falling off leading edge of front door
Wind noise issues
Instrument panel blackouts while driving
Windshield cowl wrinkled and not lying flat against glass
Bad air conditioner control module
12V battery recall/replacement
Fan replacement recall
Brake squeal issues
Traction motor/spline/RDM issues
Cracked muffler
Missing fuses
Black “beauty strip” on sides of solar roof lifting at both ends
New hose clamp issue
New cowl “water leak” issue

I’m sure I missed a few, this was done from memory.

What about software updates, phantom CELs & Fan fires?

Maybe it's just me, but I haven't had any significant problems. (Knock on reclaimed wood.) If I do, I know who to call. And if the car can't be fixed, my insurance covers it.

The way I look at it, I bought a $200K car for half price, so I'm willing to invest more to keep it running. Meanwhile, it's the best car I've ever owned and I'm having a ball driving it.