Even for the fortunate 1 percent in today’s economy, sometimes the Karma is good; sometimes it’s just not right.
Irvine, California-based Fisker Automotive has recalled 239 of its pricey 2012 Karma range-extended plug-in hybrid sports cars because of a battery defect. Misplaced hose clamps in the batteries could enable coolant to leak — which is a fire hazard.
Waltham, Massachusetts-based A123 Systems, which supplies Fisker with the nanophosphate lithium ion battery used in the Karma, disclosed the defect on December 23. The Fisker Karma is designed to run on power from its lithium-ion battery pack for up to 50 miles, after which a 260-horsepower, 2.0-liter engine switches on to generate electricity.
Fisker has contacted buyers of all the cars purchased so far, Roger Ormisher, a company spokesman, said in a telephone interview with Bloomberg (News - Alert).
“We identified very quickly what the problem was, and there have been no incidents whatsoever,” he said. “It’s really important that we actually fixed everything before it became an issue.”
The car, which carries an MSRP of more than $100,000, was first delivered to U.S. dealerships in July, attracting A-list buyers, including Leonardo DiCaprio, former U.S. Vice President Al Gore and Former Secretary of State Colin Powell. To date, 225 Karmas have come off the production line, and Fisker has 1,200 “in the pipeline.”
According to the National Legal and Policy Center, a 501(c)(3) foundation that “promotes ethics in public life,” A123 represents another recipient of questionable American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 largesse . The company was given $249.1 million to help launch two battery-manufacturing plants in Michigan. A123 also received grants and tax credits from the state of Massachusetts that could total more than $135 million. In a separate federal grant as a subcontractor for another grantee, A123 received nearly $30 million for a wind energy storage project
The U.S. NHTSA also is investigating General Motors (News - Alert) Co.’s electric Chevrolet Volt, which, in several instances, went up in fire days or even weeks after it was crash-tested by the agency, in collisions severe enough to damage its battery pack. NHTSA says it is not aware of any such fires occurring in real-world crashes and that the battery is not an A123 product.
Cheryl Kaften is an accomplished communicator who has written for consumer and corporate audiences. She has worked extensively for MasterCard (News - Alert) Worldwide, Philip Morris USA (Altria), and KPMG, and has consulted for Estee Lauder and the Philadelphia Inquirer Newspapers. To read more of her articles, please visit her columnist page.Edited by
Jennifer Russell
