239 Fisker Karmas Recalled over Battery Safety Issue
As we had already told you, the Fisker Karma battery issue has evoked an informal protest among the car owners over the past few weeks. The issue was related with the uncoordinated cooling problem the batteries in some Karma models were having that can lead to a short circuit. The situation has led to the recall of a slew of models.
The Fisker Karma is a plug-in hybrid luxury sports sedan produced by Fisker Automotive and manufactured at Valmet Automotive inFinland. After missing its initial late 2009 launch, and re-scheduled several times, the first deliveries took place in theUSin late July 2011. Deliveries to retail customers began in November 2011.
The December 2011 pricing in theUSwas $102,000 for the basic model, and $116,000 for the top model.Batterymaker A123 Systems said some of the batteries they made for the Fisker Karma may cause the extended-range plug-in to short circuit because improper alignment of the batteries’ hose clamps may cause coolant leaks in certain rare circumstances.
Last week, an official press release from the companies indicated the problem was affecting only about 50 cars. But the recall of more than four times the stated number of cars arouses curiosity among everyone.
The recalled vehicles were built between July 1 and November 3 of this year and Fisker will replace the components at no cost from the beginning of January to the vehicle owners.
The mistake will be holding back the sales a little bit as the consumers will be thinking it over and over again before buying the car from now on.
