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Fisker Granted $528 Million Loan By Feds To Develop “Low-Cost” Plug-In Hybrid
Fisker Gives Karma 67.2 MPG Estimated Fuel Economy Rating, Beats All Current Hybrids
Fisker Karma To Make Powered Debut At Monterey Historics
Tesla Model S To Start At $57,400, Undercut Fisker
World's First Fisker Dealership To Open In Portland, Oregon
Fisker Karma S Sunset: World's First Hybrid Convertible
Fisker Sunset Concept Heading To Detroit
Tesla Motors Loses Arbitration Hearing To Fisker Over Stolen Model S Designs
Fisker Lines Up $65 Million Investment For Developing Plug-In Sports Car, Legal Fees
Five Reasons High Gas Prices Are Good For Real Drivers

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MaWeiTao
09/23/09

In reply to Fisker Granted $528 Million Loan By Feds To Develop “Low-Cost” Plug-In Hybrid
I thought Fisker was a Finnish company. Why aren't they providing the loan?

But then I see Fisker is based in California, no doubt to benefit from US government handouts.

What sucks is that this thing wont even be manufactured in the US; it's going to be build in Finland. So much for creating American jobs.
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HoonThatFerrari
09/22/09

In reply to Fisker Granted $528 Million Loan By Feds To Develop “Low-Cost” Plug-In Hybrid
I like the lines of the Panamerikarma... wonder how their electro-box will look? I'm not a big fan of their proposed price tag, though - nor that of the VaporVolt... maybe someday these car companies will figure out that you can already get an electric forklift that has more Mean power demands than any electric car needs - plus enough torque to lift several thousand pounds - for less than what they're proposing to build their electric cars for, and decide that they can do it for less.
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Edited by HoonThatFerrari at 09/22/09 10:14 PM HoonThatFerrari was starred HoonThatFerrari was unstarred

skierpage
09/23/09

@HoonThatFerrari: That's an instructive, but poor, comparison. Electric forklifts have low speeds with occasional bursts of power, and it's a benefit if their battery packs weighs more than a ton. (Crown 4500: max speed 10 mph, battery weighs up to 4000 pounds!).

Hydrogen fuel cells from Ballard and Hydrogenics are already a reality for fork lifts, they claim benefits in eliminating the space, time, and hassle of recharging and swapping out hefty battery packs in a 24-hour operation.
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HoonThatFerrari
09/23/09

@skierpage: It's certainly not an apples-to-apples comparison, nor was it intended to be... it was just there to illustrate that a level of price efficiency for a certain sector of electric powered vehicles - that are far from toys, by the way - has already been attained, so it seems senseless that they can't get there with regard to pricing for electric cars.

Different purposes, different engineering, yes - but ferpetessakes, the car industry has been working on this for many, many years now & seem to not have made much progress on it.
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NiceNurseRatched
09/22/09

In reply to Fisker Granted $528 Million Loan By Feds To Develop “Low-Cost” Plug-In Hybrid
A half-billion dollars - ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME???

I pay six figures a year in taxes for this bullshit!!! The assholes in Washington are taking the fun out of being rich! What in the name of Dagny Taggert should I do next? I'm getting ready to shrug...
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Cognitive Friction promoted this comment NiceNurseRatched was starred NiceNurseRatched was unstarred

Cognitive Friction
09/23/09

@NiceNurseRatched: is it time for Project X yet?
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jodark
09/22/09

In reply to Fisker Granted $528 Million Loan By Feds To Develop “Low-Cost” Plug-In Hybrid
Might as well call this company Associated Steel run by Orren Boyle.

What a fucking waste.
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Captain Liverspots
09/22/09

In reply to Fisker Granted $528 Million Loan By Feds To Develop “Low-Cost” Plug-In Hybrid
If you people think $39,900 is expensive, wait 'til you see the price tags on projects PINTA and SANTA MARIA.
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TimTim promoted this comment Captain Liverspots was starred

MrHowser: Now on XBL as NoReturnPolicy
09/22/09

@Captain Liverspots: You just earned yourself a Christopher Columbus-approved heart-click.

Also, you win the internet, or something.
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bzr promoted this comment

Timtoolman, sporadically speaking
09/22/09

In reply to Fisker Granted $528 Million Loan By Feds To Develop “Low-Cost” Plug-In Hybrid
Friggin' money pit. How about giving it to GE or someone with a history of success?
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HoonThatFerrari promoted this comment

HoonThatFerrari
09/22/09

@Timtoolman, still looking for work.: Because GE's success is just that... history.
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VeeArrrSix
09/22/09

In reply to Fisker Granted $528 Million Loan By Feds To Develop “Low-Cost” Plug-In Hybrid
Where the fuck does all this govt. money come from? Where will the electricity come from? Who the fuck will pay 40k for a golf cart?

/facepalm
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gabeedwards01
09/22/09

@VeeArrrSix: Where the fuck is $39,900 considered "low-cost"? The UAE?
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Alexander Card
09/22/09

@gabeedwards01: what your going to see is the projected cost vs gasoline powered sedans of similar size or cost per mile estimates. they are going to aim for base luxury like the tsx and is 250 and 350 and even c class models.

what you guys don't understand is how loans work the government knows it's getting all that money plus whatever interest back guaranteed unless that money is transferred into gold and given to other countries it can print more to stockpile and theoretically destroy that amount upon receipt.
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VeeArrrSix
09/22/09

@Alexander Card: What you don't understand is grammar, punctuation, and generally making any sense at all.

The US has a huge deficit... we don't have 500 mil!

How does the current grid system, which is 50% efficient and grossly overloaded, going to handle 100,000 cars plugged into it?

We left the "gold standard" a long time ago. Fort Knox does not have like 300 billion dollars in it.
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skierpage promoted this comment VeeArrrSix was starred VeeArrrSix was unstarred

skierpage
09/23/09

@VeeArrrSix: You're probably not really asking questions, just being rhetorical to little end, but:

The money came from the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Loan Program passed by Congress in 2008. Read the link, it's informative.

The electricity grid has plenty of spare capacity at night when most recharging will take place. Electric utilities would love to have the "problem" of this increased demand. And as electric cars are so much more efficient than burning gasoline, fossil fuel use goes down overall even if some of the electricity comes from coal.

Some people value polluting less, not funding terrorism, avoiding trips to the gas station, cool new tech, etc. The Karma is far from a golf cart with two 201 BHP electric motors and a turbocharged Ecotec 2.0L from GM. Project NINA is pretty undefined, but Fisker plans to make it in the USA starting around $40,000 after tax credits (thus a bit more than a Volt).
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skierpage
09/23/09

@VeeArrrSix: current grid system, which is 50% efficient
That's not true. Electric transmission & Distribution losses vary enormously depending on where you live, but they averaged only 7% back in 1995. Maybe you're including electricity generation itself, but turbine efficiency is substantially better than an ICE at 30%.

The DoE found in 2007 that the electricity grid could support 73% of the light-domestic vehicle fleet if recharged at off-peak times (IMPACTS ASSESSMENT OF PLUG-IN HYBRID VEHICLES ON ELECTRIC U...).
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Edited by skierpage at 09/23/09 12:52 AM skierpage was starred skierpage was unstarred

PowerTryp, Starless wonder.
09/22/09

In reply to Fisker Granted $528 Million Loan By Feds To Develop “Low-Cost” Plug-In Hybrid
$39,900? Low cost? Maybe for his usual clients.
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bzr promoted this comment

koolykool44
09/22/09

In reply to Fisker Granted $528 Million Loan By Feds To Develop “Low-Cost” Plug-In Hybrid
Hopefully this wont be like GT5 where it looks stunning....but never comes out
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akirachan
09/22/09

In reply to Fisker Granted $528 Million Loan By Feds To Develop “Low-Cost” Plug-In Hybrid
This is a loan, not a give-away, correct? So in what way is Fisker supposed to pay the loan back? If it's like the record industry, you will never recoup the money back from your investment 99% of the time!
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Scandinavian Flick promoted this comment akirachan was starred akirachan was unstarred

Scandinavian Flick
09/22/09

@akirachan: Blowjobs and reach-arounds.
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HoonThatFerrari
09/22/09

@Scandinavian Flick: Oh, so you've been in the record industry, too, huh?
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Big McLargehuge
09/22/09

In reply to Fisker Granted $528 Million Loan By Feds To Develop “Low-Cost” Plug-In Hybrid
I like how they consider 39,900 to be 'low cost'. Further evidence that the government may as well be on another planet. Totally disconnected from the American people.

There's a reason car loans keep getting longer and longer terms I guess. New cars would never sell otherwise.
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Maxichamp
09/22/09

In reply to Fisker Granted $528 Million Loan By Feds To Develop “Low-Cost” Plug-In Hybrid
I'm a tax-and-spend liberal AND a greenie and even I find this disgusting.
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superbadd75, now I remember why I left...
09/22/09

In reply to Fisker Granted $528 Million Loan By Feds To Develop “Low-Cost” Plug-In Hybrid
I love to see my tax money being pissed into a hole, never to be seen again. I swear to anyone that listens, I will not vote for one damn incumbent for the next couple of elections because of this shit.
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lilwillie hides autos in the attic promoted this comment

lilwillie
09/22/09

@superbadd75, with electrolytes!:

If you are in Wisconsin, I am running for Governor. My motto will be.

"I am hitting the Reset Button"

screw it, fire em' all and start over.
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superbadd75, now I remember why I left...
09/22/09

@lilwillie hides autos in the attic: If I lived in the land of cheese, I would absolutely vote for you. We need more car guys in politics.
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HoonThatFerrari
09/22/09

@superbadd75, with electrolytes!: Hell, let him run for governor of all those states... then when he wins, we'll name him: "Duke of Caliyorksconsin". Then we'll elect us an: "Earl of Westvirgeorgialina", and so on.
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Cognitive Friction
09/23/09

@lilwillie hides autos in the attic: You've got my vote! I'll head up the Ozaukee county campaign office.

You'll have to get a pretty big eraser to remove our current state motto from Doyle's office: "If you build it, I will find a way to tax it"
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lilwillie
09/22/09

In reply to Fisker Granted $528 Million Loan By Feds To Develop “Low-Cost” Plug-In Hybrid
$528 Mil? DAAAAAAMMMMMN. Did I ever tell you guys that I planned on making a Edsel hybrid for mass production? Where do I sign up for the tax payer money for my vaporware?
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Goes Like Stink
09/22/09

@lilwillie hides autos in the attic: Yeah, I was going to resurect the Stanley Steamer, where is my money? I only need a few million for a feasability study.
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Flathead Smith Prefers the Days of Danger promoted this comment Edited by Goes Like Stink at 09/22/09 6:13 PM Goes Like Stink was starred Goes Like Stink was unstarred

Flathead Smith
09/22/09

@Goes Like Stink: I was going to try and find Nicholas Cugnot designs for his first car, and see if I could get money to build those. It had a revolutionary ratchet drive.
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Flathead Smith
09/22/09

I was going to go with a design by Father Ferdinand Verbiest, but it didn't seem practical enough, but who can tell what the government bureaucrats will like.
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jedchev
09/10/09

In reply to Fisker Gives Karma 67.2 MPG Estimated Fuel Economy Rating, Beats All Current Hybrids
This car has what it takes. All of the other hybrids are uglier, more expensive and slower than their rivals. People buy them to pay their penance for the sins of big, bad society. Like a hairshirt or a cilice, a Prius fulfills the mortification role in the environmentalist religion.

With the Fisker, you have a car that's competitively priced compared to a Panamera or a Quattroporte, looks better than both and doesn't shirk in the horsepower department. Hooray for making a hybrid that isn't an automotive Purgatory.
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skierpage promoted this comment jedchev was starred jedchev was unstarred

skierpage
09/10/09

@jedchev: Ooh, you're such a drama queen. One would expect the most economical and least-polluting new car on the road (besides a Tesla Roadster) to be a tiny two-seater like the Smart fortwo or a rolling plastic experiment, and then indeed committed environmentalists would be the main customers. Instead, it's a mid-size reasonably-priced 5-passenger high-tech practical hatchback appliance that's one of the most reliable cars in surveys. "Purgatory" is a strange adjective for it.

In 2010 people will finally be able to spend more to get a more economical car. Choice is good.
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