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U.S. opens another probe into Fisker's cars, over brake issue

  The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on Friday opened a preliminary probe into 6,813 Fisker Ocean SUVs built in 2023, after complaints that the automatic emergency braking system used in the electric vehicles had activated inadvertently. The regulator said its Office of Defects Investigation has received eight complaints alleging activation of the braking system without an apparent roadway obstruction in the vehicle's forward path, resulting in sudden vehicle deceleration. Three of the complaints alleged an injury, the safety agency said. NHTSA's preliminary evaluation will look into the scope and severity of the potential problem to assess its impact on safety. The regulator could close the investigation into Fisker without taking any potential action. The probe adds to Fisker's woes as its Ocean SUVs were already under investigation by the NHTSA for three prior incidents. Last month, the safety regulator received complaints that the doors of the company's EVs sometimes failed to open. Fisker had flagged "going concern" doubts in February, followed by delisting of its stock from the New York Stock exchange and the collapse of talks with a large automaker for a potential deal in March. The startup had said in April it failed to make an interest payment of about $8.4 million on some notes due in 2026 during a 30-day grace period. The cash-strapped firm initiated insolvency proceedings for its Austrian unit on Tuesday, as it looks for strategic options to raise money to meet its debt obligations. 

Why the $142M Fisker sale won't help DOE loan get its $168M back

At the beginning of 2014, it looked like Hybrid Tech Holdings LLC was going to buy the remains of Fisker Automotive for $25 million. Just before that sale was to take place, however, Wanxiang stepped in and an auction was therefore scheduled for the middle of February. After 19 rounds of apparently frantic bidding, Wanxiang drove away the winner with a $149.2-million bid. Despite the massive dollar run-up, the Department of Energy will not be recouping any extra money from its failed loan to Fisker in the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Loan Program. Way back in 2010, the DOE made Fisker a loan commitment of $528 million but only ever gave the automaker $192 million before problems were identified and the ATVMP spigot was turned off. The DOE later said it "recouped more than $28 million from the company's accounts," which left $168 million unaccounted for. The DOE thus announced it would hold an auction for the remainder of Fisker's loan obligation, which was decidedly not all of the Fisker remains. That loan sale auction took place in December and was won by Hybrid Tech Holdings for $25 million, which means that the final cost to the DOE was $143 million. The important thing to realize is that the $25 million in cash that made up Hybrid's original bid for the rest of the Fisker assets in the February auction in a Delaware bankruptcy court were the apples to the oranges of the $25 million used to buy the loan obligation in December. Since the DOE did not control - and never wanted to control - the Fisker assets, the DOE didn't get to recoup any more of the $143 million that Fisker owed on the loan despite the higher-than-expected ending price. Clear as mud, right?

Fisker Alaska electric pickup specs, price and production plans revealed

One of the more exciting vehicles that Fisker revealed earlier this month was the Alaska electric pickup. The specs look promising, and the truck has an attractive enough design, and now Fisker has even more details to share. Its size was a bit of a question before, but now we know that it measures 208.8 inches in length. That makes it a few inches shorter than most of the midsize pickups currently on the market, but a good bit larger than compact trucks like the Ford Maverick and Hyundai Santa Cruz. Basically, think of it as a small midsize pickup. Fisker also revealed that there will be two battery packs available. A 75 kWh pack will offer about 230 miles of range. The larger 113 kWh pack promises up to 340 miles on a full charge. Performance will vary depending on how you spec it, too. The slowest version of the Alaska will do the 0-60 mph run in 7.2 seconds, and the quickest will do the same in 3.9. A starting price of $45,400 is the current, expected MSRP, though Fisker makes it clear that this and all the other specs it laid out today are “targeted specifications.” Basically, donÂ’t be surprised to see all these numbers change a bit once Fisker gets closer to a launch date. Fisker says the Alaska will be manufactured in the U.S. (presumably with the goal of qualifying for the federal EV tax credit). As for when the Alaska hits the market, said production is claimed to begin in the first quarter of 2025. Those interested can reserve one for $250, and if you really love this truck so much already, you can reserve a second one for only an additional $100.  Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Tesla Model S Plaid 2022 review and reaction