2023 Fisker Ocean on 2040-cars

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Recharge Wrap-up: BMW tests AdBlue pumps, Drivr is a Tesla taxi service

BMW is testing AdBlue pumps in Germany. AdBlue fluid is used to remove NOx from diesel exhaust, and it is stored in its own tank within the vehicle. Filling AdBlue is easy enough for drivers to do it themselves, and with the proliferation of diesel vehicles in Europe, a pump filling system could make more sense than using the current hand-held containers. BMW is testing AdBlue pumps at three fueling stations in Munich and Berlin to help develop further AdBlue dispenser technology. Read more at Green Car Congress. Drivr Green Personal Transportation is a Tesla taxi service in Cincinnati. Two former employees of Tesla Motors founded the startup, which bills itself alongside ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft. Customers book a ride online, and are picked up by a Tesla Model S. The ride costs $2.50 per mile with a $15 minimum. Drivr currently operates three cars with seven drivers, with plans to lease another 10 Teslas and employ up to 30 drivers. The service will also be expanding to Denver soon, according to the website. Learn more at the Drivr website, or read more at Clean Technica. Ford is opening a research and development facility in Silicon Valley. The Ford Research & Innovation Center, which will be located less than three miles from Tesla Motors headquarters in Palo Alto, California, is expected to be one of the automotive industry's largest R&D facilities. "We're driving to be both a product and a mobility company, and ultimately to change the way the world moves," says Ford CEO Mark Fields. Read more at Automotive News. Law firms advising Fisker Automotive have been denied a $2.50-million fee enhancement in the car company's bankruptcy. Brown Rudnick LLP and Saul Ewing LLP were denied the extra fees, as a Delaware bankruptcy judge ruled there is "no evidence" that the firms provided anything more than what they originally expected. In denying the fee enhancement, the judge cited a "very high bar" for such awards. Read more at Law360. Featured Gallery BMW Tests AdBlue Pumps in Germany Related Gallery Tesla Factory News Source: Green Car Congress, BMW, Clean Technica, Drivr, Automotive News Green BMW Fisker Ford Tesla Transportation Alternatives Diesel Vehicles Electric recharge wrapup

Fisker is laying off 15% of staff and says it needs more cash ahead of a 'difficult year'

Electric vehicle startup Fisker is planning to lay off 15% of its workforce and says it likely does not have enough cash on hand to survive the next 12 months. The company says it is trying to find a way to raise that money as it works through a pivot from direct sales to a dealership model. "[W]e have put a plan in place to streamline the company as we prepare for another difficult year," founder and CEO Henrik Fisker said in a statement. Fisker reported more than 1,300 employees as of the end of September 2023, meaning the cut could affect close to 200 people. The company's share price plunged 35% in after-hours trading. Fisker said Thursday that it finished 2023 with $396 million in cash, though $70 million of that is restricted. The company says it is talking with one of its lenders about making "an additional investment" in the company. It also claims it is "in negotiations with a large automaker for a potential transaction which could include an investment in Fisker, joint development of one or more electric vehicle platforms, and North America manufacturing." A partnership like that will be crucial, as Fisker executives said on a call Thursday that it won't invest any more money in its future products unless it works with another automaker. That means the fates of a pickup truck, compact EV and other models that Fisker has teased are now in question. The company's financial struggles come as it is trying to move to a wholesale model built around partnerships with dealers, a shift that Fisker says has "negatively impacted" its sales so far. It's currently sitting on inventory of thousands of vehicles that are collectively worth more than $500 million. Fisker says it has received interest from around 250 dealerships but has only signed up 13 to date. Fisker has also been dealing with a number of problems with its Ocean SUV, its only model so far, as TechCrunch reported earlier this month. The company has said it resolved some issues with a software update in December and planned to fix many more in a larger 2.0 update earlier this month, but that only started making its way to customer vehicles this week. It is currently being investigated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for reports of sudden brake failure, as well as for a handful of vehicle rollaway incidents. A number of big automakers are pulling back on their aggressive EV targets, and newer players are having trouble as well.

Fisker abandons solid-state EV batteries

Henrik Fisker's eponymous electric car startup has abandoned plans to develop solid-state battery technology, citing its lack of near-term viability (among other complications) in an interview with The Verge.  Fisker said the company felt it was "90 percent there" on solid state tech, but that the final 10% proved too challenging given the constraints of current technology. He feels the move to solid state battery composition will require a significant breakthrough followed by years of development.  "I think personally, they’re at least seven years out, if not more, in terms of any sort of high-volume format," he said. "... once you have a breakthrough in that technology, you need probably three years to set up high-volume manufacturing, and then you need another three years to do durability testing. So even if somebody invented it today, it would be at least probably six years out." "[W]e have completely dropped solid-state batteries at this point in time because we just donÂ’t see it materializing," Fisker said. "Would we do something in the future? If we do, it would be something completely new, and we obviously have a battery team thatÂ’s looking at the current technology thatÂ’s here. But the solid-state battery that we worked on, that just doesn't have a future at this point in time in the near future." As to whether Fisker's abandonment of solid-state tech had anything to do with the company settling a lawsuit brought by QuantumScape, Fisker cited the settlement's non-disclosure clause and nothing more. Fisker has shied away from promoting solid state battery development since the introduction of its production-intent Ocean electric SUV, which is going to be produced in partnership with automotive supplier Magna.  Meanwhile, others in the industry remain committed to solid-state battery tech, at least for the time being. Toyota said just months ago that it intends to introduce a solid-state prototype some time in 2021, with production viability coming as soon as 2025. That would be sooner than Fisker predicted, but not outrageously so, and if anybody has the resources to rapidly develop next-generation automotive powertrains, it's Toyota.  Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Fisker Emotion | CES 2018