Rising from the Ashes

In “Fisker Falling, Detroit Rising” – published in July of 2012 – I wrote about Fisker Automotive and the then undecided fate of the company. On October 29 Hurricane Sandy helped seal that fate with 6 to 8 feet of seawater. Fisker’s entire European shipment of 338 Karmas were destroyed at Port Newark, New Jersey. […]

T • is for Torque

I have sinned, and it’s Elon Musk’s fault. I covet the Tesla Model S P85D. Don’t get me wrong. I love the Chevy Volt. I think the Zelectric Bug is the best thing on earth. But Tesla has hooked me with this two-motor model that makes me want to go out and race a Ferrari. […]

The More Things Change

When I was a kid, building an electric vehicle that would go farther than a few miles seemed like such a simple thing: just put a generator on board. When the batteries needed charging, fire up the generator et voilà: just keep on driving. It was a simple-minded solution at the time. Weight, energy density, […]

Bolt vs Volt

The Chevy Volt is inherently practical at this point in our journey. It’s a rare consumer who can survive with only a short range, all-electric vehicle. Not being able to make it from Portland to Salem (Oregon) or Burbank to Victorville (California) limits ownership to families with a second vehicle, urbanites with eclectic tastes and […]

Fisker Failing, Detroit Rising

Henry Ford didn’t revolutionize the automotive industry by launching one of the most expensive cars on the market. But in 1908, the technology was simple and the marketplace in its infancy. Nonetheless, the “car for the great multitude” was priced for success and more than 15,000,000 were sold. Fisker faced a much different world when […]