Hasta La Gadget!

Fisker hasn’t had what you’d call the best year so far, but it may have found the ticket to turning its hybrid vehicle business around. Meet Tony Posawatz, Fisker’s new CEO — and, until just weeks ago, GM’s Vehicle Line Director. Despite being the second new chief executive at Fisker since Tom LaSorda arrived in February, Posawatz needs little explanation for his sudden rise to power. He’s an original member of the Chevy Volt leadership structure and could very well know a thing or two about developing a hybrid car from start to finish. His influence might only be keenly felt when the Atlantic wheels its way towards driveways in 2014, but there’s no doubt he’s onboard to right the good ship Karma and improve Fisker’s reputation in the short term. We wouldn’t want to be in GM’s shoes as it watches one of its EV-friendly veterans so publicly jump ship, however.

Continue reading Fisker lands former GM exec and Chevy Volt guru Tony Posawatz as CEO

Filed under: Transportation

Fisker lands former GM exec and Chevy Volt guru Tony Posawatz as CEO originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 15 Aug 2012 16:23:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Another Monday is in the bag folks, so give yourselves a pat on the back. We’re starting things off tonight by having a look at the latest iPhone rumors. Current whispers are telling us that pre-orders for the next iPhone will become available on September 12 – the same day that Apple is expected to reveal it – and that it’ll become available at AT&T later on in the month. We also caught a glimpse of the reported logic board in the next iPhone, and it seems that this new logic board is leaving room for a larger battery and LTE capabilities.

In other news, one of Apple’s studies claims that people buy Android phones largely out of a feeling of loyalty to their carrier, and it seems that the iPhone maker licensed out patents to Microsoft while Samsung declined to bite. Fisker has made a new statement about the Karma that spontaneously caught fire in California this past weekend, and the Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 was given a release date in the UK. RIM is looking to get rid of NewBay as it seeks fast cash while BlackBerry 10 development continues, and Samsung has announced that a new black Galaxy S III is coming soon.

Sad news for Nintendo fans living in Europe today, as Nintendo pushed the Wii U’s release date back to December. We had a couple pieces of news about Motorola today, some of it good, some of it not so much. The Motorola PHOTON Q 4G LTE is releasing on August 19, but Motorola Mobility announced today that it will be laying off 20% of its workforce. Electronic Arts is eyeing Windows Phone 8, and Amazon is looking to capitalize on the back to school frenzy by putting its tablets on clearance.

Researchers at the University of Warwick have come up with a way of making fat-free chocolate that apparently tastes like the real deal (yes, really), and President Barack Obama shared some words of encouragement with the NASA Curiosity team earlier this morning. He even promised continued support for what NASA is doing, and that is definitely a good thing. Speaking of space, it seems that the Google Earth satellites have discovered something very interesting: additional Egyptian pyramids. The ARM-based IdeaPad Yoga has been revealed as Lenovo’s Windows RT tablet, and it would seem that the LG Optimus Vu is arriving in the United States before the end of September.

The Neo Geo is getting another shot at life with the Neo Geo X Gold, the Steam Community is about to undergo a makeover, and App.net hit its crowd-funding goal with just two days left to go. That does it for the day’s news, but be sure to check out this freshly-posted review of the Lenovo IdeaCentre A720 by Chris Burns. Enjoy the rest of the evening, everyone!

SlashGear Evening Wrap-Up: August 13, 2012 is written by Eric Abent & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Yesterday we reported that a Fisker Karma hybrid vehicle had caught on fire on Friday while parked at a grocery store while the owner ran errands. Sadly, this isn’t the first time that a Fisker Karma burst into flames. Back in May another Karma caught fire while parked in the owner’s garage and caught the home on fire as well.

No one was injured in either blaze and with two Karma vehicles now having spontaneously caught fire; Fisker certainly has a PR nightmare on its hands. Fisker issued an official statement on the latest blaze this morning noting that its engineers are working with independent investigators from Pacific Rim Investigative Group. Fisker and its outside investigators have begun a preliminary investigation into the blaze and have begun testing the Karma the caught fire Friday in Woodside, California.

Fisker reports that so far the area where the fire originated has been determined to be outside the engine compartment. The automaker points out that there was no damage to the passenger compartment and there were no injuries in the blaze. So far, evidence supports the fact that the ignition source was not the lithium-ion battery pack.

Fisker says that the evidence also supports that the source of the fire was not new technology components or the exhaust routing used in the vehicle. Investigators are primarily focusing on a specific area of original located forward of the driver side front tire according to Fisker. The carmaker promises more details will be announced after the full investigation report has been completed.

Official statement from Fisker:

Fisker engineers, working with independent investigators from Pacific Rim Investigative Group, have begun preliminary examination and testing on the Karma involved in a fire in Woodside, California Friday, August 10.

Evidence revealed thus far supports the fact that the ignition source was not the Lithium-ion battery pack, new technology components or unique exhaust routing.

The area of origin for the fire was determined to be outside the engine compartment. There was no damage to the passenger compartment and there were no injuries.

Continued investigative efforts will be primarily focused within the specific area of origin, located forward of the driver’s side front tire.

Further details will be announced after a full report is completed.

Fisker issues official statement after Karma blaze is written by Shane McGlaun & originally posted on SlashGear.
© 2005 – 2012, SlashGear. All right reserved.

Fisker Automotive can’t seem to catch break — because its Karma hybrid EV sedan has yet again become too hot. Similar to an incident last spring that left a model burnt to near smithereens and damaged its owner’s house, the Karma above caught fire in a Woodside, CA parking lot while powered off. Jalopnik was the first to get word of the incident, noting that the damage remained reserved to the front left of the vehicle, near where an exhaust is located. As the story goes, the owner found the vehicle emitting smoke after returning from a grocery run, prompting a call to Fisker and then the local fire department, which arrived as it was already engulfed in flames. In a statement to Wired’s Autopia, Fisker has been vehement to note that the damage appears to be far from where the car’s battery and sensitive electrical components are located, and that it wasn’t plugged in for a charge — furthermore, it’s already had correspondence with the owner and is actively investigating the matter with plans to issue an update when there are findings to share.

All that said, it remains to be seen whether the Karma’s battery system, supplied by A123 Systems (and the focus of previous recalls), had any role in igniting the car. Thankfully there were no reports of injuries from the incident, but as you can tell from the photo, the car was essentially totaled. You’ll find a video of the Karma in flames being quelled by firefighters after the break, along with the official statement by Fisker given to Autopia.

Continue reading Fisker Karma owner returns from grocery run to find hybrid EV on fire

Filed under: Transportation

Fisker Karma owner returns from grocery run to find hybrid EV on fire originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 12 Aug 2012 05:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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