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"Development of the Fisker Karma has evolved from its Detroit auto show introduction in 2008, through levels of crucial funding\u2014including a $528.7 million loan from all of us, courtesy the U.S. Department of Energy\u2014to more than a couple of delayed delivery dates and, finally, to my recent drive of the car at Fontana, California&amp;#039;s Auto Club Speedway. It&amp;#039;s now officially known as the Fisker Karma EVer, as in &amp;quot;Electric Vehicle extended range&amp;quot;\u2014and the key question becomes &amp;quot;Is this the first enthusiast plug-in hybrid?&amp;quot;   Karma EVer Specifics   Only a few details have been offered during the car&amp;#039;s development, so let&amp;#039;s begin with some newly released basics. The Karma EVer is a plug-in hybrid of purely series configuration. Its 20-kWh lithium-Nanophosphate battery pack sourced from A123 can be charged from an ordinary 110-volt home circuit, what&amp;#039;s today called Level 1 charging. The battery pack&amp;#039;s lower limit is 10-15 percent of its maximal capacity. From this point, a Level 1 refill takes 10-12 hours; a 220-volt Level 2, about half this time. Fisker feels that the capability of charging overnight is both a clear necessity and will also be the norm.           Stealth versus Sport   On startup, the Karma operates in what Fisker terms Stealth mode. Fully charged, it&amp;#039;s capable of traveling perhaps 50 miles as a pure EV. Then it automatically transitions to series-hybrid operation, good for perhaps another 250 miles, with activation of the car&amp;#039;s 2.0-liter 260-bhp turbocharged inline-4. This powerplant, a GM Ecotec, has direct injection and, like the 1.4-liter four in the Chevrolet Volt, requires premium fuel. Unlike the Volt&amp;#039;s, this one is utterly dedicated to operating its 175-kW generator. That is, the Karma&amp;#039;s gasoline engine never has any direct-propulsion responsibilities; in hybrid lingo, the setup is purely series, never parallel. In Stealth mode, the engine is calibrated to run at relatively low rpm, its generator&amp;#039;s power output sufficient to maintain progress.   At any time, the driver also has the option of toggling a steering-wheel paddle on the left into Sport mode. This one sets the gasoline engine&amp;#039;s calibrations to allow higher rpm, producing more power. In doing so, it encourages the generator to higher output and brings the battery pack to at least 50-percent state of charge. Even with a depleted battery, Sport mode does more than simply maintain progress. The car&amp;#039;s full capabilities\u20140-60 in a reported 5.9 seconds, top speed of 125 mph\u2014are available. By contrast, in Stealth mode employing only battery power, 0-60 time lengthens to 7.9 sec., top speed is limited to 95 mph.           Hill Mode and Brake Regeneration   There&amp;#039;s also a Hill mode, which could more generally be called Maximal Brake Regeneration mode\u2014but for the fact that all these words wouldn&amp;#039;t fit on its steering-wheel paddle, the one on the right. Hill mode invokes more aggressive brake regeneration on coasting and downhill. Like Sport mode, it also maintains at least a 50-percent battery charge.   Note, don&amp;#039;t confuse this mode with the Chevy Volt&amp;#039;s Hill setting. The Volt&amp;#039;s, in a sense, uses its gasoline engine to prepare the battery for a climb. By contrast, the Karma&amp;#039;s Hill mode maximizes the response of brake regen and is completely independent of engine operation.   There&amp;#039;s another subtlety of Karma brake regeneration, this one invoked when its battery is fully charged from regen on a long downhill, for instance. Rather than wasting the kinetic energy by transitioning purely to friction braking, it&amp;#039;s sent to the engine/generator pair, the latter now operating in motor mode and using the engine as a compression brake. The engine isn&amp;#039;t firing, mind, just acting as an energy-consuming pump, sort of like a big truck&amp;#039;s Jake Brake. Fisker engineers note this is one way of enhancing the efficiency of rear-drive brake regeneration, inherently a challenge because weight transfer puts more responsibility on the front brakes.           A Long, Low Fisker Chassis    Another aspect of this is implicit in the Fisker&amp;#039;s layout. This 196.7-in. car rides on a particularly lengthy wheelbase of 124.4 in. (By contrast, a Porsche Panamera&amp;#039;s corresponding dimensions are 195.7 in. and 115.0 in.) Also evident in photos is the Karma&amp;#039;s extreme tall 22-in. wheel and tire package; its tires, 255/35WR-22 front and 285/35WR-22 rear. Factoid: The Karma is likely the only known production car with larger tires than those of its concept.   As with any plug-in hybrid, among its heaviest elements is the Karma&amp;#039;s battery pack located centrally along the car&amp;#039;s spine. And, Fisker engineers stress, this pack is positioned particularly low, thus lowering the car&amp;#039;s center of gravity. The Karma&amp;#039;s long wheelbase, tall wheels and low cg all combine to reduce weight transfer on braking, thus enhancing the efficacy of rear-wheel brake regen. Clever, eh?   Karma propulsion comes from a pair of 150-kW permanent-magnet motors aligned in tandem, the rear axle between them. Why a pair? Because electric motors have their dimensional optimization akin to an internal combustion engine&amp;#039;s bore and stroke. With EVs, the critical ratio is diameter to length. Given the 300-kW target and packaging constraints at the rear of the car, a pair of motors is ideal.           What&amp;#039;s the Karma Like to Drive?    Prominent features of the view forward are its artful fender contours and hood details, evocative of earlier sports cars, not bland modern aero shapes. The two &amp;quot;production validation&amp;quot; cars I drove at the Auto Club Speedway were extremely well finished. Their cabins were rich in artfully stitched leather and Alcantara, with just a bit of brightwork and wood trim for style. Alas, for the likes of me\u2014bigger than the average bear, you may recall, and with less than an agile back\u2014it&amp;#039;s fairly tight surroundings: acceptable once in place, but something of a circus act getting there. And, in truth, I didn&amp;#039;t attempt the rear seat, though perfectly normal Fisker adults sat back there just fine from time to time.   The Karma&amp;#039;s digital instrumentation and 10.2-in. touch-screen are exemplary in clarity and function. It would take yet another missive of this length to describe their details. Suffice it to say, I&amp;#039;d place these among the best in class. And I haven&amp;#039;t even mentioned the Karma&amp;#039;s standard-equipment solar-panel roof capable of generating its own 120 W.           The Karma&amp;#039;s Enthusiast Appeal   Several spirited laps around the Auto Club Speedway&amp;#039;s inner twisties gave at least a preliminary indication of the Karma&amp;#039;s enthusiast appeal. The full story evidently awaits experience in the real world in the longer term. Most evident is the car&amp;#039;s litheness. It&amp;#039;s extremely well balanced and, to me, more nimble than either a BMW 7 Series or Porsche Panamera\u2014meant as high praise indeed.   I quibble a tad that its steering may lack the precise communication of a BMW&amp;#039;s. Or that its brake pedal exhibits a flatness at full actuation compared to that of a Porsche. But don&amp;#039;t misunderstand, the Karma is genuinely lithe, taut, tossable and fun. It&amp;#039;s also plenty quick, whether in Stealth or Sport mode.           A Carved-of-a-Single-Block Scale   This litheness, though, came with a tradeoff, one possibly attributable to the cars&amp;#039; production-validation status. Let me define a &amp;quot;carved-of-a-single-block&amp;quot; scale, with BMW and Porsche solidly at one end and Lotus residing artfully at the other. I would expect the Karma\u2014a luxury car costing in the vicinity of $100K\u2014to position itself considerably closer to the BMW/Porsche end. However, errant rattles here and there kept the ones I drove from any uniblock sensation.   Is this design or execution? It&amp;#039;s too early to tell. However, the Karma&amp;#039;s fabricator\u2014Finnish company Valmet Automotive\u2014clearly knew how to assemble a Porsche Boxster just fine, thank you.           An Ecotech in Need of Refinement?   I sensed some shortcomings in behavior of the Karma&amp;#039;s gasoline powerplant. I liked the load-following response of both it and its electric power sibling, with nary a sense of &amp;quot;motorboating.&amp;quot; However, there were instances of a gravelly roughness\u2014part sound, part feel\u2014particularly just beyond the range extender&amp;#039;s point of getting involved. To me, less than optimal are its current mounting hardware and exhaust tuning\u2014the exhaust, by the way, nestling completely forward with dual side exits along the front flanks. The GM Ecotec may simply be out of place at this lofty $100K level. Yet even the Toyota Prius&amp;#039;s gasoline engine exhibits essentially seamless transitions.   A Long Way\u2014In a Relatively Short Time   Fisker has clearly accomplished a great deal in a relatively short time. To bring a concept car to production in three years is no trivial matter. The car has a great many exemplary features already and, like any car, still room for refinement. From my point of view, it&amp;#039;s a personal loan well deserved with every indication of excellent return to come. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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