Is Fisker on the way out? Not yet, if I had to make a guess, I would say they have enough vehicles in the pipeline and enough private investors to last a while. But cracks are showing.
Should the Department of Energy fund Fisker? No, not unless Fisker can keep its side of the existing agreement. The government should not re-negotiate with Fisker unless significant private backing is shown.
The Karma is a beautiful vehicle and appears to be an excellent piece of engineering. It is also a toy for the wealthy, and a distraction. Fisker isn't doing basic battery research, unlike the established OEMs, who have in-house science labs working on problems such as battery chemistry, thermal management, and safety.
As lovely as the Karma is, it was a potential waste of taxpayer money to fund it.
Department of Energy funds should be going to companies doing basic R&D on batteries, and to established OEMs who already know how to build a good car, and can target more affordable implementations. Ford and GM, for examle, can take $500,000,000 pretty far because of their existing R&D infrastructure.
