The Fisker Ocean is Under Investigation for Doors that Won't Open

by Chris Teague

Published: April 3rd, 2024

the fisker ocean is under investigation for doors that won t open

Oh, to be a fly on the wall at Fisker’s headquarters right about now. The struggling electric automaker is facing bankruptcy, accounting issues, and shaky reviews, but its troubles are far from over. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration recently said it opened a preliminary investigation into the company’s Ocean SUV after receiving reports that the latch handles prevented opening the EV’s doors.

The NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation has received 14 complaints from owners who say that they were unable to open the doors. Some said the doors wouldn’t open from either direction, which is obviously less than ideal if there’s an emergency. There were also reports that the Ocean’s emergency override mechanism failed to remedy the issue.

This is bad news for Fisker, but it’s just another log on the fire at this point. The company’s stock has been delisted, and its talks with Nissan regarding a potentially life-saving investment have fallen through. In regulatory filings, it noted significant doubts that it would stay afloat without new investments, though it’s currently unclear where that could come from.

Fisker has also struggled to sell its existing Ocean inventory, as spotty reviews have left a bad taste in potential buyers’ mouths. It recently slashed prices on entry-level Ocean variants, dropping the cost of entry to the mid-$20,000 range. The move tanked the values of the SUVs already in owners’ driveways and likely won’t do much to bolster sales, as buyers recognize the risks of purchasing a vehicle from a company that could go under at almost any moment.

[Image: Fisker]

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#FiskerOcean #NHTSA #Recalls

Chris Teague

Chris grew up in, under, and around cars, but took the long way around to becoming an automotive writer. After a career in technology consulting and a trip through business school, Chris began writing about the automotive industry as a way to reconnect with his passion and get behind the wheel of a new car every week. He focuses on taking complex industry stories and making them digestible by any reader. Just don’t expect him to stay away from high-mileage Porsches.

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2 of 20 comments

Flameded on Apr 09, 2024

Well, that's Slightly Better than an Investigation of a Fisker being Under the Ocean with doors that won't open..

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28-Cars-Later on May 06, 2024

Probably should investigate the buyers too, maybe a basic psych eval?

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Theflyersfan With sedans, especially, I wonder how many of those sales are to rental fleets. With the exception of the Civic and Accord, there are still rows of sedans mixed in with the RAV4s at every airport rental lot. I doubt the breakdown in sales is publicly published, so who knows... GM isn't out of the sedan business - Cadillac exists and I can't believe I'm typing this but they are actually decent - and I think they are making a huge mistake, especially if there's an extended oil price hike (cough...Iran...cough) and people want smaller and hybrids. But if one is only tied to the quarterly shareholder reports and not trends and the big picture, bad decisions like this get made.
Wjtinfwb Not proud of what Stellantis is rolling out?
Wjtinfwb Absolutely. But not incredibly high-tech, AWD, mega performance sedans with amazing styling and outrageous price tags. GM needs a new Impala and LeSabre. 6 passenger, comfortable, conservative, dead nuts reliable and inexpensive enough for a family guy making 70k a year or less to be able to afford. Ford should bring back the Fusion, modernized, maybe a bit bigger and give us that Hybrid option again. An updated Taurus, harkening back to the Gen 1 and updated version that easily hold 6, offer a huge trunk, elevated handling and ride and modest power that offers great fuel economy. Like the GM have a version that a working mom can afford. The last decade car makers have focused on building cars that American's want, but eliminated what they need. When a Ford Escape of Chevy Blazer can be optioned up to 50k, you've lost the plot.
Willie If both nations were actually free market economies I would be totally opposed. The US is closer to being one, but China does a lot to prop up the sectors they want to dominate allowing them to sell WAY below cost, functionally dumping their goods in our market to destroy competition. I have seen this in my area recently with shrimp farmed by Chinese comglomerates being sold super cheap to push local producers (who have to live at US prices and obey US laws) out of business.China also has VERY lax safety and environmental laws which reduce costs greatly. It isn't an equal playing field, they don't play fair.
Willie ~300,000 Camrys and ~200,000 Accords say there is still a market. My wife has a Camry and we have no desire for a payment on something that has worse fuel economy.