The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has opened a 3rd investigation into EV startup Fisker’s Ocean SUV, this time centered on issues getting the doors to open.
NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) says in a brand new discover that it has acquired 14 complaints from homeowners who haven’t been in a position to open the doors to their Fisker Oceans, both from the within or the skin. The company says the complaints level to a an “intermittent failure” of the door latch and deal with system. The complaints additionally increase the chance that the emergency override mechanism additionally doesn’t work.
The Ocean SUV is already being investigated by ODI over issues with its braking system, and for complaints in regards to the automobile rolling away on uneven surfaces. The firm has not issued any recollects for the Ocean. The firm didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
The third probe is being opened as Fisker is on the brink. It paused manufacturing of the Ocean in March and reported simply $121 million within the financial institution. Fisker continues to be sitting on hundreds of Ocean SUVs in stock that it’s struggling to promote, both straight or by its nascent dealership mannequin, and just lately slashed costs by as much as 39% in a determined try and generate gross sales. It was just lately faraway from the New York Stock Exchange. A possible partnership with Nissan fell by, endangering an try at securing $150 million in rescue funding.
Customers have reported getting caught in or out of their automotive to Fisker for months, in keeping with inner paperwork that Ztoog completely reported on in February. Some of these incidents have been associated to the Ocean’s troublesome key fob. But the brand new security probe suggests a deeper drawback with the SUV’s doors. The investigation is designated as a “preliminary evaluation,” which ODI sometimes resolves inside eight months.