Conflict of interest anyone? From the Wall Street Journal:
Gore-Backed Car Firm Gets Large U.S. LoanA bit about the car:
A tiny car company backed by former Vice President Al Gore has just gotten a $529 million U.S. government loan to help build a hybrid sports car in Finland that will sell for about $89,000.
The award this week to California startup Fisker Automotive Inc. follows a $465 million government loan to Tesla Motors Inc., purveyors of a $109,000 British-built electric Roadster. Tesla is a California startup focusing on all-electric vehicles, with a number of celebrity endorsements that is backed by investors that have contributed to Democratic campaigns.
The awards to Fisker and Tesla have prompted concern from companies that have had their bids for loans rejected, and criticism from groups that question why vehicles aimed at the wealthiest customers are getting loans subsidized by taxpayers.
"This is not for average Americans," said Leslie Paige, a spokeswoman for Citizens Against Government Waste, an anti-tax group in Washington. "This is for people to put something in their driveway that is a conversation piece. It's status symbol thing."
The four-door Karma, powered by a lithium-ion battery, will be able to run solely on electric power for 50 miles, and will achieve an average fuel economy of 100 mpg over the span of a year, the company says. Production is scheduled to start in December, with about 15,000 vehicles a year expected to hit the U.S. market starting next June.(cough)BULLSHIT!!!(cough) No way in hell will any kind of sports-car -- even a hybrid -- be able to achieve that kind of gas mileage. My only guess is that since they say it will run 50 miles on electricity alone, they are getting this number by running it for 60 miles and doing a full recharge at home. Doesn't look like they are factoring in the cost of the electricity used to drive the car the 50 miles either, or the fact that a good 80% of that electricity (at least in the USA) comes from dirty old coal.
