According to documents filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the financially troubled Fisker Inc. has recalled every single Ocean produced in 2023 for a software issue affecting two control units. Said issue results in the vehicle's failsafe mode triggering without any prior warning, which leads to a loss of propulsion.
Both control units are supplied by contract manufacturer Magna Steyr, which – as you're well aware – is tasked with producing the Ocean. However, it's not clear if the iffy software was also provided by Manga Steyr. In any case, said vehicle control unit and motor control unit software was released for road testing in December 2023.
Through February 2024, winter testing revealed that vehicles may enter failsafe mode in specific use cases. Think wheel slip on icy surfaces at low speed, the driver changing from deceleration to acceleration at low speed, repeated maximum acceleration and deceleration, and so forth. The ailing company notes that warning lights will illuminate once said mode has been activated.
Fisker identified the root cause behind these unexpected loss of drive power events in February 2024, but updated software was released into series production at the tail end of April 2024. More than a month later, the Fisker Decision Committee decided to release the updated software to all vehicles. Fisker dealers have already been instructed to update affected vehicles, which number 7,145 units for the North American market (6,864 examples in the US and 281 in Canada).
As far as the US market is concerned, owners will be notified via first-class mail no later than June 30. The remedy software modifies the torque safety monitor thresholds, adapting them to the previously mentioned scenarios. In a similar fashion to many Tesla recalls, owners can update over the air.
Photo: Fisker
Affected vehicles were assembled in the period from May 1, 2023 through December 31, 2023. Their 17-character VINs begin with the letters VC, while Austria's vehicle identification numbers range from VA through VE. There are exceptions to this rule, though. The Magna Steyr-produced BMW Z4 and Toyota GR Supra, for example, both start with W for Germany because BMW is based in the largest city of the Bavarian state and because they feature BMW parts under the skin.
As opposed to BMW and Toyota, which are commercially successful in their own respective segments, Fisker is on the brink of going bankrupt. After securing a short-term loan worth $3.5 million at the beginning of May 2024, the company defaulted on it at the beginning of June 2024.
It goes without saying that defaulting on such a sum is bad news for both Fisker and those rooting for the automaker founded by Henrik Fisker. You know, the guy who contributed to the design of the fabulous-looking BMW Z8, a few Aston Martins, and the Artega GT. The Danish automotive designer also performed initial design work on the Model S electric sedan that helped Tesla level up from small-scale to mass-market production, therefore setting the stage for the Model 3.
The Model Y-competing Ocean is currently listed with price reductions of up to $24,000 for 2023 models. According to the configurator, the Ocean Sport kicks off at $38,999, followed by the Ultra at $52,999 and the Extreme grade at $61,499.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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