I bought a new $70,000 car that I can’t even drive – I wish I’d seen red flags before it became a ‘lawn ornament’

A CONSUMER has expressed feelings about their new car changing fast when they couldn’t get any customer support from its carmaker.

Fisker owners are struggling to take care of their vehicles as the automaker recently filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

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Just weeks after the EV company’s collapse into bankruptcy, numerous owners are finding themselves stuck with automobiles hopelessly falling apart as they can get no assistance from Fisker.

The electric car manufacturer filed for bankruptcy on June 17, Fortune reported.

Additionally, its stock price closed at two cents on June 27.

Some Fisker owners say they paid as much as $70,000 for their EVs.

The Fisker Ocean owner who spoke with Business Insider about the issues he’d been experiencing asked to remain anonymous.

He shared that he got his car in November 2023 and is still waiting to have a battery problem that made his vehicle unusable in April, but it was fixed.

“I have a car loan for five years for $70,000,” the driver stated.

“So I am paying for a brand new vehicle that I cannot drive.”

The man said that the Fisker Ocean is “parked in my driveway.”

“The car can’t be locked because the 12-volt battery and high-voltage battery have been disconnected,” he explained.

“It’s literally a lawn ornament right now.”

Fisker has been receiving a lot of backlash online with complaints from drivers of its cars.

YouTube reviewer Marques Brownlee deemed it the “worst car” he had ever reviewed.

Before Fisker filed for bankruptcy, the company laid off most of its workforce.

Fisker's statement after bankruptcy

Fisker said in a statement on June 17 that it's proud of its achievements.

• “Fisker has made incredible progress since our founding, bringing the Ocean SUV to market twice as fast as expected in the auto industry and making good on our promises to deliver the most sustainable vehicle in the world. We are proud of our achievements, and we have put thousands of Fisker Ocean SUVs in customers’ hands in both North America and Europe. But like other companies in the electric vehicle industry, we have faced various market and macroeconomic headwinds that have impacted our ability to operate efficiently. After evaluating all options for our business, we determined that proceeding with a sale of our assets under Chapter 11 is the most viable path forward for the company.”

SOURCE: Fisker

On top of that, the manufacturer’s Ocean EV also had a recall in June for a body-related problem that caused car owners to have issues with the door handles.

With its operations slowing down, it seems as if it isn’t likely that owners of Fisker vehicles will have any problems addressed by the company.

Steven Hammer is a Fisker owner from Colorado who said he spent months trying to source a glass panel for his Ocean’s “SolarSky Roof.”

The element is a roof-mounted solar panel that the company advertised as a feature that allows drivers to supplement their battery.

Hammer couldn’t reach anyone from the company and local dealers were unable to install the replacement part for the Fisker.

He ultimately had to pay to transport his car to a Fisker-certified dealership in another state.

“There are days where the only solace is it’s not a Cybertruck,” Hammer said.

“I do sometimes look back and wish I’d seen some of the red flags.”

Another Fisker owner who asked to remain anonymous said he began having brake problems days after his $70,000 Ocean was delivered in November.

He reported the issue to Fisker, but it was never resolved.

The manufacturer did rented him a loaner vehicle from Hertz while he waited for the problem to be fixed.

In June, he received a letter from Hertz informing him that Fisker had failed to pay the rental charge for the loaner vehicle.

The driver was being charged nearly $5,000.

“I was so excited, super excited, when I first ordered the car,” he admitted.

“But now I think this is a $70,000 mistake I made.”

The car buyer even added that he’d be disputing the charge for the Hertz vehicle through his credit card provider.

“Fisker stopped responding two to three months ago,” the driver stated.

“They stopped responding to any support or service request even before the bankruptcy.”

After getting the Fisker back with its brakes supposedly fixed, the car owner said he continued to drive it short distances despite the braking issues.

Similar to what other car owners have shared, the driver added that he thought it was only a matter of time before something else broke.