Fisker Inc. is facing delays on delivering its debut electric SUV to customers because of problems integrating software into the vehicles, according to people familiar with the matter.
The EV startup, which commenced production in November at contract manufacturer Magna International Inc.’s plant in Austria, needs more testing and troubleshooting of software, said two people who asked not to be named because the information hasn’t been publicly disclosed. The software is currently prone to glitches, the people said, estimating the issues could take months to iron out. As a result, they said some vehicles are only using a more basic software that limits the vehicles’ speed.
Fisker said in an emailed statement that the vehicle’s “software will be updated over-the-air during the year” after launching with a basic advanced driver-assistance system. “We categorically deny that the Fisker Ocean can be driven at only low speeds,” it said.
A representative for Magna declined to comment and directed all questions to Fisker.
The first of Fisker’s Ocean SUVs was delivered last week to a customer in Denmark. But the vehicle is already on its way back to Magna’s plant in Austria, according to one of the people, who said the software problems rendered it inoperable.
In February, the Los Angeles-based company maintained production guidance of 42,400 for the vehicle this year, though it pushed back the completion date of testing needed for US certification of the EV to March from February. The Ocean received European certification in late April and it’s still pending in the US.
The company, which went public through a reverse merger in 2020, reports its latest financial results and production figures on Tuesday. Last year, Fisker said Magna could make as many as 50,000 Oceans in 2023, while reservations for the car have hovered around 65,000.
Struggles to make the jump from presenting a slick prototype to production are common in the industry, even for established companies. Tesla Inc. famously went through “production hell” to ramp up output of the Model 3. German auto giant Volkswagen AG has encountered problems with the software on its new EVs as well, and on Monday tapped a new leader to oversee that division.
(Updates with statement from Fisker in third paragraph.)
