@Xiaolong: Again, please avoid insulting other commenters with words like "clueless," OK?

I also note that 17 of the 49 comments on this thread are yours: roughly one-third. Perhaps you could consider giving this topic a rest. Thank you.

@Xiaolong: This is your friendly site moderator, reminding you (once again) to keep it POLITE. Please avoid the use of the word "sucks".

There are plenty of ways to argue the merits of your case, using facts and statistics, without appearing to be quite so rude. Thank you.

@Justin: Even better, it's $50 a year--not a month!

A note from the author of this article: Is it fair to assume, then, that few of the Fisker owners who have commented on this thread would be interested in swapping out their range-extended electric powertrain for the Destino V-8 system?

Leave me your thoughts here. Curious to get a reading from those who have commented.

@Chris: I believe that sales figure of 5 is for the ZE electric version of the Fluence.

There are also diesel and gasoline versions that sell in rather higher numbers.

@Andre: Yes. I drove the car.

@Xiaolong: The car's steel structure is stamped in the U.S. Its lithium-ion cells are fabricated here, as is its battery pack. The electric traction motor is made here as well. And one of the ways Nissan cut its costs is by sourcing as much as possible in the U.S. to avoid currency swings.

I scanned a 2013 Nissan Leaf window sticker and it doesn't have a domestic parts percentage. But that data comes out every so often. Cars.com did an "American-Made Index" but it hasn't been updated since 2010, for instance.

Yep. Right here:
http://www.greencarreports.com/news/1084096_should-epa-gas-mileage-ratings-tests-change-what-you-need-to-know

@John: Thanks for weighing in on "real journalists" & what we do.

You may be unaware that the vast majority of print & digital media routinely go on these trips. They are the simplest, quickest way for an automaker to get new cars in front of many reporters at once.

All four automotive "buff books" take them; so does the biggest trade paper, Automotive News; and MANY others. A handful of the largest newspapers and many broadcast networks don't accept trips; I believe a couple of the news services don't either. Nor does Consumer Reports.

Most don't disclose such trips; High Gear Media does.

You may choose to refine your notion of automotive journalism based on these facts. Or not.

@S M: If you'd read the article, you might have noticed that the engineer was a woman ....