Ford kicks the can further down the road with a

[hammersley]

Ford Enters Electric Market With 2012 Focus - Gearlog

While not a truck yet - 100 miles will probably get the job done for a very large amount of Americans daily use

With the Nissan Leaf and Chevy Volt attracting plenty of attention, if not sales, it's not surprising that other automotive manufacturers are jumping into the electric vehicle market as well. At this year's CES Ford announced that the popular Focus model would be available as an EV starting at the end of this year.

The car will based on the standard 2012 version of the Focus and will have an expected range of 100 miles and a top speed of around 84 miles per hour. One of the defining features of the EV Focus, though, appears to be its charging time. Ford is claiming that the car will be able to fully recharge in three to four hours, which is about half of the time for most similar cars. Best Buy is lending its support to the new car and will be installing 240 volt charging stations at stores across the country.

Since it was unveiled at a gadget expo, the EV Focus also comes packed with some neat little features. That includes the new MyFord Touch dashboard, as well as a mobile app that lets you unlock doors, set charging times, and more. The Ford Focus EV will be available for sale in November 2011.

 

[Regcabguy]

Great.

Who shops at Best Buy for 3-4 hrs?

 

[HBarlow]

And who wants to drive a toy electric car to or from Best Buy?

My German Shepherds are too proud to ride in toy car.

 

[rscurtis]

If Ford really wanted to make a statement, they'd sell the European Fiesta Econotec diesel in this country, and give VW a run for their money.



According to the Diesel Technology Forum, sales of diesel cars in the US are up 37% in 2010 over 2009 sales.



This is nothing more than the American manufacturers following, instead of leading. Hopefully Chrysler LLC will show a little more imagination under Marchione.

 

[RustyJC]

Hopefully Chrysler LLC will show a little more imagination under Marchione.

Doesn't look like it. If you believe the auto mags, we're going to get an electric version of the Fiat 500 in the U. S.



Although I'm not in the market for one, I'm probably the target demographic for an EV. My daily commute is about 9. 5 miles each way - 19 miles per day total, then in the garage at night. For my commuting application, an EV would probably work just fine, but that's about it.



Rusty

 

[hammersley]

Probably NOBODY - BUT I assume

Who shops at Best Buy for 3-4 hrs?

other than posturing - these stations would probably be like parking meters in that you have to buy the electricity - and just like stations not everybody has an empty tank or fills up - believe it or not many people still put in $5 or $10 of fuel.

 

[Simplysmn]

What I want to see is a real crash test between the new piles of crap they call car's and a diesel pick/up you would be picked out with a stick n a spoon and a body bag

 

[GaryOwen]

other than posturing - these stations would probably be like parking meters in that you have to buy the electricity - and just like stations not everybody has an empty tank or fills up - believe it or not many people still put in $5 or $10 of fuel.

I saw a Ford rep speaking about the electric Focus yesterday. From what I gathered, Best Buy would be installing the charging stations at the Focus purchasers homes - not at the stores. The cost would be $1499 for installation, which is supposedly much cheaper than for the Leaf or Volt. It is a 230 volt system.

 

[rscurtis]

$1499 will buy a whole lot of fuel for my old Mercedes, even at today's and the future's projected prices.

 

[HBarlow]

I read and chuckled at all the comments above. I agree with each of you. I guess we aren't a very good market for tiny electric play cars.

My wife drives a Nissan Murano. I could easily persuade her to replace it with another Murano in a couple of years with a diesel engine or another brand of SUV with a diesel. Neither of us would give a dollar for a tiny electric car.

Like simplysam wrote above, I would be afraid of being killed if I had a traffic collision with a motorscooter while driving an aluminum foil wrapped play car.

 

[Simplysmn]

Harvey the reason I say that and I know you are agreeing with me but as big as I am { 7 ft} 350 lb's I can make a big truck look small in a hurry but try to put someone my size into a smart car or Pirus and I had a accident you would be picking what's left of me out of the pile of metal with a stick n spoon or maybe a Vac they just don't make car's like they use to when you were surrounded by true metal instead of Plastic now day's

 

[rscurtis]

Electric cars may be viable for part of the population (myself included), as long as you have another long-range vehicle when required.



Since the USA burns a BILLION tons of coal per year for power generation, their environmental benefit is questionable at best.



There would also be some reduction of oil imports, but not nearly the 1. 5 million barrels per day that Audi claims a 30% diesel car penetration would deliver.